Waiting: The True Confessions of a Waitress

“[Ginsberg's] poignant, gently written stories of waitressing are metaphors for life.”  —Dallas Morning News

A veteran waitress dishes up a spicy and robust account of life as it really exists behind kitchen doors.

Part memoir, part social commentary, part guide to how to behave when dining out, Debra Ginsberg's book takes readers on her twenty-year journey as a waitress at a soap-operatic Italian restaurant, an exclusive five-star dining club, the dingiest of diners, and more. While chronicling her evolution as a writer, Ginsberg takes a behind-the-scenes look at restaurant life—revealing that yes, when pushed, a server will spit in food, and, no, that's not really decaf you're getting—and how most people in this business are in a constant state of waiting to do something else.

Colorful, insightful, and often irreverent, Ginsberg's stories truly capture the spirit of the universal things she's learned about human nature, interpersonal relationships, the frightening things that go on in the kitchen, romantic hopes dashed and rebuilt, and all of the frustrating and funny moments in this life. Waiting is for everyone who has had to wait for their life to begin—only to realize, suddenly, that they're living it.

Many people can tell horror stories about their teenage or college stints waiting tables. For Debra Ginsberg, struggling writer and single mother, waitressing has been a means of survival -- and she has the scars to prove it.

In Waiting: The True Confessions of a Waitress -- part memoir, part social commentary, part guide on how to behave when dining out-Ginsberg takes readers on an intimate journey of her twenty years as a waitress at the dingiest of diners, a soap-operatic Italian restaurant, an exclusive five-star dining club, and more. While chronicling her parallel evolution as a writer and single mother, the book also takes a behind-the-scenes look at restaurant life -- revealing that, yes, when pushed, a server will spit in food, and, no, that's not really decaf you're getting-and at how most people in this business are in a constant state of waiting to do something else.

Colorful, insightful, and often irreverent, Ginsberg's stories truly capture the spirit of the universal things she's learned about human nature, interpersonal relationships, the frightening things that go on in the kitchen, romantic hopes dashed and rebuilt, and all of the frustrating and funny moments in this life. Waiting is for everyone who has had to wait for their life to begin -- only to realize, suddenly, that they're living it.

"[A] wonderful book. It was worth waiting for." - New Orleans Times-Picayune

"[Ginsberg's] poignant, gently written stories of waitressing are metaphors for life." - Dallas Morning News

"[Ginsberg] tells the story with enough honesty and wry humor to connect with other people—especially women." - Detroit Free Press

"[Ginsburg's] triumph, in this book, is that she shows us how the beautiful and the base coexist." - Oregonian

"A knowing memoir...[Ginsberg] is great on dining-room debacles she's endured." - Seattle Times

"A lively and insightful look into restaurants. . . . Ginsberg is a charming and talented writer." - San Francisco Chronicle

"Funny and ultimately satisfying." - Entertainment Weekly

"Ginsberg got her education in restaurants, and she doles it out just right in this entertaining account." - People

"Ginsberg not only shares delicious stories...but also dishes out advice that will make you laugh." - USA Weekend

"Hilarious. . . colorful." - Hartford Courant

"This book is more than a saga about workplace woes. . . Ginsberg relives her personal struggle, waiting for her life to 'happen.'" - Lisa Ko, author of The Leavers

“Ginsberg…has told an attractive story about coping with a life that has been different than what she expected.” - New York Times Book Review