Wine waiter

Waiters paused in their hurrying to and fro, and stood with dishes in their hands, watching the curiously circling birds. A wine waiter, who had been serving some priceless Burgundy, went on pouring it until the wine was trickling in a little stream across the table-cloth on to the floor.

[…] she listened admiringly while Cass, who knew nothing whatever about the subject, held a symposium on sauternes with the wine-waiter.

Sometimes I hear people asking “Can you recommend a wine to go with the salmon (or whatever)?” To which the wine waiter’s first response should surely be—though I have never heard a wine waiter ask it—“How much do you want to spend exactly?”