Waiting

For Debra Ginsberg, struggling writer and mother, waitressing has been a means of survival - and she has the scars to prove it. In this book, Ginsberg takes readers on a journey of her 20 years as a waitress at the dingiest of diners, an Italian restaurant, and an exclusive dining club.

---

Many people can tell horror stories about their teenage or college stints waiting tables. For Debra Ginsberg, struggling writer and single mother, waitressing has been a means of survival - and she has the scars to prove it. In this book - part memoir, part social commentary, part guide on how to behave when dining out - Ginsberg takes readers on an intimate journey of her 20 years as a waitress at the dingiest of diners, a soap-operatic Italian restaurant, an exclusive five-star dining club, and more. While chronicling her parallel evolution as a writer and single mother, the book also takes a behind-the-scenes look at restaurant life - revealing that, yes, when pushed, a server will spit in food, and, no, that's not really decaf you're getting - and at how most people in this business are in a constant state of waiting to do something else.