If they really suck, you can always fire them. If the waiter is amazing, you can pay him/her more than their peers. What do you do if you had an amazing secretary? What do you do if you had a terrible clerk?
LOL, I know how to do the math. I just like to tip better than the accepted minimum if the service was really good. And I'm actually a pretty low-maintenance diner. I mean, for a $50 check, what's the difference between a 15% tip and a 25% tip. We're talking about a difference of $5. If I just paid $50 for a nice dinner, I'm not going to sweat about possibly saving $5.
Well, I can't believe I'm agreeing with SwoLy but are you also 'nice' to all your servers? Did you tip at McDonald's? What about the gas station clerk? Or is it only waiters? And is it because they're bringing something to your table (even though that's their job) versus standing behind a counter? Or is it because society dictates it to be so? Shouldn't a tip be for someone going out of their way, above and beyond their normal job?
This method works well in Texas, especially now that all alcohol is taxed, but I'm cheap and want to save that 1.25%. Note this method won't work in most other states.
Do BELIEVE it, Yonkers. And I agree with all that you said above. I'll add that I am willing to tip anyone who goes beyond service to make sure their work is tip top, that I'm satisfied, that I'm pleased once I leave their office, their place of work, etc. If someone is willing to open the door for me at the hotel, making sure I have a clean napkin throughout the dinner, etc., they should be compensated. The employee who sees me pouring my own wine and stops me and says "I will do this for you, sir" should be compensated. It should not be FORCED nor EXPECTED, however. Tipping should NOT be expected. I cringe and hate the fact that they have to actually write a space for tip and it says: "TIP" on a restaurant receipt. I will tip even without that line because I know they did a good job. It's too bad that people have messed up so much in being good customers and don't tip that they have to add this to the check. It's sad. I try my best to give a tip in CASH instead of on the receipt. No. I won't forget it. It's now in my mind. Did you see Yonkers's response? That could be us, but you have a short fuse.
Stop going to Red Lobster and Denny's at 4 in the morning. :grin: But back to what you said...if you're tipping them out of desperation in hopes that it eliminates said desperation, isn't that just making them a beggar but with a job?
I disagree, but it all depends on your situation. I spent $5,663 at restaurants last year. We're talking a $566 loss had I tipped the 25% rather than my usual 15%. That's money you're throwing away. Every dollar saved adds up and a 10% return on something simple as this is pretty huge IMO. Edit: that figure already includes the 15% tip, so I spent $4,924 in restaurants + $739 in tips.
Only waiters. Because they're taking care of me from the start of the meal to the finish. Again...it's because it's a nice thing to do. And I originally said I only do it if the service was really good and the person was friendly. What is so horrible about being nice to someone who is nice to you? Sheesh, you guys must be a blast to eat out with.
Until restaurants pay the employee min wage from the start the customer is expected to foot the difference. If you don't like that then lobby for change or don't go out to eat. Dont give me the well restaurant s will cover the difference, because they won't. Most would get fired because the managers would perceive the lack of tips as giving bad service. I don't understand how this is so hard to comprehend.
Do restaurants still pool tips in and divide amongst the employees accordingly? If that's the standard practice then that's where the system is broken. You do that and you're guaranteeing that bad waiters will continue reaping what the good waiters sow. If there is any semblance is managing tables (by the hostess, manager, whomever), the tips earned at that table should go to the waiter that's providing the service.
I don't work as a server anymore, but the tip pools would only be for the bussers bartenders and expo. They would take like 8 to 10 percent of your total tips that night and divide it up for them.
I'm a server and last week I tipped out about $120 to the bartenders/food runners/busser. So in reality I paid $120 to be employed there that week. And yes I got stiffed a few times and several awful tips. And of course I still made adequate money from everyone else that actually are generous. There is a common theme among people that do not tip. They include bad manners, rudeness, sloppy dress and appearance. A server or bartender will judge a person the moment they sit down, and if you are a good server you will not let that later the level of service you give. But typically the way you carry yourself will result in, albeit stereotyped, but accurate correlation about how much you tip.
Had no idea there was this many cheap asses on this site and I would assume most of y'all are from Texas where bartenders and waiters make $2.15 an hour or whatever it is (less than $3). Restaurants and bars in Texas are not required by law to pay their employees minimum wage because they are suppose to earn their living from tips. I apologize if I am misunderstanding and you guys are strictly talking about non restaurant/bars.
And I agree. Again, it's a rare occurrence where I don't tip anything at all. I guess my reaction whenever someone in this thread screams out "but YOU HAVE TO TIP!!! They make below minimum wage!! You're stealing money away from them!!!!" is to give a slightly less but same kneejerk response of "I don't have to tip them anything if the service was downright atrocious".
I would sincerely smack the f**k out of that person- and why are you friends with someone like that? No offense, but that almost indicates someone who's a d**k in other parts of life.
From my experience, the people that don't tip, deep down, have some major insecurities/problems or are just unhappy with life in general. Every time I've gone out with the friends who are upbeat, happy, nice, etc., it's just a given that you tip. All the times I remember going out to dinner with those who had a tipping issue, it was always someone who was kind of an a**hole in life in general- like my father-in-law and a few ex-friends. Could be totally wrong, but that's my $.02. For those that don't tip, my question is: why are you unhappy with your life, and what can we do to make it better? :grin: I will add, of course, that if the service is truly horrible, of course you have the right to not tip. I still do, but voice my opinion to the manager. B/c sometimes, we don't know what the source of the bad service is- unless the person is really being a d**k. You know, now that I think about it, this one girl at this place I go to was being kind of an a** when she waited on me- and it's a bar I go to the most frequently- on purpose, on a $12 tab, I left $24 and wrote "Smile." You know, the next time I came in, she apologized profusely- she had just broken up with a boyfriend and was truly sorry- as she said 5 times. Since then, she's an extremely nice person and goes out of her way to provide excellent service.
I honestly don't get tipping. From how I understand it, tipping arose from people wanting to show their gratitude for exceptional service. Now-a-days, though, it's practically part of the bill. I mean, you even have to calculate it from your bill. If you don't tip, they'll give you awful service next time round. It's just insane. I'd really welcome a non-tipping law. In Japan, they don't tip at all but their service is rated one of the best in the world.
