Based on Swales, a discourse community is a group of people who have the same goals, ideas, values, and beliefs; and communicate via writing using certain vocabulary and genres. My discourse community is going to be on the restaurant that I work at, called Captain’s Galley. My co-workers and I do our job in order to satisfy our customers. My restaurant is a discourse community because all the workers use the same language. For example: we have to write the customer’s order in a certain way, with certain abbreviations for the cooks to understand. We are expected to greet the customers in the same manner. Captain’s Galley is a discourse community because we have one intention or goal in common: to be of good service to our customers and get paid. We try to run this business in a mannerly fashion where the customers can be satisfied with good food and service and willingly come back for some more. We all have certain rules and regulations we all need to follow in order to keep our jobs.
Working at Captain’s Galley has taught me how workers communicate with one another in order to fulfill a purpose that affects a whole community. The main goal for this restaurant requires all the workers to work together in an orderly manner to satisfy our customers’ needs and wants. Our customers are usually elderly, middle class folks who try to give the younger generation workers inspirational tips to living a successful life. Having to work at the Galley for a year as a cashier and hostess, I have seen drama between customers and the employees and arguments between the co-workers that lead to unnecessary endings. I also observed the different types of literacy my co-workers use to finish a task.
Captain’s Galley is a seafood restaurant located on Independence Blvd in Matthews North Carolina. Our Captain’s Galley is the largest property which can hold 360 people. There are around 4 or 5 Captain’s Galleys in North Carolina that are owned by a Greek named Gus. The main website that provides extra information about the restaurant is http://www.captainsgalleync.com/. Billy Vastis and Perry Boukidis are my Greek managers who manage the place for 3 years now. Billy’s parents Niki and Perry Vastis (who we call Mr. Perry) has bought this property 13 years ago and gave the management position over to their eldest son, Steven- who later on gave it to Billy. Niki works as a hostess Friday and Saturday and believes she “owns the place” and can command the workers to do extra tasks. On the other hand, Mr. Perry helps the servers in the kitchen prepare the meal and drinks for the customers. Niki’s attitude sometimes disturbs the community because she puts more pressure on the workers by adding more negative attitude to the working place and starts up dramas that are not needed. The workers try to ignore her in a professional way (as in take her thoughts and opinions into consideration) and continue working as they were taught by Tassie-the floor manager who trained them for this job.
There are around 33 workers who have different positions of work but all necessary to run a restaurant. The floor manager is Tassie, a 55 year old lady who continues to work at this restaurant since 2000. She not only manages the sections for each server, but is also able to hire and fire employees. Everyone who is below her rank tries to get on her good terms because she can change your job in a snap of a finger. Niki on the other hand despises Tassie for her rank in position and continues to pick arguments with her. Tassie was not given authority over Niki because Niki is the mom of Billy (the manager). Neither is Niki given authority over Tassie because Tassie is the floor manager and knows how to handle restaurant situations. I asked Tassie how she handles the unnecessary arguments with Niki. She discussed how Niki’s arguments does annoy her, but she listens to what Niki has to say and continues to do what she pleases without her knowledge (Hazen). For example, Tassie works from 2 till 10, but she tries to get off at 8 when it’s not busy. She can’t leave until Niki leaves because she can get in trouble from Billy. So, she waits until Niki leaves, which is around 8 or 9’clock and then heads home herself. I sometimes get stuck between their little feud, and I try to get out of it as much as possible by pleasing both of them. For example, Tassie tells me not to sit customers in her section because she wants to clean up and leave, while Niki doesn’t know and goes by the sitting chart regardless of who wants to leave or not. Because I don’t want to disappoint both of them, I try to act enthusiastic about my job and jump up when customers come and sit them instead of Niki. I usually tell Niki, “have a seat, you must be exhausted, I’ll sit them!” And then I go and sit them with a different server. If something is incorrect by the looks of Niki, she tells Billy. Billy then, has to accomplish his mother’s wishes in order to keep his job in management. Billy certainly is a mom’s boy who listens to her every word whether or not her words are correct. You can see how they communicate that he is really annoyed by her but can’t do anything about it, so he just nods his head and continues to pay attention. Everyone says that Niki makes most of the problems, but she has a means to control the place so it doesn’t go corrupt. Overall we want to run a business where customers can be satisfied and will come back for more.
