Ok then why do waiters always make it SO FUCKING HARD TO LEAVE?! Most of the time, I wind up waiting for the check to show up, often I have to flag someone down to get it.

And then, the most ridiculous part of the whole ritual; they drop off the check and then leave! Imagine if that happened anywhere else. Go through the grocery aisle, get all your stuff scanned, and then the person working the checkout just walks away for 5+ minutes.

And then, when they finally show up and take the check with your card, they leave for another 5+ minutes. What is taking so long?! It is 2026, how do you not have a functional POS system??

Places that let you pay with your phone and leave when you’re ready are the best. Even ones that have the waiter come to the table with a pad you can pay on are good. I just hate the black booklets, such a horrible, inefficient way to pay.

I don’t understand people’s disdain for the pay through your phone model. It’s so nice

Because in most countries you don’t need a phone, internet, and maybe even an app to solve this problem.

A lot of countries have had chip cards decades before the USA. When you are done eating they bring the bill and a terminal, which looks a thick cell phone, to your table. You insert your card, type your pin, pay, and leave. Bonus: you never get your credit card taken elsewhere by a stranger.

If you live in a country which sadly still do not pay serving staff a living wage, the terminal also allows you to enter gratuity as an amount or as a percentage, while you pay. No need to do any math.

The phone payment seems like such a tech-bro solution for a very simple problem which has a very simple solution which is already in place nearly everywhere!