Do you eat with your guests?

[The Farmers Daughter]

During breakfast do you sit down and eat with your guests? I am usually a whirling dervish at breakfast time between the cooking and serving and the inroom dining and the main room dining. It would never work for me, but I know some innkeepers do it. What do you do?

 

[gillumhouse]

I will sometimes sit with my coffee but it is VERY rare that I would eat with a guest. The scenario of that happening would be a single woman guest and no others and by invite to join her or if it was someone I knew - had been here before or someone I knew from my tourism activities. I usually just stand against the doorframe leading to my room so I am visible to all at the table without having to turn around.

 

[wendydk]

Nope, not ever. We have gone out after breakfast for coffee and conversation with guests, tho.

 

[EmptyNest]

Never, we are the hosts and I really don't care to sit down to eat...we are too busy preparing and serving. We chat as we serve and then talk more after we have cleaned up the dishes from the table if they have any questions etc. I never liked eating with innkeepers....more personal than I want to be.

 

[SweetiePie]

I have on occasion, but only when invited. Usually it is a couple I've really clicked with or if a single person is staying and wants company.

 

[egoodell]

Never, I am there to serve and pamper. Not even with wine tour guests when they tell us to join them. Our goal is for them to relax and reconnect. As said previously, if I had a single traveler who asked for company I'd join with my coffee only. Like others, we go out and chat with our coffee when they are finished to see if they need suggestions or directions.
To me it would be like your favorite waiter or bartender sitting down with you at your table having dinner with you. You like them, but didn't plan to dine out with them.
Riki

 

[Don Draper]

Too busy for one, but wouldn't do it anyway as it feels a bit too familiar for me. We serve, then stand with coffee and chat/answer questions, then it's time to clear, reset and serve again.

 

[user 26]

no ... but at the end of the serving ... or when there was one couple or single remaining, they would often ask me to please sit with them and chat. sometimes it would be two couples, but usually it was one.
and they would linger ....
when this request is made, i feel it's important to recognize that this is a guest who craves innkeeper time. their stay is not complete if they want more interaction with the innkeeper(s) and don't get it. these are the guests who often turn into repeats and boosters (guests who refer others to you)
i would get a cup of coffee or tea and sit at a nearby table (i had tables for two and four fairly close together). and just chat. usually they wanted to know about me and i'd tell them a bit and then ask about THEM.
i'd set a mental timer in my head without making this apparent to the guests ... and then, when done, i'd say it was lovely to chat with them but i had to do xyz ...

 

[Mary at Bridgewater Inn and Cottage]

Thought I replyed to this question before

or is my light bulb up there getting dim ? All breakfast are room service (on a tray,they pick what they want) so I do not sit with them and most often they take the tray to bed with them......Mary in Bridgewater Va.

 

[YellowSocks]

Hardly ever... I did once because a repeat guest (who was dining alone) specifically requested it. It felt odd, but it was a fun change of pace.
I will occasionally sit and chat, but only now and then... usually it's stand at the end of the table and do my song and dance.
But I recently had a discussion with a non-forum innkeeper who does sit and eat with their guests... when I implied perhaps it would be better not to the innkeeper said they felt that most of their guests expected it (except the newlyweds, which they don't eat with anyway). They said that all the innkeepers they knew did so. (Except me, obviously!)
=)
Kk.

 

[JBloggs]

Have you ever been to a funky restaurant where the wait staff sits down in your booth and takes your order? same same to me...it is crossing the service line.

 

[EmptyNest]

Hardly ever... I did once because a repeat guest (who was dining alone) specifically requested it. It felt odd, but it was a fun change of pace.
I will occasionally sit and chat, but only now and then... usually it's stand at the end of the table and do my song and dance.
But I recently had a discussion with a non-forum innkeeper who does sit and eat with their guests... when I implied perhaps it would be better not to the innkeeper said they felt that most of their guests expected it (except the newlyweds, which they don't eat with anyway). They said that all the innkeepers they knew did so. (Except me, obviously!)
=)
Kk..

Sounds like you better turn them on to this forum

 

[egoodell]

Hardly ever... I did once because a repeat guest (who was dining alone) specifically requested it. It felt odd, but it was a fun change of pace.
I will occasionally sit and chat, but only now and then... usually it's stand at the end of the table and do my song and dance.
But I recently had a discussion with a non-forum innkeeper who does sit and eat with their guests... when I implied perhaps it would be better not to the innkeeper said they felt that most of their guests expected it (except the newlyweds, which they don't eat with anyway). They said that all the innkeepers they knew did so. (Except me, obviously!)
=)
Kk..

Hardly ever... I did once because a repeat guest (who was dining alone) specifically requested it. It felt odd, but it was a fun change of pace.
I will occasionally sit and chat, but only now and then... usually it's stand at the end of the table and do my song and dance.
But I recently had a discussion with a non-forum innkeeper who does sit and eat with their guests... when I implied perhaps it would be better not to the innkeeper said they felt that most of their guests expected it (except the newlyweds, which they don't eat with anyway). They said that all the innkeepers they knew did so. (Except me, obviously!)
=)
Kk.

