Is it rude to ask a lingering group at a restaurant table when they are planning to leave?

Yes, it's rude. The restaurant effed up by not calculating their covers correctly, but the diners are perfectly within their right to "linger" as you call it. Restaurants (and we forget that in the days of TGIMcShitburger) are not just about "eat and get the piss out", they're supposed to be where one refreshes and restores.

And that, as much as I am saddened to not be the pivot point of the universe, is only partially food related. It's company and being free of hassle, stress, and obligations for a short time of the day.

That diner's right to be undisturbed is as much as yours. You have to make a movie so you feel justified in approaching them, but a much better way would be to put the onus onto the host—after all, they screwed up in the first place.

Read other answers by

Jonas Mikka Luster on Quora:

• Should you eat the skin on a chicken if it is served with it on at a restaurant?
• Is it usual in US restaurants for servers to leave your used cutlery on the table between courses?
• Restaurant Etiquette: What is the best way to tip (bribe) a maître d' in order to skip a line?

Read more answers on Quora.

from Quora https://www.quora.com/Is-it-rude-to-ask-a-lingering-group-at-a-restaurant-table-when-they-are-planning-to-leave/answer/Jonas-Mikka-Luster