Drafts, noise and that annoying jingle of an overhead bell make the seat next to the door possibly the most undesirable place to sit in a restaurant.
And when a waiter chooses to inflict that pain on you, you can’t help but feel like you’ve nabbed the short straw. Fret not.
Turns out the seat beside the door is actually a throne befitting of the establishment’s finest customer.
Channel Four’s new 4-part documentary, Tricks of the Restaurant Trade, has revealed that restaurateurs often choose to sit their best-looking customers near the entrance to their premises.
The show featured an experiment in which actor Adam Pearson attempts to gain a table immediately after three hired models are seated. Pearson suffers from neurofibromatosis, which has left his face covered in dozens of non-cancerous tumours.
In all cases, the models were offered prime seating in the restaurant while Pearson was seated near a kitchen or restroom.
“It’s disappointing. The next time you get sat at the back of the restaurant, now you know why” he said.
Two top restaurateurs spoke during the programme.
Chef Simon Rimmer owns Greens in Manchester and Earle in Cheshire said:
“Every restaurant has a golden table where they sit the best-looking customers. A restaurant’s clientele give off a certain message about the place.
“Good looking customers attract more people and make you more cash so you sit them where they can be seen.”
Neil Gill, who owns London’s Season Kitchen, said:
“Everybody likes to associate themselves with cool people and good looking people.
“You want to feel like you are eating in a restaurant where there are other cool people.”
And now we know.
Cover image What If? movie.
