86 - Restaurant Slang

There are many different slang words and phrasesWhen the parties are ready to be served we will say
that help a restaurant become more efficient. I work athot food in the window. The window is a heat lamp
Perkins as a cook and if I was coming in as a newwhere food transitions from the kitchen to the dining
cook than I would be lost. People throw out words thatroom. Hot food also means that the servers need to
aren't what people use in everyday life. The answer ofget the food out to the customers as soon as
why the restaurant business does this is simple, itspossible. Occasionally, a server will ask for a small or
time. Cooks and servers don't have time to sit theremedium round, this could be confusing to some but
and explain what they need because it is wasting time,means they want a small or medium plate. Also if the
especially when the restaurant is busy. Not just cooksperson in charge up front isn't telling the cooks how
and servers do this; people in school and work do thismany tops we have then I can ask for a menu count.
as well. For example, a college student listening to aThey may say 5 open menus. A menu count is simply
lecture and the teacher talks way to fast, to writejust counting how many menus people are looking at in
everything down they abbreviate. Cooks and serversthe dining room so the cooks can know if they can
do this to have faster and more efficient service.take a break, let people off, start cleaning or start
There are typical words you here in the restaurantclosing. There are a lot slang words for food or
business. To start off the day I hear things like can youinstruments like, CFS, Scrambler set up, or a spat.
grab me a baker, this simply means can you grab meThese are pretty easy to interpret, a CFS is a country
a baked potato. So in return I go to grab a baker and Ifried steak, scrambler set up is a little bowl that holds
find that there are none left. So I run back to thebreakfast potatoes and a spat is a spatula.
kitchen and yell 86 bakers. 86 bakers mean there areTo end the day I might ask someone if I can clock out.
no longer any more baked potatoes in the building andIn return they might say sure if you got all your
the servers have to tell the customers to orderside-work done. Words like clock out or side-work
something else. 86 something can also be used withmight be confusing to some but clocking out is signing
any other kind of food. I then get back to my stationout on the computer so you can get off work and
and I ask the wheel which is the person reading of theleave and side-work is s seemingly list of preparatory
tickets to the cooks, how many cakes I have all day.tasks like taking out the trash, stocking my area, or
A cake is another word for a pancake and all day issweeping the floor.
how many cakes all together are on the tickets. TheShorting up words in the restaurant business can be
person in charge up front then comes back and says Ivery helpful to speed up the process of getting food
have a fourteen, twelve, and an eight top. This meansout to the customers. In my opinion, I think that these
there is a dining party of fourteen, twelve, and eight atwords are very creative and when you start working
separate tables. In other words these are going to longin this business it starts making sense of why they use
tickets, on separate trays, and we should get preparedthem. It's hard to tell who made up the words but I'm
and stocked.sure they just evolved over time.