How to begin and where to end describing the extremely odd etiquette in Taiwan’s roadside restaurants? Besides the appalling manners and folksy charm, there also seems to be almost no awareness of those other than the one who is eating; themselves.
My girlfriend works in a very busy and successful but smallish restaurant in one of the night market areas. So I have had first hand observation of some of the day to day operations of one of these places. Some of you may also be privy to these things, but because I have a seat semi-reserved near the prep-area, I may have a different perspective.
One of the strangest things I have noticed is utter disregard for the employees of these restaurants by the customers. During Chinese New Year when this restaurant was fiercely busy, people would walk right through the cooking area as if it didn’t exist. There would be more than a dozen people being served or waiting (which should be obvious), but the only thing these people would be thinking about is the fastest way to a table, bumping into the employees on their way through the tiny space.
This happens whether it is busy or not. They have no idea that because they are doing this, they will probably have to wait that much longer to be served, no matter how loud they yell at the servers. If my girlfriend is busy preparing meals that are ready to go, customers will badger her from behind and beside her for their orders, oblivious of the order she is preparing.
Of course it is not always this way. There are some great regulars who come in and they seem to be polite and kind enough to let her do her thing and she will get around to them. Some are occasional customers who behave themselves yet still do the oddest things. More often than not she has to grin and bear it.
I have noticed more than once or twice that it takes all the people at a given table to pay for the meal. They must all stand tightly together and press up against my table so that whoever is paying will have close company, and they all get in on the act. This seems to be some sort of treat after the meal for them. However, this crowds the preparation area and doesn’t seem to faze them in the least
The most important thing to them is that they all pay for the meal as a group, standing shoulder-to-shoulder.
Because of the proximity of my table, people tend to stand right above me for longish periods without noticing I am trying to eat. I realise that my table is near the kitchen of this outdoor restaurant, but for a long while their head will be almost right over top of me when there is plenty of room a few feet to the right. I’ll give them a look as if to say “do you mind?”, but they have no idea. I wonder how they would feel if I crowded their table? Probably nothing I suppose.
People also reach straight across my table, over my plate of food, arm nudging my chopsticks, just to grab a napkin from the far side of the table. It seems there is nothing impolite about this behavior. I’ve taken to placing the napkins on the stool beside my table so that everyone must go that extra mile to grab a napkin.
Some people are utterly lost when they come into the area of the restaurant and don’t realise where to sit to be served. So they quiz my girl on this. Some will play musical chairs until they are satisfied, ordering at one table and receiving their meal at another when my girlfriend realises they have moved.
The lauban is a prick. He has one of the best restaurants in the area and is never satisfied with the volume of service and takes it out on everyone including his Mainland wife and my girlfriend, who happens to be a natural server and he probably wouldn’t have half the customers if it wasn’t for her. She has quit twice now and he has begged her to come back both time after a week or so. Then he goes right back to being a prick. She’s pulling in about NT$40,000 a month so she sticks around.
These restaurants are off the rails as far as civilized atmosphere goes, but there are some evenings when it is enjoyable to be there. I love eating outside and the wide open nature of these places can be stimulating. Some of the other regular customers are genuinely good people and we all share some good times together. Most of the staff is good at what they do but have to be bullet-proof to work in that environment.
But because I see what they go through every day, it makes me appreciate teaching that much more and thank my lucky stars I don’t have to serve in a Taiwanese restaurant.
