The five signs that you will not be getting good service at a restaurant

Consistency is the goal of all restaurants. The hope is that you’ll have as good an experience when the restaurant opens as when the next generation takes over the place. The reality is that service can be spotty, even at great restaurants.

When I was a waiter in high school, I had a ceiling of five tables. But once the sixth was seated, my section of the dining room was doomed. It was dinner roulette. One table was getting horrible service, but nobody — myself included — knew which one it would be. Over the years, however, I’ve learned to identify five signs that indicate service on a given night won’t be going very well.