Free Concierge Confidential by Michael Fazio Page B

going in, and that there’s no way the person at the front is going to stop him—except the person at the front will stop him, every time. His alpha male magic won’t cut it.
    Then there are the business card people. Just because you are the vice president of a department at some big company, you are not going to impress them at the door with your card. It doesn’t matter how embossed your card is or how thick your card stock. Everyone might respect you at work because you’re in charge of the system there, but that doesn’t carry over like a bubble of entitlement. You need to respect the hostess, because she’s in charge of the system there at the restaurant.
    The one technique people use that sometimes works is the straight bribe. But because everyone knows about the straight bribe, it’s a very hit-and-miss approach. Sometimes they will refuse you and treat you like dirt. Sometimes they’ll take your money and, eventually, give you a seat. But even then you aren’t really on the team—you’ve only bought your way onto the bench.
    HOW TO TREAT THE STAFF
    In New York, where the tax is over 8 percent, people have a habit of simply doubling their tax to approximate a 15 percent tip. Don’t . Everyone thinks the tip on a meal is 15 percent, and it’s not—and hasn’t been for years. The tip is absolutely, without a doubt, 20 percent. The waiters all talk about how annoying doubling the tax is, because the difference is usually only a few dollars. When you’re spending $200 on dinner, does it really matter? Waitstaff are exempt from minimum wage laws, since those tips are expected to be their salary. When you’re giving them a small tip, you’re really giving them a pay cut.
    The biggest mistake most people make when they tip is when tipping on a credit card. Unlike when they’re paid with cash, waiters get taxed on their credit card tips. A ten-dollar tip on a credit card becomes seven dollars. So if you’ve doubled the tax and then left a credit card tip, you’ve effectively only tipped about 12 percent.
    A common misconception is that waiters don’t have clout. They do. A lot of times there are employee meals in the afternoon, where the chef is trying something new or there’s something left over. The waiter can go back and tell the chef that the guests at table 21 are friends of his. The chef will then send out the special on a little tray and you’ll feel like a big movie star. The waiters can give you free drinks. They can send you dessert. They have a lot of pull—and they will remember you, for better or worse.
    It’s not just about the tipping, either. There are big tippers that are a pain in the ass. The waiters feel like whores because they definitely know that some tippers are good for a few hundred bucks—but they don’t want to serve them. It’s drudgery, and they rarely give those people extra anything. But a person who treats the waiter (or anybody in service) like it’s a business-to-business transaction will get amazing results.
    Most people don’t realize this, but anybody can ask the waiter or the manager if they can meet the chef. That’s usually a really good political move because it substantiates your position as somebody who appreciates being there. If you make it known that you love it so much that you want to see the kitchen, that’s an excellent way to solidify a relationship with an establishment.
    Chefs often feel unappreciated because people usually only want to talk to them if something was done wrong. That’s why they love it when somebody comes in and tells them how beautifully the meal was done. Chefs are creative people. You should ask them where they worked before. You should ask them where they studied.
    However, you should never tip them. That’s rude. Instead, send them a thank-you card, or a great bottle of wine. The best trick is to mail them some