What do you think?
The waiter in question appears to have run foul of some of his work mates with whom his quest for professional standards of a high order did not go down well. Personally Iâve never found French waiters rude their politeness and professionalism makes a pleasant change from the faux American style of service you find in some UK restaurants . Neither have I found rudeness anywhere else.s
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For the record I have found parisien waiters pretty curt but not rude. Everywhere else has been very friendly.
I guess the French have a bit of a reputation for rudeness - just as the Germans do, which is why the BBC ran the piece, I guess.
No - I donât think âthe Frenchâ are deliberately rude although there may be some cultural traits that make some of them seem like that 
If anything I feel there is more of a tendency to be miserable - a general lack of smiley faces, outbursts of laughter, an upbeat demeanour and even whistling - a bit âdullâ really - especially some of the younger ones (lots of folded arms, heads down, thick rimmed glasses). After all - we all have a choice in how we behaveâŠ
I often want to sing or play (possibly better!!) Pharrell Williamsâ - Happy
I personally say no i find the french a very nice bunch. Like anywhere there will be less polite folks but for the most part I moved here because of how nice the french are
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bit like all Spanish people shout when talking 
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Load of rubbish, Kids especially pleasant, donât recall ever being wished, âgood dayâ by a passing youngster, or group of youngsters in the UK, here, itâs the ânormâ.
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Going about with a grin permanently plastered on your face is considered the sign of a half-wit and hypocritical. You smile at people you genuinely appreciate or have some dealing with, not random types you happen to share a street with as you walk along.
I KNOW it is a normal anglo thing to have a happy smiling face so carry on, but believe me, you get away with it because you are foreign, if we do it people assume we are the village idiot.
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Great vero!! AndâŠI will carry on - it makes ME feel better 
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Vero⊠whilst I donât go around blinding strangers with my smiles, I do smile at folk if, for example, I have to ease my way past, or wait to let them pass by⊠any sort of situation like that brings out an answering smile and often a word or two⊠I find.
Entering a shop, pharmacy⊠virtually anywhere⊠I look around with a gentle smile on my face and murmur âmâsieur dameâ softly and always get a polite welcome.
Before we moved to France we were very impressed at the manners of the locals in our âfavouriteâ French cafe near Calais. We (the only strangers) would watch as each new-arrival did the rounds, shaking hands and greeting folk⊠and every time we were included⊠
even though they didnât know us from Adam.
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My Wife, French, is always pleasant, I donât think anyone regards Her as a âHalfwitâ, if they did they would be Very Wrong 
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Yes Stella but if you are trying to get past etc you are in a relationship with them, you are communicating specifically with them, it isnât random! And in a cafĂ© or a shop or whatever, a lift etc you are in a shared space with rules, it isnât the street!!
It is just like our finding it shocking and rude that so many anglos donât say hello and goodbye the proper (proper for us, obviously) way!
Rudeness is in the eye of the beholder 
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Does she dawdle down the street grinning at everything for no reason? I bet she doesnât!!!
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I must admit I make a habit of activitely smiling at old people in supermarkets (if I catch their eye obviously, donât want to come across as a complete half wit ) , as it always seems to cheer them up and I think a lot of people are horribly lonely. I also smile (like an absolute loon) at people who let me out when Iâm driving . And on the one occasion when an old dear, very nearly wiped me and my trolley out in the supermarket car park, she looked so shocked that I gave her a massive smile. Mind you she then got the giggles and probably went on to actually hit someone elseâŠ
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We seem to have a similar outlook on life⊠
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Mmm⊠but⊠when I am introduced to someone by another French person⊠more often than not they say something along the lines of⊠this is Stella, our star (lâĂ©toile du village), always smiling, always cheerful⊠
and I am happy with thatâŠ
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You are proving that Yes, some French people are a âbitâ Rude V L 
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OK anecdote is not the singular of data but I have been asked fairly frequently over the past 20 years in this region (because obv as I have lived in GB I must know) âWHY is that person grinning, why do anglosaxons show their teeth all the time, what do they want, is it normal in GBâ by local people here ⊠and I am myself a friendly smiling sonsie faced type so god knows what is said about me, village idiot I expect. Never had that sort of question chez moi but it is a bit more cosmopolitan.
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Pardon? 
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