In light of several e-mails I've received, I re-read those lists I linked to of things the staff of a restaurant should never do. This morning, they strike me as more misguided than they did last night. A lot of 'em are, of course, simple common sense and courtesy…but some fault the staff for things (like the music policy) which the restaurant's management oughta handle. And what bothers me this A.M. is how much of the list is calculated to reduce the poor waiter or waitress to an impersonal, servile robot. Obviously, I'd like my meal delivered promptly and the way I want it…but I'd also kinda like it delivered by a human being. If that human being feels like telling me what his or her favorite dessert is or gets otherwise chatty, fine. It makes me uncomfy to be treated like I'm Genghis Khan, ready to lop off the head of any servant who folds my napkin the wrong way.