38% of People Say It’s Fine to Start Eating at a Restaurant Before Everyone’s Food Has Arrived

What’s your policy on people starting to eat at a restaurant BEFORE everyone has their meal?

A website conducted a survey on “controversial” restaurant behaviors . . . and asked people if they thought these things were cool or NOT cool.  Thousands of people weighed in, and here are a few results:

1.  62% of people say it’s NOT COOL to start eating before everyone’s food has arrived . . . unless the waiter has specifically said that there will be a delay.  38% say it’s cool to start eating your food ASAP.

(There are special circumstances.  But if YOUR food is running late, it’s a nice courtesy to let others know they can begin while their food is hot.)

2.  87% of people say it’s NOT COOL to argue with a host about wait times because you see empty tables . . . if don’t have a reservation.

3.  82% say it’s NOT COOL to bring in outside food, unless it’s specifically allowed.  There are legitimate exceptions, like food allergies.

4.  73% say it’s NOT COOL to ask for something that’s not on the menu.  Again, there are reasonable exceptions, like allergies or dietary restrictions.  Most places should at least allow you to remove items you can’t eat.

5.  58% say it’s NOT COOL to tip less than 20% if the service was good.  Those who said it’s fine may have a lower default tip . . . it’s not that they refuse to tip.

6.  37% say it’s NOT COOL to take photos of your meal.  63% say it’s fine.

7.  About half, 49% of people, say it’s NOT COOL to ask for your check to be split more than four ways . . . and another half says it’s NOT COOL to ask for separate bills after the check arrives at the table.

(Just read the room and communicate with your server.  Big places these days should have systems that make bill-splitting easy . . . but if you’d like a complicated arrangement, just give your server a heads-up.)

(For more, hit up Buzzfeed.com.)