A contract takes an offer, consideration and acceptance. At this point it is debatable wheter the guy knew he owed the 18% no matter what, regardless of what was written in the menu. The restrauant inferred he knew about the 18% but it would be tough to enforce that.
As a sometime waiter, I feel this completely. It's called grat. What a piece of trash. It's about time somebody did something about trashy people who don't tip. One of my biggest pet peeves.
SJC, If it is on the menu, and was explained beforehand it is a valid contract. A restaraunt has the right to choose to serve you or not, and it also has the right to kick you out if you do not abide by their rules. I think it is great. If you don't want to tip, go to Jack in the Box. DD
re: tipping for takeout i never used to tip for takeout orders. i still don't for certain restaurants. but for other restaurants (chili's, for example) i started tipping 10% for takeout after reading this: http://tipping.org/tips/TipsPageDeliveries.html the next time i went back there for takeout after reading this, i payed more attention to the cashier's body language. sure enough they were in a**kissing i-want-my-tip* mode, something i never noticed before because i never suspected that a tip was required for takeout. if it's a place you go to often for takeout, you should tip to reduce the chance of finding a nice big loogie in the ranch dip for your buffalo wings. *"can i get you anything else?", "would you like some plastic utensils with that?", "would you like some napkins?" blah blah
Screw that. If he was legally bound to pay an 18 percent tip it should have been included in his bill as part of the final total. Tipping has gotten totally out of control. And the expectation and feeling of entitlement on the part of the wait staff is crazy. Tipping is something that is meant to be optional, to show appreciation for good service. I tip nicely but if I feel the service has been subpar, I will give little or nothing depending on the quality of service. This case is crazy and should be thrown out of court.
See moomoos post.. I understand your point about a drive thru and a pizza guy, but at a true sitdown place when a person has to box up all your food add plates flatware napkins and other stuff....TIP THEM
I'm sure it was included in the bill, but this guy probably just shorted his payment to not include the full tip. Everytime I go out with a group the gratuity is included in the check.
So that's really supposed to mean, "Where's my tip?" I did not know that. Sigh. The games people play. One more for the "things you're supposed to know but they don't teach you" file. I always make my tipping decisions by asking myself if there are waitstaff involved, since they have to make part of their money from tips. Apparently it must be customary in the sit-down restaurants even for take-out orders. (which I don't usually do... guess it's a good thing... no table waiting is involved, but everyone just wants to pressure people into paying extra these days and no one wants that loogie in their food) I do assume this doesn't apply to restaurants that serve everything at the counter...
Ok, I just left a bad tip today. I gave a 2 dollar tip for a 30 dollar meal but there was some rationalism behind this. It was dimsum, which makes it from being too horrible since you don't neccessarily have to follow the 15% rule. This dimsum doesn't cut your food. Yes you heard it right, not a single wait person was carrying a scissors. While that is certaintly bad service, it would be the restaurant's fault instead of the waiters/waitresses. I wasn't even thinking when I left the tip ($2 for dimsum is usually ok for 2 ppl, it was just weird we rack up such a high bill). Though in the end, I'm still feel a little guilty.
sorry, guess i should clarify. sure, they seem like simple, courteous questions, but the vibe you get is that they're really saying, "i'm giving you service, i expect a tip." i mean, why not just throw napkins and plasticware into the bag without even asking? why do they even have to ask? the food is already overpriced, but they're trying to tell me that they can't afford to automatically include napkins and plasticware? of course that's not what they're motivation, they are really just trying to indicate that they expect a tip. and i have noticed that they do open the to-go box and show you the food. at first i thought that was strange, but not anymore now that i know their motivation. but probably the biggest thing is, if you're paying by credit card, the ticket you sign has the same format as the ticket you would get when you eat in, i.e. there's a "TIP AMOUNT" line staring you right in the face. at first i used to think, what the hell is that, isn't this a to-go order? and just put a line through it. but now i know better, errrr at least i think.
Man, I swear people with b**** about anything! If you don't feel like tipping on take out, then don't! I don't in most circumstances. I see no need to tip for packing my food to go. If I need the food fast and don't have to wait from the moment I walk in the door, I may toss a buck or two as a tip, but most of the time I pay whatever the bill is and nothing more. Regarding the tip line on the bill for to go orders, does it really irk you that much that you can't just look past it? Are you that weak minded that you just can't stand the thought of being expected to leave a tip simply because there is a space for it? Do you expect the restaurant to have a separate printing system that is only for to go orders so that a customer won't experience an insecure moment when they get the bill and feel pressured to leave a tip just because there is a line for it? I have yet to meet a restaurant employee(that is not a waiter - they have to tip out on all sales) that got upset because a tip was not left on a to go order.
no he didn't. prove up offer and acceptance, DaDa. just because it's on the menu, doesn't mean it was read and/or accepted by the person ordering the food. by the way...when you go to the dry cleaners..and they have a little sign that says, "if we f#$$ up your clothes, we're not responsible"...yeah, that sign isn't Gospel. i can't put a sign up in my office that says, "i'm gonna take all your money...and do nothing for you" and expect that to be enforced against my clients. it just doesn't work that way.
I hope you enjoy your spooge take-out burger. You've been b****ing all thread long, just on the other side of the ball.
All I know is that when I waited tables, there were good tippers and bad tippers. A lot of other waiters would complain when they got stiffed, but I always looked at the long run...I was making $11-15 AVERAGE every paycheck while I was in high school. "I just worked for free!" or whatever the complaints were are dumb...you are going to end up making more per hour on average than anybody else your age while waiting tables. Most waiters I worked with were just a bunch of complainers. I'm busting my butt...taking orders, getting food...PLEASE...it was hard work, but I didn't work any harder than most people work in a day AND I made much more money than most people in similar positions. That guy working in 98 degree Houston heat in the summer digging a ditch for minimum wage...now he can complain. I'm running food and taking orders in air conditioning for double or triple minimum wage (and sometimes a hefty tip would be like a huge bonus)...I don't have much to complain about. The point is...as a waiter, you can't focus on each individual table: Look at hours worked/total money...most waiters in decent restaurants come out ahead.
don't get me wrong, if i didn't feel that tipping was necessary, i wouldn't. i think tipping for takeout is ridiculous. but reality is that these guys expect a tip, and if you're taking a risk if you don't: http://www.tipping.org/discus4/messages/9/182.html http://www.tipping.org/discus4/messages/9/1226.html http://www.tipping.org/discus4/messages/9/1475.html i guess when it comes to what i eat, my attitude is, better safe than sorry, especially if "spooge" is a possibility. just say NO to spooge! i actually never heard that word before, but just googled/urbandictionaried it. nasty.
