I'm confused, TJ...Pappadeaux's is my favorite restaurant...and other than at Sonic, I'm a pretty generous tipper.
Are you accusing me of lying? I am neither lying nor exaggerating, although I appreciate your gesture. As mentioned before, I did not involve management because I did not want to ruin the dinner for a close friend who is moving away. The dinner was in his honor, so he deserved the spotlight, not the horrible waitress. I am handling the problem today by writing a letter to management. The waitress is *not* doing her job by presenting the soups/salads/wine to us in a rude, condescending fashion.
Thanks, my grandparents, who live in H-town, were wondering the last time they visited my wife and I if there was a Carabbas in Houston. I said I didn't know. God, I love that bread and the herbs/olive oil you dip it into. Yummy.
All I'm saying is that this set of waiters had very strong opinions of the crowds at both restaurants. When RocketRiver admits that he has a very frugal tipping strategy, he reinforces the stereotype that certain people are very set in their ways with regard to tipping (this is not race-related before I'm accused of that). This would support the waiters opinions. Of course there are exceptions.
Such a big deal about letting a minor sip a drink... My family, my brother's family, and my sister and her boyfriend went down to Hard Rock Cafe SA on the last day of our vacation to finish the stay with a fun dinner. I had a Hard Rock Hurricane in the souvenier glass and let Tara's oldest taste it a few times. The waiter was right there and he was completely cool with it...he also walked away with a very nice tip. I always assumed that if I ordered the drink for myself and let a minor drink some of it, the liability would fall on me, the adult, giving the minor the drink and not on the restaurant which did not serve a minor the drink. If I'm wrong and the liability falls on the restaurant, I still think it could've been handled much more discretely, and if someone embarassed me or my family in that manner, I would have cancelled all the orders and gone to a different restaurant, leaving a few choice words behind.
Isnt there a different standard when it is a minor child that is your responsibility? Whereas bamaslam's case was with his girlfriend. I know that I was allowed to drink before the leagal age as long as it was my parents allowing me. Example, at a New Years party, I was allowed champagne when i was only 16..none of the servers said a word.
there are seven Carabba's here now, pretty well spead out. 3115 Kirby (Inner Loop) 1399 South Voss (Memorial) 11339 Katy Freeway (West) 5440 FM 1960 West (Champions) 2335 Highway 6 (Sugarland) 502 West Bay Area Blvd. (Clear Lake) 25665 I-45 N. Hwy. (Woodlands)
I always assumed that if I ordered the drink for myself and let a minor drink some of it, the liability would fall on me, the adult, giving the minor the drink and not on the restaurant which did not serve a minor the drink. I could be wrong, but I believe it depends if the adult is the legal guardian of the minor.
I honestly think Maggiano's is quite overrated, though the food is quite modestly priced and the portions are large. Off of Shepard and Allen Parkway there is a group of three connecting Italian Restaurants Nino's, Vincents and one other in which the food is wonderful. Nino's has an outdoor area and in which they usually have some music and they actually know how to make a good drink there. Its actually run by the same Carraba's people but is their more upscale restaurant I believe. Saturday I did the blow'FISH' again. The ribeye rolls stuffed with avacado were amazing as always! Service is an important part to any meal. Bad service really irks me and I think that the management would want to know of such behavior.
Two places never to work at if you like tips (or customers that pay for their meal): Daiquri Factory or Cabo's on Richmond. The number of times a waiter has been seen chasing patrons out in the parking lot as they jump ship from paying is mindboggling. Apparently people like eating fish tacos & fried cajun food, then not paying for it. The main problem is any walked tab is deducted from the WAITER'S pay! So basically, waiters become tab enforcers. I'll leave it to you to think about the kinds of confrontations that have resulted in the parking lost b/c of this.
Plus, different states have different laws. I'm pretty sure in Texas a guardian can give their child a drink, but in Illinois you cannot.
If you lose your liquor license you're pretty much out of business. Bamaslammer is an a**hole for not leaving a tip. I've been with someone getting lit into by a restaurant owner for giving a minor a drink and I had no problem with it. I find it funny how some conservatives don't mind breaking the law when it benifits them. Lastly, there are plenty of Carrabas restaurants in Houston, seeing as how this is where they started.
Here's the Texas law: "Sec.106.04. CONSUMPTION OF ALCOHOL BY A MINOR (a) A minor commits an offense if he consumes an alcoholic beverage. (b) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under this section that the alcoholic beverage was consumed in the visible presence of the minor's adult parent, guardian, or spouse. (c) An offense under this section is punishable as provided by Section 106.071. (d) A minor who commits an offense under this section and who has been previously convicted twice or more of offenses under this section is not eligible for deferred disposition. For the purposes of this subsection: (1) an adjudication under Title 3, Family Code, that the minor engaged in conduct described by this section is considered a conviction of an offense under this section; and (2) an order of deferred disposition for an offense alleged under this section is considered a conviction of an offense under this section." http://www.tabc.state.tx.us/leginfo/minorcode.htm
Yeah, I called them and went in there to show them my copy of the receipt (and to pick up the $10 refund). They told me they fired the guy. I did think it was interesting that my $0 tip was just marked out with the $10 written to the side. It was such an obvious change, rather than a subtle sticking of a 1 in front or something. Normally, I tend to "overtip". 20% is often my minimum - the amount I leave if the service was mostly good. Keep my drink filled, act like you're mostly happy to be there and don't forget about me, and I'll leave more (and, I will readily admit, I get very good service far more often than I get mediocre or bad service). The night I decided to leave a $0 tip, the waiter was just exceptionally bad. It was the only time I ever purposely left a $0 tip (as it was the only time I ever thought it was deserved). Oh, and I tip at Sonic. I hate doing it, but apparently that's the way of the Sonic. That fact often keeps me from going to Sonic. It just seems wrong to tip fast food people for some reason. (Thankfully, the Sonics in Amarillo have a drive-thru where one can avoid the whole 'should I?" tip situation. But I'm only in Amarillo every other weekend or so).
i definitely don't. i'm just "against" it. there was a thread on this not too long ago...but i think it's ridiculous to tip at sonic. if i order at skeeter's or some place like that...and i place an order at a register...and then someone brings the food out to me after its done...and that's it...that's the extent of the person's chore related to my table....they don't get tipped. that's where i draw the line, damn it! "i pay what i say!"
Right! WTF is up w/ the tip jars at freaking Starbucks & Smoothie King? You operated a f-ing blender for 30 seconds & get paid 6-9 bucks an hour to do so - you want a tip? F you!\ I remember that Bud Light commercial ,"Mr. Coffee House Coffee Maker" or something like that, that basically said: it's not enought hat you charge us 5 bucks for a damn coffee, it's putting that tip jar out there on top of that that makes you who you are.
What about tipping when you do dim sum? One person gets you tea and fills your water glass, and then 8-10 others push carts near your table, give you food, and write on your ticket? Do you tip? Tip less than 15%? This one has always befuddled me.
