I mean the hand gesture where you rub your thumb with your index and middle finger. (There’s also a gesture where you “sign an imaginary check” but I think that’s less common.)

Are these considered rude when you want to pay in restaurant?

3 comments

  1. Wait, is there such a thing as an international gesture for asking for the bill? Because I’ve spent my whole life holding up my hand and chasing the waiter with my eyes until he decides to listen to me and ask for the bill (I confess that in moments of desperation I shake my credit card and point to the table).

  2. In Italy that’s just the gesture for “I’m talking about money”

    Eg. you work for a company and bust your balls everyday at work, you’re talking informally to the boss, everything is going good, but then you do this gesture and say, “I like my work being appreciated, but I wish there was another way of saying *thanks*” – meaning “yeah, but when will you pay me?”

    As such, we don’t use that gesture to ask for the bill. We just raise a hand to let the waiters notice us, and ask whomever comes over first for “il conto”.

  3. I think that could, and probably would get misinterpreted as clicking your fingers for service, which would go down badly.

    I’ve found catching the eye of a server with your card in your hand usually gets the idea across!

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