Curbside Takeaway Tipping Ettiquette

[Mr. Durden]

That's why minimum wage in Canada is something around $7 Canadian.

Lets see... $7 Canadian... ummm... whats that, like $1.50 US?
Just kidding. It reminded me of a t-shirt I saw once that said, "If I had 50 cents for every dollar I have, I'd be in Canada." Always just struck me as funny.

However, I dont understand how complaining about how little money you make is an excuse to say "give me tips for doing my job". Oh darn it, i ONLY make $70K a year, can I start getting a few extra bucks for each of these graphics I deliver to you?

 

[jilted]

Tipping no longer makes sense.

Originally, a T.I.P. was given BEFORE service "to insure promptness". You gave a waiter a tip to be sure your order went ahead of everyone else's. You gave a valet a tip to park your car close, keep it safe, and bring it to you right away when you ask for it. Now, it has become an expected part of the fee for a service, yet often has nothing to do with the quality or quantity of service. When my wife and I take our 3 kids to Cracker Barrel, the server does WAY more for us than when just my wife and I go to Outback, but the bill at Cracker Barrel is less than half of the bill at Outback. Is it fair to give the Cracker Barrel server half the tip for twice the work? Also, does a server that brings filet mignon or lobster on a plate deserve more than a server that brings a T-bone or chicken on the same plate at the same restauraunt for the same service? If a tip is supposed to reward good service, then why does the amount of the tip have anything to do with the price of the meal? It should be based on the amount and quality of the service, not a percentage of the meal cost.

Finally, in direct response to the original post, what is a reasonable hourly wage for putting food in a bag and carrying it 20 feet to your car? It takes 3 minutes or so including swiping your credit card and getting your signature. For an unskilled, non-physical labor position, usually filled by a high school student, I think $6 an hour would be generous. It takes less responsibiltity and less training than babysitting, and is less strenuous than mowing a lawn. An appropriate tip then would be $6 minus the hourly wage paid by the restaurant, divided by 20 (3/60 of a hour), which usually comes out to be 10 to 20 cents.

 

[Lunja]

UK resident here.

What the f*** is this tipping culture all aboout? I really don't understand. Pay someone extra to do their job? Sod that; not my problem. The fact that being a waiter doesn't pay enough to keep someone alive is nothing to do with the customer...

The fact that they clear the table, refill drinks, serve food, etc is irelevant. You can't run a restaurant without doing that stuff -- that's exactly why people go there... If I went to a restaurant and had to help myself, fetch food from the kitchen, pour my own drinks, etc... well, I'd just stay at home, wouldn't I?

<snip>

This tipping automatically, it's for the birds...

Steve.

Ahh, that's all a waiter should do by definition. If that was all I did, I wouldn't earn any tips, and I wouldn't expect to.

What a good waiter does is help create an atmosphere. I make suggestions from the menu when you havn't decided to prevent you getting frustrated as you fight through the info in front of you. This way, you're relaxed and enjoy yourself more, and the suggestions I make come from cues I pick up as I'm speaking to you.

If there is a kid nearby who looks annoyed, or another who is crying, I go take them a couple of balloons to cheer them up because a crying child can be a nightmare for a parent, and can annoy other people.

By doing this and other tricks, I add value to your experience, and this isn't what I get paid to do. It is that added value which is acknowleged by a tip.