It's becoming more and more common for restaurant patrons who want to box up their leftover food to request that they do it themselves. Instead of allowing their waiter to box up leftovers in the back of the restaurant, here's why many customers say you should always pack up your own food at the table.
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The Case For Boxing Up Your Own Leftovers
Speak to any random group of restaurant goers and all will have different (and probably passionate) takes on how to handle leftovers. Surprisingly, more people are getting on board with the idea that it's best to have a waiter give you boxes so you can handle your business.
"I don't want to take my box home and find out the waiter forgot to include something and left something else out," says Frankie L. "There are also times when I like to separate my meal into two boxes — but I would be such a pain in the butt if I started making weird demands of my waiter, so it's easier to do it all myself."
Why You Should Never Let Your Waiter Box Up Leftovers In The Back
In some states, there are actually laws in place that prevent waitstaff from boxing your food in the back in order to avoid others touching and possibly contaminating your food. This law doesn't seem to make sense to many though, including patrons who prefer to box up their own food.
"Honestly, if I trust a waiter or waitress to bring out the food, why wouldn't I trust them to box it?" asks Cynthia C. "I prefer boxing it myself only because I'm ridiculously picky and I don't like my bread to touch sauce — stuff like that. Given how little waitstaff make, I don't think it's fair to ask them to box up my leftovers a certain way — they work hard enough as it is!"
