Yesterday, I visited a Grandson who has taken a new job on the central WA coast. To celebrate his new job and home, I took him for a meal at a restaurant of his choice. We went to a small joint where I was introduced to a new operating style. We were greeted and seated in the conventional manner and given menus to study. There was no wall between the dining area and kitchen, just a counter so you could see all the activity.
Then the hostess told us there were no waiters to take our order. We were to make our selections and one of us could go up to a spot in front of the kitchen where we would tell an employee what we wanted to eat.
No server brought us coffee, water or other drinks. We got these (plus silverware and condiments) from a corner table and then took them back to our table ourselves. The same was true with refills. Our food was brought to us by kitchen staff.
It was an informal, friendly and relaxed experience and the food was generous and very good. A plus was when a fight broke out in the kitchen between two brothers who were working there. The hostess, a small early middle aged lady marched the two out of the building like a Marine Drill Sargent and we watched them both climb into the same car and drive away. For some reason, that brief scene delighted me and made the whole dining experience memorable.
As we left, I asked the hostess if I came back could she arrange a bit longer fight to watch.
