In most restaurants (breakfast places not included because I have never worked in one), there are 14 shifts a server can work. Most restaurants are open Monday through Sunday for lunch and dinner. 7 days X 2 shifts a day = 14 shifts. Having worked in restaurants as a server for too many years to want to remember, I have worked all shifts. Here are my rankings, from worst to first in terms of money making probability, of the 14 restaurant shifts.
14. Monday Lunch
Everyone goes back to work on Monday and everyone spent a good deal of money the previous weekend. Motivation is high on Monday, thus, people will be more motivated to make a lunch and bring it to work rather than go out. Culinary-speaking, Mondays are not a great day for food because the delivery truck came earlier that day and the staff, usually, has not been able to prep what was on the truck. Also, stay away from "Lunch Specials," especially fish, on Monday. It is all leftovers from the weekend.
13. Saturday Lunch
Families are together, there are activities going on and eating out is not a priority. Another reason Saturday lunch is not a good shift is that the shift seems to drag on forever. People eating out on Saturday do not see the food as their main priority, they see it as an afterthought. They might be at soccer, doing some shopping or working around the house and suddenly realize that they are hungry. They mosey on in whenever they feel like it. Thus, the Saturday lunch shift can be really long but not really busy.
12 and 11. Tuesday All Day
There is nothing really special about Tuesdays. It is early in the week and people still have motivation to cook lunch and dinner for themselves and there aren't very many sporting events to draw someone in on a Tuesday. Some restaurants, seeing Tuesdays as a poor business day, may run a promotion that day. They may do a kids night, pint night or other food special to entice people to come in.
10 and 9. Wednesday All Day
Wednesday is hump day and people start getting lazy. They may not pack a lunch and decide to eat out instead. At night, they have worked three days so far and might not want to cook dinner, thus bringing people in. Happy hour business starts to pick-up in restaurants on Wednesday, seeing as most people only have 2 more days of work left. Again, another night to run a promotion.
8. Thursday Lunch
Lunches are getting better on Thursday. The end of the week is in sight and people are getting lazier. Some would rather sleep another 10 minutes than spend it making lunch. Workers who have spent all week in the office are getting restless and will want some fresh air, so off to lunch they go. Food trucks have been rolling in all week so food is fresh.
7. Sunday Dinner
It is the end of the week and people are trying to get back into reality after the weekend. Sundays are usually "Family Night" for people as they try to have a meal together at the house. Though many do have their "Family Night" out, thus, you might see a lot of groups. People try to get to bed early, get the kids ready for school and get things tidied up around the house before heading to work on Monday, so you will see an earlier crowd than normal. Another bonus for Sunday Dinner is, if your restaurant is open late, it might offer a "Service Industry Night" party. A "SIN" party's goal is to encourage other restaurant and hotel workers to come to the restaurant for cheap booze and drink. Service Industry people usually tip really well, since they are in the same position you are in.
6. Sunday Lunch
A lot of restaurants will do a Sunday Brunch which brings out a lot of people. The day can be really lazy, so the shift may drag on and on as a steady stream of people come in and out of the restaurant. Anytime you are able to go on a wait on a Sunday is a good thing- that means a constantly full section for a while. Another thing that will bring people into the restaurant for the Sunday lunch shift is any holiday (Mother's Day, Father's Day) or the NFL. People love celebrating at a restaurant and Sunday Lunch is the time to go. The NFL, as long as your store has DirecTicket, brings people to eat and drink for long periods of time.
5. Monday Dinner
Monday dinner is ranked this high for one main reason- Monday Night Football. It is the last football game of the weekend and it usually brings people out for some beers and for some wings. Another reason Monday night is good to work is that people have a tendency to wash down their Monday-Start-Of-The-Week-Blues with a tasty adult beverage. Thus, happy hour can be busy. The food truck has been to the store and cooks have prepped the days fresh food, so Monday night is a good night for food. However, don't eat the fish- fish is still leftover from the weekend and does not usually come in fresh until Tuesday.
4. Thursday Dinner
By Thursday night, people have gotten lazy- they don't want to cook and want to get out of the house for a bit. Hence, they go out. Plus, with one more work day in the week, they may do a little drinking. Stores usually have some sort of special for Thursdays to try and get people to start their weekend early and this benefits the server. Drink and food specials are available to entice people even more. Football games, sometimes NFL but always college, start on Thursdays which also bring people out.
3. Friday Lunch
This is the day everyone goes out for lunch. People are sick of brown bagging it, want to go out with some co-workers, or take a late lunch and leave for the weekend. The lunch crowd is usually steady on Fridays because of this. You also see a higher number of groups coming into the restaurant as well. Lunch shifts are usually long and can stretch into dinner shifts, with dinner patrons arriving Food is good because food trucks have been coming in all week and the kitchen knows to ramp up production. Another large order of food probably came in earlier in the day to ramp up for the weekend.
2. Saturday Dinner
Saturday dinner is the night people plan for- rarely does Saturday dinner happen spontaneously. People get dressed up, plan where they will eat, and head out and make a night of it. Saturday night is the night you see the most "complete tickets." A "complete ticket" is one that has at least one of the following- an adult beverage, an appetizer or starter salad, an entree and a dessert. Because people make plans for Saturday night, check averages tend to be higher, people tend to stay longer and people tend to wait through the waiting list to be seated. Other things that effect dining on Saturday include college football and special events. For example, most Homecoming, Sadie Hawkins, and Proms tend to be on Saturday night and attendees need a place to eat prior to the dance. Large groups will eat out on Saturday nights too.
1. Friday Dinner
Friday dinner is short, intense and has the best potential for making money. People start coming to dinner on Friday night early so they can get a couple of drinks from the happy hour menu. Then, they stay to have a meal. Because it is Friday night and people have plans, they drink, eat and get out to do their Friday night activities. Friday nights tend to get a lot of work groups who want to blow off steam after a week's worth of the grind. They also tend to get a lot of families because parents do not want to cook another meal, having cooked throughout the week. Plus it gives families a chance to get out of the house and blow off some steam as well. I write that Friday night dinner is short because people come straight from work or school or daycare without going home. So, they come, drink, eat and head home.
I have been working in restaurants for many years as a manager, cook, server, bartender, busboy and dishwasher. These may not be accurate at all restaurants, but it is my experience that this is the way it works. If you disagree, drop a line in the comment section.
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