quote:

Originally posted by Ort. Carlton.

"And how are youse’all?"

Ort – you make me laugh every time, I swear.

Being from the Midwest, I don’t hear "youse guys" around here. On the rare occasions when I’ve been in the east, it’s perfectly fine with me. The trend towards bland, homogonized food also includes destroying other regional quirks such as accents. Roadfooders hate mass conformity!

Dearfolk,
The Grill here in Athens, Georgia used to have a fresh-from-Brooklyn waitress, bless her, named Peggy Rooney. "And how are youse’all?" she would say, my apostrophe indicating her sort-of glottal stop. She had by then been in the South for several years.
To this day, the lettuce-y mixture of vegatable crunchies served with burgers is called "slore" there in homage to her pronunciation of the word. I think she’s working in a fairly fancy place in Decatur now. I remember her as a really efficient server as well as a mighty fine human being.
And, by the way, I have had the appellation "y’all" used in the singular to address me. I come back with "Am I THAT fat?!?!?", which causes no end of consternation.
Shrinking, But Not Violet, Ort. Carlton in 30601-land.

I have been working in the restaurant/hospitality industry for over thirty years and I would never consider addressing guests as "guys" or "you guys". A party of women are always "ladies", men are always "gentlemen", and a mixed group are "folks". I never noticed any adverse reaction to servers who referred to customers as "guys", and my only problem with being addressed that way when I’m on the other side of the table is that I’m reminded of the general rudeness and lack of manners in our society as a whole. Guess I’m getting old.

you: Singular
y’all: Plural
quote:

But I’m reminded of a sign outside a restaurant in TN. The town had had an influx of northerners who were transferred from a closing-down plant in Michigan. The sign?

quote:

Originally posted by Hillbilly

As I get older, especially since I passed 60, the thing that irritates me is for servers (or nurses or doctors or any damned body) to patronizingly call us gray headed old farts "honey", "sweetie" or some other term in a voice usually reserved for 4 year olds. My normal 20% TIP will fall to 10% very quickly when I think I’m being patronized.

Oooh! Me Too! Unless they are calling me "gorgeous" or "beautiful" [:)]

In all the years I was nursing I never talked to patients like that (unless they were under 10). I used "Sir", ", M’am", and always used formal address unless I was asked to do otherwise. There’s enough indignity that goes on without having some little nurse call you honey or baby.

I did give a newly-minted, hot-stuff resident pause one day in the ICU after I saved his a** and he said "Way to go BABE". I will not repeat what I said to him, but I was always "Nurse E." to him after that.[:(!]

As I get older, especially since I passed 60, the thing that irritates me is for servers (or nurses or doctors or any damned body) to patronizingly call us gray headed old farts "honey", "sweetie" or some other term in a voice usually reserved for 4 year olds. My normal 20% TIP will fall to 10% very quickly when I think I’m being patronized.

OneIron made a particularly good point about wait staff being instructed by managers who are barely older, or in some cases younger than they are. Young people <God I sound OLD here> are no longer taught manners or business-like behavior in school, and most do not get it at home. So when they enter the work world they are untrained in how someone would want to be addressed, and many really don’t care about how they act. My wife and I recently stopped by a Friendly’s to get a little dessert after being out on a Sunday afternoon. While we were waiting for a table, a customer who had had a poor experience there, was complaining, <in a polite fashion> to the hostess and asked if there was an "800" number where she could call the home office. The hostess who was about 18-20 essentially told the woman to stuff it, and then gave her the phone number and told the customer to "Go for it lady!" We decided that we didn’t want to eat there, and left before we ever got a table. Now I certainly blame the hostess for such poor manners, but I suggest that I someone looked deeper, she’d never been taught anything different.

quote:

Originally posted by CheeseWit

Sundancer is right. Youse (pronounced yewz)is a very Philly thing. I personally can’t stand it, but it is common here. It sounds very uneducated to my ears.

But to me, it’s irresistibly sexy. [:I] I was crazy half in love with a guy in our Philly field office and loved to hear him talk…

I’am their for the FOOd,I really don’t care how I’am greeted, just as long as ‘am not given a seat by the door or kitchen, if there are planty of seats avelible. I think the worst Is ARE YOU PEOPLE READY TO ORDER.[:)]

quote:

Originally posted by i95

Think about poor (late?) Jimmy Hoffa who would just kill to be addressed as "youze guys" again.

Or, perhaps, he’d probably want to kill alot of youse guys for burying him under the Giants Stadium (as the legend goes).[}:)]

Here in rural Ontario youse is word heard too often and can take many forms. Wouldjouse like a drink before dinner? How areyouse tonight? Didyouse like that? I seenyouse at the show. It brings the level of a dining experience down especially if you have been reading books written in the English language.

Think about poor (late?) Jimmy Hoffa who would just kill to be addressed as "youze guys" again.

Al,

I know what you mean and along those lines … I hate it when I don’t get their full attention !!! I’M THE PAYING CUSTOMER !! Look at me and listen to me, don’t to do 10 things at one time ! [:(!] Don’t worry about your hair, or somebody walking by ….. [}:)]

Chezkatie reminded me that–"The term "young lady" should never be used for any female over 12 years of age!"
AND
Should only be used in a sentence that contains "Go to your room" or Grounded for life" !!

I prefer the Adult server’s groveling "May I help you SIR?" to the smartass youth who half-shouts to me while watching His friend outside, or a tushy as it wanders within sight "Know whatcha want yet?"