Most of our regular customers are middle class, elderly people and older age families. Some customers respect the servers and their job, while others look down upon the servers for the lack of education or intelligence they obtain. Some customers are very impatient with the staff and get angry easily if something doesn’t go their way. Certain customers become upset of the smallest things that don’t go their way. Sometimes when customers come in, they like to sit in a specific place and will get upset if we tell them otherwise either because that section is either closed or the server is overwhelmed with tables and won’t be able to handle anymore. We, as hostesses, try to explain to them the reasons of why we can’t sit them there, but they just don’t understand. So without having anymore problems, we just sit them where they want and help the server out by bringing the customer’s their drinks and hushpuppies. We try to grant our customers’ wishes, but sometimes it’s not possible because of certain factors and in turn we get ugly looks like we are in their way of their happiness. Because we let the customers sit where they want in specific sections with certain waiters, the waiters get mad at the hostesses for sitting the customers in the wrong place. For the waiters it seems like the hostess sits too many or not enough customers in their section. The servers think the hostesses are not bright and can’t handle their job correctly. The servers are literate in one line of work and the hostesses are literate in another way. Sometimes our literacies clash and we don’t seem to understand each other in a way where we could work together in a comfortable environment.
The menus have a variety of different fish and dishes that the waiters have to write in a certain way in order for the cooks to understand it. For example: WW means weight watchers, Dr means Dr. Pepper, AYCE-All You Can Eat Crab legs, OR-Onion Rings, BP-Baked Potato, SC-Senior. New servers have to learn to write different dishes in a certain way to make it easier to read and write. The servers have to know some of the dishes and what it looks like. For example we have a dish called Mediterranean Flounder which is flounder served with lots of melted cheese and tomatoes. This dish is written like Med Flo on the notepad. There are senior dishes which contain less fish than large and half plates. There are fisherman platters dishes that contain a lot of flounder fish, popcorn shrimp, crab cakes, and clam strips that cost a total of $18.99. Every dish comes with a chosen side of baked potato, sweet potato, rice pilaf, onion rings, French fries, hushpuppies, cole slaw, or grilled mixed veggies. For some meals you can exchange a side for a salad for $1.00 extra. The dishes are priced from $3.99 to $27.99 depending on what you get.
The servers use pens, notepads with carbon copy, so that one copy goes to customer and the other goes to the cook in order to make the dish. If the waiters have a big X on the bill for the customer, it tells the cooks that the order is to-go. The cooks place the meal in to-go boxes rather than in dishes. When we usually have a party of more than 8 people, the waiters can decide to add 18% gratuity on the bill for the customers to pay. To let the cashiers know if the tip is included, the waiters squiggle 2 lines on the bill for us to add the tip in the register. We as cashiers have to know when to add the gratuity and what button to press on the register in order to complete the task. When the customers come up to the cash register to pay, it is required for the cashiers to tell the customers that the gratuity is included in their bill. We then write the tip under the servers name in a notebook for them to pick up at the end of the night after all the tips are counted. The waiters don’t share tips, they each get what they earned by themselves for the night. Based on Swales’ lexis characteristics, our community needs to know the specific acronyms and abbreviations that are written on the notepad.
At the beginning of work, the servers go and check the floor chart to see which section of the restaurant they will have to work that day. All the servers and hostesses need to understand how the floor chart works in order to continue their work. The floor chart includes a map of the restaurant with all the tables and booths. There is a different chart for every numbered section based on how many servers are working that day. The waiters also have to see what side job they have to work on. Side jobs include: Back, Front, Salad, Vacuum and highchairs, and trays. Front means the server has to dump the jars of tartar sauce and cocktail sauce in big plastic containers in order to wash the jars so they can be clean for the next day. Back means the servers have to clean the area where the drinks are made. They have to wipe and turn off the soda machine. They also have to plastic wrap the container with lemon and place it in the refrigerator. The side job of Salad means the servers have to clean the area where the salads are made by plastic wrapping all the vegetables and the salad dressings and place them in the refrigerator. The servers who have a side job of trays have to wipe the trays with a wet rag and place them in an organized manner. Vacuum and highchairs means the server has to wipe the highchairs and vacuum the hallway. Each server is responsible for their side work. The servers have to wear khaki pants and light blue Captain’s Galley t-shirts. They also have a small black apron where they put their tips, pen, and notepad. They need to be able to lift up trays with heavy dishes and drinks on the side of their shoulder. When asked who the best server is, they reply “Me, you know I’m the best!” They each say this for friendly competition and because they really think they are the best. We, hostesses, know how many tables each server can handle at a certain time, so therefore we know who is the best.
The members of this working community use cell phones and face to face communication. We also use calendars to check our next week’s schedules. The people who worked here the longest teach the new comers everything there is to know about working at Captain’s Galley. The training of new employees in the service community involves them following one of the servicers the first couple of days and shadowing their job. During this time the server tells the newer employee the ropes to serving. After a couple of days, they start doing it by themselves. The easiest way to move up the ladder is if you try hard at what you do and give your co-workers and employers your trust. At first I started as a hostess and became a cashier as well. I rarely skipped days of work and try to always come on time because I have to open the doors for the customers to come in. If we have any parties that day, I try to set the parties up before hand so I would have time to help the servers with their tables. The servers’ side job includes placing silverware in napkins wrapped in a piece of blue silverware wrapping. I also try to help them wrap the silverware so we don’t run out for that day. I treat the servers and the customers with respect and always smile. I now help the floor manager by doing the seating chart for her. I think that if you’re passionate about your job, you will succeed at it.
