French website reveals waiters' tricks to get our money

The garcon isn't a popular figure in France. The French generally distrust waiters and the press are happy to twist the knife. But an article on the French website Rue 69 is likely to confirm what French diners already know, the title is "7 serving tips to increase the bill".

A few examples:
Alexia, a waitress in a "chic brasserie", told the website: "I serve the water regularly so the bottle is finished bang in the middle of the meal, then I suggest another bottle. Almost always, the customer orders."

Another trick of the restaurant trade, says the report, is serving salty snacks with pre-meal drinks to make customers thirsty and serving the occasional glass "on the house" to detain diners at the table if business is slack.

So the next time a waiter offers you a salted peanut........You have been warned.