Originally Posted by
Badenoch
That "driver of service" has created a category of overly solicitous, overly familiar, intrusive and often irritating servers. This class of sever thinks they are part of the family, ask what "we" are having, are constantly interrupting the meal to see "how everyone is doing," promoting specials, pushing desserts and then dropping the bill on you with "I'll just take that when you are ready. And should, heaven forbid, you not eat everything on your plate they will inquire if there was a problem with the food or if you want a doggie bag. I'll take European service every time.
I don't like over-friendly, over-familiar service either.
But this isn't my experience. While there are certainly servers like you describe, most I've encountered are not. Just like any profession, there are people who are better at their jobs than others. Now, there are certain restaurant chains that have actually promoted this type of familiar behavior -- it was really popular in the 90's among several chains. I suppose I don't eat at those restaurants very often though.
In any case, I think it's incorrect to generally tie the described behavior to the practice of tipping. It's more of an individual issue or that of a particular restaurant. To each his own, but I find that I get better service overall in the US than most European countries -- again, it's not in terms of the server being my best friend, it's about them helping guide me to having an enjoyable meal.