Work Cited
Hazen, Tassie. Personal Interview. 12 Mar 2013.
Working at Captain’s Galley has taught me how workers communicate with one another in order to fulfill a purpose that affects a whole community. The main goal for this restaurant requires all the workers to work together in an orderly manner to satisfy our customers’ needs and wants. Our customers are usually elderly, middle class folks who try to give the younger generation workers inspirational tips to living a successful life. Having to work at the Galley for a year as a cashier and hostess, I have seen drama between customers and the employees and arguments between the co-workers that lead to unnecessary endings. I also observed the different types of literacy my co-workers use to finish a task.
Captain’s Galley is a seafood restaurant located on Independence Blvd in Matthews North Carolina. Our Captain’s Galley is the largest property which can hold 360 people. There are around 4 or 5 Captain’s Galleys in North Carolina that are owned by a Greek named Gus. The main website that provides extra information about the restaurant is http://www.captainsgalleync.com/. Billy Vastis and Perry Boukidis are my Greek managers who manage the place for 3 years now. Billy’s parents Niki and Perry Vastis (who we call Mr. Perry) has bought this property 13 years ago and gave the management position over to their eldest son, Steven- who later on gave it to Billy. Niki works as a hostess Friday and Saturday and believes she “owns the place” and can command the workers to do extra tasks. On the other hand, Mr. Perry helps the servers in the kitchen prepare the meal and drinks for the customers. Niki’s attitude sometimes disturbs the community because she puts more pressure on the workers by adding more negative attitude to the working place and starts up dramas that are not needed. The workers try to ignore her in a professional way (as in take her thoughts and opinions into consideration) and continue working as they were taught by Tassie-the floor manager who trained them for this job.
There are around 33 workers who have different positions of work but all necessary to run a restaurant. The floor manager is Tassie, a 55 year old lady who continues to work at this restaurant since 2000. She not only manages the sections for each server, but is also able to hire and fire employees. Everyone who is below her rank tries to get on her good terms because she can change your job in a snap of a finger. Niki on the other hand despises Tassie for her rank in position and continues to pick arguments with her. Tassie was not given authority over Niki because Niki is the mom of Billy (the manager). Neither is Niki given authority over Tassie because Tassie is the floor manager and knows how to handle restaurant situations. I asked Tassie how she handles the unnecessary arguments with Niki. She discussed how Niki’s arguments does annoy her, but she listens to what Niki has to say and continues to do what she pleases without her knowledge (Hazen). For example, Tassie works from 2 till 10, but she tries to get off at 8 when it’s not busy. She can’t leave until Niki leaves because she can get in trouble from Billy. So, she waits until Niki leaves, which is around 8 or 9’clock and then heads home herself. I sometimes get stuck between their little feud, and I try to get out of it as much as possible by pleasing both of them. For example, Tassie tells me not to sit customers in her section because she wants to clean up and leave, while Niki doesn’t know and goes by the sitting chart regardless of who wants to leave or not. Because I don’t want to disappoint both of them, I try to act enthusiastic about my job and jump up when customers come and sit them instead of Niki. I usually tell Niki, “have a seat, you must be exhausted, I’ll sit them!” And then I go and sit them with a different server. If something is incorrect by the looks of Niki, she tells Billy. Billy then, has to accomplish his mother’s wishes in order to keep his job in management. Billy certainly is a mom’s boy who listens to her every word whether or not her words are correct. You can see how they communicate that he is really annoyed by her but can’t do anything about it, so he just nods his head and continues to pay attention. Everyone says that Niki makes most of the problems, but she has a means to control the place so it doesn’t go corrupt. Overall we want to run a business where customers can be satisfied and will come back for more.
Most of our regular customers are middle class, elderly people and older age families. Some customers respect the servers and their job, while others look down upon the servers for the lack of education or intelligence they obtain. Some customers are very impatient with the staff and get angry easily if something doesn’t go their way. Certain customers become upset of the smallest things that don’t go their way. Sometimes when customers come in, they like to sit in a specific place and will get upset if we tell them otherwise either because that section is either closed or the server is overwhelmed with tables and won’t be able to handle anymore. We, as hostesses, try to explain to them the reasons of why we can’t sit them there, but they just don’t understand. So without having anymore problems, we just sit them where they want and help the server out by bringing the customer’s their drinks and hushpuppies. We try to grant our customers’ wishes, but sometimes it’s not possible because of certain factors and in turn we get ugly looks like we are in their way of their happiness. Because we let the customers sit where they want in specific sections with certain waiters, the waiters get mad at the hostesses for sitting the customers in the wrong place. For the waiters it seems like the hostess sits too many or not enough customers in their section. The servers think the hostesses are not bright and can’t handle their job correctly. The servers are literate in one line of work and the hostesses are literate in another way. Sometimes our literacies clash and we don’t seem to understand each other in a way where we could work together in a comfortable environment.
