The topic came up in this thread, and may have been touched on in this thread as well, but … I guess this would allow for more specific anecdotes many of us surely have, and are happy to share 
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I’ve previously mentioned the difficulty in feeding our family group because of their assorted food dislikes - the gluten free one (also the one who doesnt like spicy, the one who doesnt eat red meat (or fish with bones), the one who doesnt eat pork, the one who doesnt eat lamb, etc…
Obviously it carries through to restaurant dining so family visits are rare but unavoidable from time to time. Generally means that wereat at a “lowest common denominator” place. Cost now comes into it. Because several family members cannot afford to eat out (and never do on their own) but gladly come and have their meals paid for by those who can afford. They have given up the pretence of getting their wallets out, sort of offering to pay in the certain knowledge that their offer will be declined. Means that out of seven family members, four are on freebies - leaving Mrs Harters, me and the youngest sister to pick up the bill. I may be less than thrilled but, in real life, leave my whinging to this forum and, in real life, keep my mouth shut. When the parents in law were alive, that just added another layer. FiL’s view of a balanced meal was that there was a small piece of meat on the plate, next to the big piece of meat. In reality, he would order a big steak and eat that, leaving anything else on the plate uneaten. MiL, on the other hand, would be guaranteed to order the most expensive fish on the menu, then poke it about hardly touching it because she really only liked cod. And, no, they never got their wallets out either.
I fucking hate family gatherings. I really do.
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Memorable:
Friends trying my dad’s satay back in the 1970s when no one knew what satay was. He had had it at an Indonesian hotel where he stayed on a film trip, and he created his own satay sauce when he got home. They loved it once they realized it was meat and veg on a stick with a peanut sauce.
The first time Mom and Dad took me out to their favorite seafood restaurant and I got a whiskey sour, even though I was slightly underage (again, the 1970s). I felt like a grown-up.
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When my mom visited us in Berlin in the summer of '09, we took her to a conveniently located and decent looking Greek restaurant. It was a Tuesday evening, and we had no problem getting a table. We ordered a few mezzedes & drinks and received our drinks fairly promptly. The restaurant started filling up rather quickly, and my PIC and I noticed how the staff was struggling to keep up. It was obvious the restaurant hadn’t expected such a busy night.
My mom grew increasingly impatient and agitated, and when she saw a table that had arrived after us being served mains, she lost her ish and complained to our server. He assured her that our mezzedes were on their way & that the other table had only ordered mains.
She flat out accused the server of lying to us, and that he should admit they forgot about us.
It was uncomfortable, but certainly not the first nor last time she behaved that way 
We never went back to the place, but left a decent tip (my PIC and I did — my mom was still PO’d).
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A while back my wife went to a new (to us) Moroccan restaurant. We put in our orders, and I think we were given some bread while waiting for our meals. After a long wait we saw a pleasant-looking lady who was obviously the chef come out from the back (looking like she was done for the day); she stopped at our table and asked if we had eaten well. We told her we were waiting for our meals; she promptly turned and headed for the back. The waitress had perhaps not put in our orders? In the end we had enjoyable meals.
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Edit: should have read: “my wife and I”
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Then there was that time back in the early 90s when my dad walked over from his table to ours at a restaurant in Austria (my friends and I had just driven down that day, whereas he and my sis & her friend had arrived a day earlier, which is why we ended up sitting & dining separately), pointed at my evidently not properly cleaned off chicken leg and asked: “Are you going to eat that?”, then proceeded to grab it and start gnawing 
Of course, nobody around us knew we were related & folks were probably worried he might show up at their table and try to get into their food as well.
My friend and I thought it was the funniest thing ever.
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Similarly, a friend once relayed that in their family, someone eyeing the food on another’s plate would ask, “What’s the status on that?” Iconic turn of phrase.
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Better than one of the most bothersome lines uttered at a restaurant: “Are you still working on this?”
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That one drives me nuts. As if I’m a dog gnawing on a bone.
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Or as if a leisurely meal involves any work of any kind.
Apropos:
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One of the most irritating restaurant expressions , IMO. Possibly a subject worthy of a separate thread.
“No. But I am still eating/enjoying it”
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That thread exists. I linked to it 
