Back in Time Today
Going out to eat used to be a totally different experience! Restaurant culture has evolved dramatically over the past few decades, leaving behind some truly peculiar practices we once considered normal.
From health hazards we barely noticed to awkward service traditions, these restaurant customs from yesteryear will make you wonder how we ever thought they were acceptable.
1. Smoking at the Table (Even Indoors!)
The air in restaurants once hung heavy with cigarette smoke as diners puffed away between bites. Those flimsy “smoking” and “non-smoking” sections were practically meaningless – just a booth apart with nothing stopping the smoke from drifting everywhere. Kids colored placemats while adults ashed into tiny trays right on the dining table. The smell clung to your clothes and hair for hours afterward, yet somehow nobody thought twice about it!
2. Salad Bars With Tongs Everyone Touched
Remember those glistening salad bars where dozens of strangers handled the same metal tongs before you? The plastic sneeze guard did little to protect those communal croutons and bacon bits from whatever germs lurked nearby. Children would often reach under the guard, grabbing olives with bare fingers. Despite being obvious germ factories, these self-serve stations were considered the height of dining luxury and value – all you can eat for just $4.99!
3. Asking to “See the Dessert Tray”
The flourish of the dessert tray presentation was once restaurant theater at its finest. Your server would wheel over an actual tray of cake slices and pie wedges – sometimes real, sometimes plastic replicas that had been sitting out for months. You’d point at what looked good while they held the tray at an awkward angle. The plastic versions always looked more appetizing than what actually arrived at your table, leading to inevitable disappointment when your real dessert appeared.
4. Leaving Kids Alone With Crayons and Ashtrays
Parents once thought nothing of letting their children doodle on paper placemats mere inches from ashtrays filled with cigarette butts. The crayon box came standard at family restaurants, often accompanied by a children’s menu shaped like a mask or hat. Meanwhile, that glass ashtray sat dangerously close, sometimes doubling as a crayon holder when empty. The combination seems unthinkable now – toxic smoke, fire hazards, and choking risks all within a child’s reach during mealtime.
5. Getting a Peppermint or Toothpick With the Check
The universal signal that your dining experience was complete: those little cellophane-wrapped peppermints or wooden toothpicks arriving with your bill. Starlight mints in their crinkly wrappers were practically currency at certain establishments. Fancy places offered those green-tipped toothpicks instead. The mint wasn’t just a breath freshener – it was the restaurant’s final handshake, a small token that somehow made paying the bill slightly less painful.
6. Servers Kneeling at the Table to Take Your Order
The early 2000s brought the bizarre trend of servers dropping to one knee beside your table. This awkward positioning put their faces uncomfortably close to yours while they recited specials with forced enthusiasm. Chain restaurants claimed this created a more personal connection. In reality, it just made everyone at the table shift uncomfortably in their seats. You’d pretend not to notice the server wincing as they rose from kneeling on hard tile floors after taking orders from table after table.
7. Birthday Songs from the Entire Staff
The moment of dread when you spotted servers gathering in the corner with that sparkler-topped dessert. Your friend had betrayed you by telling the staff it was your birthday, and now you’d face the music – literally. Some chains went beyond simple singing with elaborate clapping routines, tambourines, and embarrassing birthday hats. The entire restaurant would stare as you awkwardly smiled through the performance, pretending to enjoy being the center of attention while silently plotting revenge on whoever arranged this spectacle.
8. Sitting at Sticky Booths With Laminated Menus
Those vinyl booths had a particular squeak when you slid across them, usually accompanied by a slight stickiness from years of spilled soda and maple syrup. Nobody seemed bothered by this tactile experience that came standard at most diners. The laminated menus were equally suspicious – slightly tacky to touch and sporting mysterious stains. You’d flip through pages held together by metal rings, trying not to think about how many hands had touched them since their last wipe-down.
9. Ordering Jell-O as a Legit Dessert Option
Jiggly, artificially colored gelatin once held an esteemed place on restaurant dessert menus. It wasn’t just for hospital cafeterias – even decent establishments proudly served wobbly cubes topped with a dollop of Cool Whip or a maraschino cherry. Some places got fancy with parfait glasses and layered colors. Kids would fight over who got the green or red squares from the children’s menu. The most sophisticated version came as a mold with suspended fruit cocktail pieces – the height of culinary achievement!
10. Paying With Traveler’s Checks or Exact Change
Before digital payments, the end of meals involved elaborate financial rituals. People would whip out checkbooks or those paper traveler’s checks that required ID verification and multiple signatures right at the table. Others performed complex coin-counting operations, creating neat stacks of quarters and dimes for exact payment. Splitting the bill was a mathematical nightmare involving paper, pencils, and arguments about who had the appetizer. Servers would stand by awkwardly, watching this financial theater unfold for minutes on end.
11. Calling the Waiter “Garçon” (Even if They Weren’t French)
A bizarre phase swept through American dining culture where people thought summoning servers with “Garçon!” was the epitome of sophistication. This happened primarily at regular chain restaurants with zero French connections. The poor servers – usually teenagers named Mike or Jennifer – would cringe while pretending to appreciate your worldliness. It didn’t matter that the restaurant served mozzarella sticks and buffalo wings. Somehow, using this French term made certain diners feel they were elevating the Applebee’s experience to fine dining.
12. Getting Free Bread and Butter—No Questions Asked
The automatic bread basket was once the universal welcome gift at sit-down restaurants. Moments after being seated, warm rolls, breadsticks, or slices would appear like magic – completely free and replenished without asking. Some places got fancy with garlic knots or honey butter. The bread often arrived before you even ordered drinks, sometimes becoming an entire pre-meal for hungry patrons. Many diners filled up before their entrées arrived, leading to the classic “I shouldn’t have eaten so much bread” regret when the actual food appeared.
13. “No Substitutions” Signs Were Everywhere
Bold warnings about “NO SUBSTITUTIONS” once decorated menus everywhere, striking fear into the hearts of picky eaters. Restaurants treated their side dish pairings as sacred combinations that couldn’t possibly be altered. Asking to swap fries for a salad was treated like requesting the chef rebuild the restaurant. Special dietary needs weren’t accommodated with today’s understanding – you’d get eye-rolls for mentioning allergies. The kitchen staff apparently believed culinary collapse would occur if they put mashed potatoes where green beans were meant to be.
14. Restaurant Pagers for Your Table
Those hockey puck-sized vibrating devices were once cutting-edge restaurant technology. The host would hand you this mysterious black disc with complete seriousness, instructing you not to leave the vicinity while waiting. When your table was ready, the pager would erupt with lights and violent buzzing that startled everyone nearby. Parents lived in constant fear their children would drop these priceless devices or wander too far with them. Some restaurants even threatened fees if you accidentally took one home or – worse – lost it entirely.
15. Doggie Bags Wrapped Like Swans
Leftover packaging was once an art form practiced by servers with flair. Your half-eaten steak would be transformed into an aluminum foil sculpture – most commonly a swan with graceful neck and wings. These metallic origami creations were both practical and decorative. The elaborate wrapping served no functional purpose beyond showing off your server’s hidden talents. Carrying these shiny creatures through the restaurant and into your car became a badge of honor, proving you’d experienced service with artistic flourish before Instagram-worthy presentation was even a concept.