Yuk. To me that's a Homestay - staying at someone's house, not a B&B. I don't want the innkeepers eating with me unless they are a friend with whom I am staying, like someone from the forum.
Otherwise, let me have my vacation! I get too few of them to be descended on like that!
RIki

 

[Breakfast Diva]

Hardly ever... I did once because a repeat guest (who was dining alone) specifically requested it. It felt odd, but it was a fun change of pace.
I will occasionally sit and chat, but only now and then... usually it's stand at the end of the table and do my song and dance.
But I recently had a discussion with a non-forum innkeeper who does sit and eat with their guests... when I implied perhaps it would be better not to the innkeeper said they felt that most of their guests expected it (except the newlyweds, which they don't eat with anyway). They said that all the innkeepers they knew did so. (Except me, obviously!)
=)
Kk..

Hardly ever... I did once because a repeat guest (who was dining alone) specifically requested it. It felt odd, but it was a fun change of pace.
I will occasionally sit and chat, but only now and then... usually it's stand at the end of the table and do my song and dance.
But I recently had a discussion with a non-forum innkeeper who does sit and eat with their guests... when I implied perhaps it would be better not to the innkeeper said they felt that most of their guests expected it (except the newlyweds, which they don't eat with anyway). They said that all the innkeepers they knew did so. (Except me, obviously!)
=)
Kk.

Yuk. To me that's a Homestay - staying at someone's house, not a B&B. I don't want the innkeepers eating with me unless they are a friend with whom I am staying, like someone from the forum.
Otherwise, let me have my vacation! I get too few of them to be descended on like that!
RIki
.

There's a B&B 1/2 hour from me where the innkeepers sit down every day and eat with the guests. They don't mention this on their website and after I found out, I stopped referring people to them. I found this out because some repeat guests of ours stayed there because we were full and on their next visit told us how "creepy" it was. It was totally unexpected and I can't blame them for being uncomfortable with it.

 

[Morticia]

We do not eat with the guests, but once everyone has been fed, if they are in a chatty mood hubs will sit down at another table (never at the same table with the guests) and talk. I never sit. I lean on the desk or a wall or the kitchen counter.

 

[The Farmers Daughter]

Hardly ever... I did once because a repeat guest (who was dining alone) specifically requested it. It felt odd, but it was a fun change of pace.
I will occasionally sit and chat, but only now and then... usually it's stand at the end of the table and do my song and dance.
But I recently had a discussion with a non-forum innkeeper who does sit and eat with their guests... when I implied perhaps it would be better not to the innkeeper said they felt that most of their guests expected it (except the newlyweds, which they don't eat with anyway). They said that all the innkeepers they knew did so. (Except me, obviously!)
=)
Kk..

Hardly ever... I did once because a repeat guest (who was dining alone) specifically requested it. It felt odd, but it was a fun change of pace.
I will occasionally sit and chat, but only now and then... usually it's stand at the end of the table and do my song and dance.
But I recently had a discussion with a non-forum innkeeper who does sit and eat with their guests... when I implied perhaps it would be better not to the innkeeper said they felt that most of their guests expected it (except the newlyweds, which they don't eat with anyway). They said that all the innkeepers they knew did so. (Except me, obviously!)
=)
Kk.

Yuk. To me that's a Homestay - staying at someone's house, not a B&B. I don't want the innkeepers eating with me unless they are a friend with whom I am staying, like someone from the forum.
Otherwise, let me have my vacation! I get too few of them to be descended on like that!
RIki
.

There's a B&B 1/2 hour from me where the innkeepers sit down every day and eat with the guests. They don't mention this on their website and after I found out, I stopped referring people to them. I found this out because some repeat guests of ours stayed there because we were full and on their next visit told us how "creepy" it was. It was totally unexpected and I can't blame them for being uncomfortable with it.
.

There's a B&B 1/2 hour from me where the innkeepers sit down every day and eat with the guests. They don't mention this on their website and after I found out, I stopped referring people to them. I found this out because some repeat guests of ours stayed there because we were full and on their next visit told us how "creepy" it was. It was totally unexpected and I can't blame them for being uncomfortable with it.

There is a B & B a few towns over from me and I have had guests who have stayed there ONCE and never again. Its not that its wasn't nice or clean or anything like that, but not only would the Innkeepers sit down for breakfast with the guests, they would pull out a bible and start preaching and asking their guests if they HAVE BEEN SAVED !!!
Personally,I would have bolted for the door.

 

[EmptyNest]

Hardly ever... I did once because a repeat guest (who was dining alone) specifically requested it. It felt odd, but it was a fun change of pace.
I will occasionally sit and chat, but only now and then... usually it's stand at the end of the table and do my song and dance.
But I recently had a discussion with a non-forum innkeeper who does sit and eat with their guests... when I implied perhaps it would be better not to the innkeeper said they felt that most of their guests expected it (except the newlyweds, which they don't eat with anyway). They said that all the innkeepers they knew did so. (Except me, obviously!)
=)
Kk..

