I usually tip generously.
0% - if the service is offensively bad (Once a friend of mine and I were ignored for over an hour, even after we had approached our waiter three times! Actually, my friend still tipped him about 5%.)
10% - if the service bad.
15% - if the service is mediocre
20% - if service is good
25%+ - if I like you (for instance if you were to approach me)
Another tipping story. Back in my undergrad days, I spent a summer working as a waiter at Golden Corral (crappy buffet-style dining) for about a month. I can tell you who the worst tippers are.
Not the old people ("$Here's a couple of quarters deary. Go buy yourself something nice.)
Not foreigners (Most are pretty gracious actually.)
Answer is: Those damn big groups of fundie protestant xtians that come in on Sundays after church. Damn, they could put the food away! They were usually eeriely polite, like "Better show the boy Christ's love 'cause were gonna screw him in a bit." And when you got done, what was left on the table? A damn Chick track! I guess they thought the present discounted value of a mansion in heaven was worth about 10 bucks.
My aunt to be works at a pub, 5 business men came in for dinner and drinks.
They spent about 2 hours, and had several drinks ordered. More than one person had to help serve the table.
They finally finished up, and the bill came to over $200. There on the table was a $5 tip.
So my aunt to be grabs the 5 bucks and runs out to the parking lot. They see her coming and roll the window down... perhaps thinking they forgot something?
She chucks the $5 into the window and says, ''You obviously need this more than I do if that was all you could afford to tip''.
They were stunned, embarrassed... and all reaching into their pockets to get more cash up. They ended up giving about $50 tip, and were full of sorrys and excuses saying they thought they left more.
P-
Originally posted by PhlabibitThis exactly underscores my point. A waitress shouldn't have depend upon the caprice of the customers for her living. They have a right to a standard, decent wage, the same as any other profession.
My aunt to be works at a pub, 5 business men came in for dinner and drinks.
They spent about 2 hours, and had several drinks ordered. More than one person had to help serve the table.
They finally finished up, and the bill came to over $200. There on the table was a $5 tip.
So my aunt to be grabs the 5 bucks and runs out to the parking lot. The ...[text shortened]... ing about $50 tip, and were full of sorrys and excuses saying they thought they left more.
P-
Originally posted by rwingettI could argue this, because Not all but alot of people who depend on tips make pretty good money in a job that if a wage were offered, it would be pretty low I'm sure. And then you would have to pay taxes on it all, definetly.
This exactly underscores my point. A waitress shouldn't have depend upon the caprice of the customers for her living. They have a right to a standard, decent wage, the same as any other profession.
There are places that I know waitresses are trying to get into because the tips are so good.
Mike
Is the US the only country where tipping your barber is common?
I pay about an hour's wage for a 15 minute haircut. and add a tip. If the barber averages two customers per hour overall on a typical day, he is making twice as much as me. Why should I tip him? He ought to be tipping me....lol.
But then, if you don't leave a tip, your next haircut may be a little strange.😲
If the service is good I tip, if not I don't. A tip is bonus not a right.
It gets me some very dirty looks, but people expecting a tip no matter what bug the hell out of me....
and yes i did bar/waiting work all through Uni... Tips were happily recieved but never expected by me....
Originally posted by Mat KelleyI don't expect you tip for bad service in the US, and whoever does is full of crap....😲
I tip generously if the service and food is good - always cash never as an add on to a credit card.
However if service is bad I am quite prepared to leave nothing - I hate the fact that in the US I am expected to tip bad service - so I act the dumb English man and don't
I don't tip for poor service under normal circumstances, even though I've waited tables and tended bar. If, however, the place is really busy and the wait staff are too overworked to provide good service, then I'll still tip, as understaffing isn't the fault of the waitstaff. I tip even when the food is bad, because the wait staff has no control over food quality. In general, I assume I'm going to tip at least 20%, and then adjust according to the quality of service.
Originally posted by bbarrThat about reflects my tipping protocol...good advise..
I don't tip for poor service under normal circumstances, even though I've waited tables and tended bar. If, however, the place is really busy and the wait staff are too overworked to provide good service, then I'll still tip, as understaffing isn't the fault of the waitstaff. I tip even when the food is bad, because the wait staff has no control over foo ...[text shortened]... I assume I'm going to tip at least 20%, and then adjust according to the quality of service.
Australians are beginning to tip in restaurants, but I suspect our heart really isn't in it and it started because we have become aware that it's done in USA. Mostly it's more a case of leaving (some of) your change on the table as you leave. Or in a group setting, everyone puts in slightly extra rather than working out the bill to the exact cent, and if the leftover seems about right it'll be left as a tip.
However if I or my friends get particularly good service we will consciously include a tip. No idea whether it gets pooled or not.
We have laws about minimum wages here, and a strong union tradition. The wages that waiters and some other jobs get in America would cause an uproar because they're so low.
A few years ago, I'd never heard of tipping in the UK (OK, I don't go to London much where I suspect it's more common).
Now, it's starting to creep in.
But what's with the tipping for beers in bars in the US and Canada?
I'm in there trying to get drunk and having to remain compus mentis enough to think about providing a reasonable tip. It just puts a downer on the whole experience for me when you have to pay $5 for a beer, and then $1 tip or something. Every beer!
A friend of mine didn't have enough money so he only gave about 25c tip and the waiter came back and told hime it wasn't enough, open handed!
Another waiter gave me some crap story about how they need at least 50c tip because they have to rent the glasses, or something.
Originally posted by VargI think this is where tipping goes bad. If customers are forced to tip, then effectively it's just another surcharge, and it would be much more honest for the bar to increase its prices.
A friend of mine didn't have enough money so he only gave about 25c tip and the waiter came back and told hime it wasn't enough, open handed!
Tipping in bars is strange. Do Americans tip at McDonald's, or at the supermarket? Tending a bar isn't the same as waiting on a table. I worry that if the tipping culture spreads too far, people will start paying tips for business deals (as is traditional elsewhere in the world), and then you're heading into the shady world of corruption.
I had a somewhat different experience in a German pub. When people returned empty glasses/bottles to the bar to be reused, they were given a few pfennigs 'Pfand' (lit. 'pledge' in the sense of deposit).
Sorry if this stirs the pot even more but ... my sister-in-law used to be a waitress and I use her as a guide as to what is fair.
To be clear - I'm with those who say that minimum wage should be applied across the table. That should be a waiters/ress minimum. Ideally - Tips should be in addition to a fair minimum wage.
Well, she (my sis-in-law) says this -
1) you tip based on service. it is NOT the servicepersons fault if the food is not good (unless they took down or ordered you the wrong thing).
2) if you've a problem with the food - say something and let the serviceperson try to fix it. thats part of their job.
3) you tip on the food/drink total - not the total after taxes are added.
4) if it's a buffet - then one dollar per person is sufficient for a tip as you were not served food, just (usually in the US) given beverages.
Its that last part about the buffet stuff that I don't always agree with, but that's her rule. (for instance, I think its not always enough)
Personally, I generally tip about 20%.