The menus have a variety of different fish and dishes that the waiters have to write in a certain way in order for the cooks to understand it. For example: WW means weight watchers, Dr means Dr. Pepper, AYCE-All You Can Eat Crab legs, OR-Onion Rings, BP-Baked Potato, SC-Senior. New servers have to learn to write different dishes in a certain way to make it easier to read and write. The servers have to know some of the dishes and what it looks like. For example we have a dish called Mediterranean Flounder which is flounder served with lots of melted cheese and tomatoes. This dish is written like Med Flo on the notepad. There are senior dishes which contain less fish than large and half plates. There are fisherman platters dishes that contain a lot of flounder fish, popcorn shrimp, crab cakes, and clam strips that cost a total of $18.99. Every dish comes with a chosen side of baked potato, sweet potato, rice pilaf, onion rings, French fries, hushpuppies, cole slaw, or grilled mixed veggies. For some meals you can exchange a side for a salad for $1.00 extra. The dishes are priced from $3.99 to $27.99 depending on what you get.
The servers use pens, notepads with carbon copy, so that one copy goes to customer and the other goes to the cook in order to make the dish. If the waiters have a big X on the bill for the customer, it tells the cooks that the order is to-go. The cooks place the meal in to-go boxes rather than in dishes. When we usually have a party of more than 8 people, the waiters can decide to add 18% gratuity on the bill for the customers to pay. To let the cashiers know if the tip is included, the waiters squiggle 2 lines on the bill for us to add the tip in the register. We as cashiers have to know when to add the gratuity and what button to press on the register in order to complete the task. When the customers come up to the cash register to pay, it is required for the cashiers to tell the customers that the gratuity is included in their bill. We then write the tip under the servers name in a notebook for them to pick up at the end of the night after all the tips are counted. The waiters don’t share tips, they each get what they earned by themselves for the night. Based on Swales’ lexis characteristics, our community needs to know the specific acronyms and abbreviations that are written on the notepad.
At the beginning of work, the servers go and check the floor chart to see which section of the restaurant they will have to work that day. All the servers and hostesses need to understand how the floor chart works in order to continue their work. The floor chart includes a map of the restaurant with all the tables and booths. There is a different chart for every numbered section based on how many servers are working that day. The waiters also have to see what side job they have to work on. Side jobs include: Back, Front, Salad, Vacuum and highchairs, and trays. Front means the server has to dump the jars of tartar sauce and cocktail sauce in big plastic containers in order to wash the jars so they can be clean for the next day. Back means the servers have to clean the area where the drinks are made. They have to wipe and turn off the soda machine. They also have to plastic wrap the container with lemon and place it in the refrigerator. The side job of Salad means the servers have to clean the area where the salads are made by plastic wrapping all the vegetables and the salad dressings and place them in the refrigerator. The servers who have a side job of trays have to wipe the trays with a wet rag and place them in an organized manner. Vacuum and highchairs means the server has to wipe the highchairs and vacuum the hallway. Each server is responsible for their side work. The servers have to wear khaki pants and light blue Captain’s Galley t-shirts. They also have a small black apron where they put their tips, pen, and notepad. They need to be able to lift up trays with heavy dishes and drinks on the side of their shoulder. When asked who the best server is, they reply “Me, you know I’m the best!” They each say this for friendly competition and because they really think they are the best. We, hostesses, know how many tables each server can handle at a certain time, so therefore we know who is the best.
The members of this working community use cell phones and face to face communication. We also use calendars to check our next week’s schedules. The people who worked here the longest teach the new comers everything there is to know about working at Captain’s Galley. The training of new employees in the service community involves them following one of the servicers the first couple of days and shadowing their job. During this time the server tells the newer employee the ropes to serving. After a couple of days, they start doing it by themselves. The easiest way to move up the ladder is if you try hard at what you do and give your co-workers and employers your trust. At first I started as a hostess and became a cashier as well. I rarely skipped days of work and try to always come on time because I have to open the doors for the customers to come in. If we have any parties that day, I try to set the parties up before hand so I would have time to help the servers with their tables. The servers’ side job includes placing silverware in napkins wrapped in a piece of blue silverware wrapping. I also try to help them wrap the silverware so we don’t run out for that day. I treat the servers and the customers with respect and always smile. I now help the floor manager by doing the seating chart for her. I think that if you’re passionate about your job, you will succeed at it.
Work Cited
Hazen, Tassie. Personal Interview. 12 Mar 2013.