Hardly ever... I did once because a repeat guest (who was dining alone) specifically requested it. It felt odd, but it was a fun change of pace.
I will occasionally sit and chat, but only now and then... usually it's stand at the end of the table and do my song and dance.
But I recently had a discussion with a non-forum innkeeper who does sit and eat with their guests... when I implied perhaps it would be better not to the innkeeper said they felt that most of their guests expected it (except the newlyweds, which they don't eat with anyway). They said that all the innkeepers they knew did so. (Except me, obviously!)
=)
Kk.

Yuk. To me that's a Homestay - staying at someone's house, not a B&B. I don't want the innkeepers eating with me unless they are a friend with whom I am staying, like someone from the forum.
Otherwise, let me have my vacation! I get too few of them to be descended on like that!
RIki
.

There's a B&B 1/2 hour from me where the innkeepers sit down every day and eat with the guests. They don't mention this on their website and after I found out, I stopped referring people to them. I found this out because some repeat guests of ours stayed there because we were full and on their next visit told us how "creepy" it was. It was totally unexpected and I can't blame them for being uncomfortable with it.
.

There's a B&B 1/2 hour from me where the innkeepers sit down every day and eat with the guests. They don't mention this on their website and after I found out, I stopped referring people to them. I found this out because some repeat guests of ours stayed there because we were full and on their next visit told us how "creepy" it was. It was totally unexpected and I can't blame them for being uncomfortable with it.

There is a B & B a few towns over from me and I have had guests who have stayed there ONCE and never again. Its not that its wasn't nice or clean or anything like that, but not only would the Innkeepers sit down for breakfast with the guests, they would pull out a bible and start preaching and asking their guests if they HAVE BEEN SAVED !!!
Personally,I would have bolted for the door.
.

OMG! Has anyone mentioned that about them on TA??? Or maybe they should market to their niche

 

[Laree]

Have you ever been to a funky restaurant where the wait staff sits down in your booth and takes your order? same same to me...it is crossing the service line..

I was just thinking about that the other day. It really disturbs me when waiters just plop down at my table as if we were old friends.
As for eating with guests, I think for the most part no, unless of course they ask you to join them and you have time why not.

 

[Breakfast Diva]

Hardly ever... I did once because a repeat guest (who was dining alone) specifically requested it. It felt odd, but it was a fun change of pace.
I will occasionally sit and chat, but only now and then... usually it's stand at the end of the table and do my song and dance.
But I recently had a discussion with a non-forum innkeeper who does sit and eat with their guests... when I implied perhaps it would be better not to the innkeeper said they felt that most of their guests expected it (except the newlyweds, which they don't eat with anyway). They said that all the innkeepers they knew did so. (Except me, obviously!)
=)
Kk..

Hardly ever... I did once because a repeat guest (who was dining alone) specifically requested it. It felt odd, but it was a fun change of pace.
I will occasionally sit and chat, but only now and then... usually it's stand at the end of the table and do my song and dance.
But I recently had a discussion with a non-forum innkeeper who does sit and eat with their guests... when I implied perhaps it would be better not to the innkeeper said they felt that most of their guests expected it (except the newlyweds, which they don't eat with anyway). They said that all the innkeepers they knew did so. (Except me, obviously!)
=)
Kk.

Yuk. To me that's a Homestay - staying at someone's house, not a B&B. I don't want the innkeepers eating with me unless they are a friend with whom I am staying, like someone from the forum.
Otherwise, let me have my vacation! I get too few of them to be descended on like that!
RIki
.

There's a B&B 1/2 hour from me where the innkeepers sit down every day and eat with the guests. They don't mention this on their website and after I found out, I stopped referring people to them. I found this out because some repeat guests of ours stayed there because we were full and on their next visit told us how "creepy" it was. It was totally unexpected and I can't blame them for being uncomfortable with it.
.

There's a B&B 1/2 hour from me where the innkeepers sit down every day and eat with the guests. They don't mention this on their website and after I found out, I stopped referring people to them. I found this out because some repeat guests of ours stayed there because we were full and on their next visit told us how "creepy" it was. It was totally unexpected and I can't blame them for being uncomfortable with it.

There is a B & B a few towns over from me and I have had guests who have stayed there ONCE and never again. Its not that its wasn't nice or clean or anything like that, but not only would the Innkeepers sit down for breakfast with the guests, they would pull out a bible and start preaching and asking their guests if they HAVE BEEN SAVED !!!
Personally,I would have bolted for the door.
.

NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[ginocat]

I do not eat with guests normally but have done so once or twice with single women who have asked me to do so.
I just about always sit and have coffee with guests after they've eaten. The only time I don't is if I have a house full of Germans who are speaking their own language and enjoying doing so. I don't feel I should make them start speaking Engish because I join them. If they start speaking English that's another story.
I am not a hotel or a restaurant. This is my home and do not feel I'm infringing on guests when I sit and chat with them. Most of the comments in my guest book is how nice it was to sit and chat with me and other guests and to learn about the area, etc. etc.