New York (CNN) Mother’s Day is one of the busiest days for the American restaurant industry. It also has a reputation among waiters and restaurant staff as one of the worst days on the calendar.
“Every server knows that working on Mother’s Day is hell. In fact, if I die and go to hell, I fully expect it to be Mother’s Day. 365 days a year,” wrote Darron Cardosa, in his book “The Bitchy Waiter: I’m Really Good at Pretending to Care.”
What’s so bad about it? From large groups showing up in waves (“many of us are here!”), to kids getting nervous about food to splitting check dramas and cups of coffee, restaurants hate this holiday. This year is expected to be more challenging because high inflation and rising menu prices have given some restaurant guests an increased sense of entitlement.
“The prospect of being alone makes you anxious,” says Joe Haley, an abstract artist who works as a server at a Quincy, Massachusetts, Italian-American restaurant. It’s going to be “jam-packed. People call at the last minute for a reservation, there are other people who make multiple reservations so that Mom can pick her and they don’t cancel… the people who take the their mother once a year tells you ‘Nothing can go wrong!'” he said.
But it happens. With large tables, a few late arrivals can wreak havoc on the kitchen. “And every family has at least one black sheep or mother-in-law who can’t be trusted to save their lives. Mother’s Day: I dread it,” added Haley.
Chefs, servers and owners said this year guests have high expectations: Special occasion meals at a time of rising food prices. In a post-pandemic world, luxury — or rather the appearance of luxury and excess — is “in.” Across the country, customers will be upset if their $30 eggs Benedict isn’t topped with caviar on Sunday.
Tastes have changed, literally, since Covid, says Chef Art Smith, who has been the personal chef of Oprah Winfrey and Jeb Bush. She will serve hundreds of Mother’s Day meals at her four restaurants including her Homecomin’ at Disney Springs at Walt Disney World.
The people who visited? “They’re drinking more. They want more carbs — If it’s mac and cheese, it has to be the cheesiest. But they want salads, and they also want more vegetables.
A busy day for restaurants
The National Retail Federation predicts Mother’s Day spending will reach $35.7 billion this year, with a record $5.6 billion spent on a meal or outing alone, up 6% from last year. It’s the second-busiest day in the restaurant business, surpassed only by Valentine’s Day, according to online reservations site OpenTable.
Mother’s Day presents “an operational challenge,” says Shawn Walchef, owner of five Cali BBQ restaurants in the San Diego area. “It’s the busiest day of the year and also the day guests have the highest expectations. He sees some commotion at the patio tables — “In Southern California, everybody wants to sit outside.”
For many restaurants, this is the first major holiday since 2019 that is not overshadowed by the pandemic. “It’s a lot of people hanging out who haven’t seen each other in a while,” says owner Binh Douglas, who opened Main Prospect in Southampton, New York, about 18 months ago.
He expects Sunday guests to spend about 40% more than usual, and a third of adults will add a $19.95 “bottomless mimosa” to their meal. Fortunately, the price of eggs and seafood has decreased in the past few weeks, he said.
Rising prices
But inflation leaves its mark on Mother’s Day brunch. At Breakers in Palm Beach, Mother’s day brunch at The Circle restaurant is $250 per person (up from $160 in 2019) with unlimited Champagne cocktails and a table-to-table harp.
At family-friendly McLoone’s Boathouse in West Orange, New Jersey, also home to the waterfront buffet, brunch is $54.95 from $49.95 in 2019.
The price is impressive. “Your Mother’s Day meal can’t be too expensive,” says Derek Axelrod, co-owner of Manhattan’s Upper East Side T bar restaurant. Their Mother’s Day menu tends to be upwards of $100 a person, but it’s not a huge profit, he said. They rely on liquor sales to do that. Meanwhile T bar adds touches like fois gras, cranberry and chicken parfait to the menu.
Servers and owners are also under pressure to “push the lobster.” Seven different restaurants at the Venetian Resort in Las Vegas are serving Mother’s Day meals that include lobster (The resort’s tour of all Mother’s Day menus states that subsequent gondola rides are an additional $39).
Ophelia, a rooftop restaurant near the United Nations in New York, solves the “luxury” problem in a neat way by offering a menu where Mom can have everything: fried quail eggs, lobster, filet mignon , waffles and smoked salmon – but be warned: it’s a $59-per-person presentation of “small bites.”
In Naples, Florida, the hamburger at the Veranda E restaurant on Sunday is served under glass, and a cloud of smoke rises as it is uncovered. “That’s new for us,” said owner Mary Brandt, who has four generations of women from her family at the restaurant..
To increase revenue and seating, chain restaurants are also innovating. Ruth’s Chris Steak House, which has locations in about three dozen states, is opening some for breakfast or brunch on Mother’s Day; at the Fort Worth location, there are wild blueberry pancakes. And some Red Lobsters are giving Moms a coupon for 10% off their next meal — even including the Ultimate Endless Shrimp Feast.
So, book now, and tip your server. Of all the holidays, Mother’s Day is considered so stressful for workers that the National Restaurant Association recommends that owners make sure their servers are “fed and properly hydrated” and should be given “combat- duty” bonus — especially mothers of shift workers.
Server Joe Haley, of Quincy, had a better idea: “Why don’t you make your Mom breakfast?”
