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Thoughts on Tipping
- Thread starter stevento
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That attitudes of some our our non-American members in this thread are absolutely outrageous. Some of you sound like the type of people who go to Italy and demand your pasta as a side dish and not a first course, yelling at the waiter to follow your custom instead of their own. Or like this one British couple I saw in a Mexican restaurant demanding dinner rolls, unable to comprehend that all they had were tortillas.
Come to think of it, when I visit Britain, I think I'll drive on the right side of the road because, goddamnit, that's the way it should be done. The government should change it to the "right" way, and we should give them a nudge by crashing into innocent motorists.
Does it make you feel any better if we don't call it a tip? Let's call it a fee just so you can stomach it better. When going to a restaurant in the US, you have to pay a service fee, and guess what, you get to choose how much it is. The fee should be between 10% and 20% of the bill. Our taxis also have fees like this. Depending on how good the driver is, we give a couple dollars in this fee. We have lots of other "culturally expected fees," so if you ever plan on visiting the US, please buy a tour book and read the section on tipping very thoroughly. And if it makes you feel better, just cross out the word "tip" and put "fee."
Seriously, if you can't handle doing a little math at the end of your meal and still pay less for a meal here than in Europe, then just don't bother coming.
Come to think of it, when I visit Britain, I think I'll drive on the right side of the road because, goddamnit, that's the way it should be done. The government should change it to the "right" way, and we should give them a nudge by crashing into innocent motorists.
Does it make you feel any better if we don't call it a tip? Let's call it a fee just so you can stomach it better. When going to a restaurant in the US, you have to pay a service fee, and guess what, you get to choose how much it is. The fee should be between 10% and 20% of the bill. Our taxis also have fees like this. Depending on how good the driver is, we give a couple dollars in this fee. We have lots of other "culturally expected fees," so if you ever plan on visiting the US, please buy a tour book and read the section on tipping very thoroughly. And if it makes you feel better, just cross out the word "tip" and put "fee."
Seriously, if you can't handle doing a little math at the end of your meal and still pay less for a meal here than in Europe, then just don't bother coming.
This thread takes me back to my food service days. This is the way I see it:
In the US, we have this system of tipping. That's the way it is, and it isn't going to change anytime soon. Deal with it. If you choose not to tip you're being cheap, period.
The exception is if the service is horrible. I've only had it happen once, but if the staff act like jerks or really foul up your meal, I consider it fair play to reduce or eliminate the tip. I generally tip 20% unless the service is exceptionally good or bad...
As to spitting in peoples' food and so forth - there is a line, and that crosses it. If you are, say a pizza delivery person, and you are delivering to a regular customer who is abusive or never tips, I would say it's fair play to not put a full effort into their product. BUT it is NOT acceptable to put stuff in their food that doesn't belong there. That's where I draw the line.
Back when I worked at Subwayrolleyes, when I got an abusive or rude customer, I would make their sandwich as quickly as possible, so it was pretty sloppy. But I got into a fight with a fellow employee once because he purposely rubbed a (extremely abusive) customer's lunch meat on the floor before bringing it out to put on the sandwich. It was no more than the customer deserved, to be honest, but I threw it away. But I ended up fighting with both the customer and my co-worker and ended up telling both of them to **** off. Then I made the abusive customer a sandwich, refused to accept her expired coupons and sent her on her way.
In the US, we have this system of tipping. That's the way it is, and it isn't going to change anytime soon. Deal with it. If you choose not to tip you're being cheap, period.
The exception is if the service is horrible. I've only had it happen once, but if the staff act like jerks or really foul up your meal, I consider it fair play to reduce or eliminate the tip. I generally tip 20% unless the service is exceptionally good or bad...
As to spitting in peoples' food and so forth - there is a line, and that crosses it. If you are, say a pizza delivery person, and you are delivering to a regular customer who is abusive or never tips, I would say it's fair play to not put a full effort into their product. BUT it is NOT acceptable to put stuff in their food that doesn't belong there. That's where I draw the line.
Back when I worked at Subway
rolleyes, when I got an abusive or rude customer, I would make their sandwich as quickly as possible, so it was pretty sloppy. But I got into a fight with a fellow employee once because he purposely rubbed a (extremely abusive) customer's lunch meat on the floor before bringing it out to put on the sandwich. It was no more than the customer deserved, to be honest, but I threw it away. But I ended up fighting with both the customer and my co-worker and ended up telling both of them to **** off. Then I made the abusive customer a sandwich, refused to accept her expired coupons and sent her on her way.2 things: One, that's put on the receipt to help you figure out tip in case you're bad at math. Two, you're punishing a waiter for something on a receipt that was put there based on a decision by a bunch of people at the corporate headquarters, something your waiter had no control over.
Actually, 3 things. Even if the food is complete crap, if the waiter does a good job, I still leave a full tip. It's not their fault that the people in the kitchen screwed up.
That attitudes of some our our non-American members in this thread are absolutely outrageous. Some of you sound like the type of people who go to Italy and demand your pasta as a side dish and not a first course, yelling at the waiter to follow your custom instead of their own. Or like this one British couple I saw in a Mexican restaurant demanding dinner rolls, unable to comprehend that all they had were tortillas.
Come to think of it, when I visit Britain, I think I'll drive on the right side of the road because, goddamnit, that's the way it should be done. The government should change it to the "right" way, and we should give them a nudge by crashing into innocent motorists.
Does it make you feel any better if we don't call it a tip? Let's call it a fee just so you can stomach it better. When going to a restaurant in the US, you have to pay a service fee, and guess what, you get to choose how much it is. The fee should be between 10% and 20% of the bill. Our taxis also have fees like this. Depending on how good the driver is, we give a couple dollars in this fee. We have lots of other "culturally expected fees," so if you ever plan on visiting the US, please buy a tour book and read the section on tipping very thoroughly. And if it makes you feel better, just cross out the word "tip" and put "fee."
Seriously, if you can't handle doing a little math at the end of your meal and still pay less for a meal here than in Europe, then just don't bother coming.
I wonder if you'll drive on the right when visiting Japan, Cyprus and Australia.
I haven't been to the states yet but up until reading this thread I had no idea that the US had this tipping system. I've always seen this in movies etc, thinking that everyone was mighty generous lol.
stretching it a bit here?
taxes are levied based on reported tips, and only when it's below a certain level the sales part comes in place, and the threshold there is at a much lower level (8% of sales become taxable) than the average 15% earned tip (exactly because the possibility of stiffs is taken into account). Of course the situation is different for checks paid by credit, where tips are recorded.
Furthermore, in many states waiters do make minimum wage. it would be only fair that it was extended nationwide. Besides, if the system was changed to rely less on tips, so would the tax code.
but my main point is that the doomsday scenario applies to servers in smaller places, but much less so in high-end ones. in NYC, waiters in good places easily make >50K/year
That attitudes of some our our non-American members in this thread are absolutely outrageous. Some of you sound like the type of people who go to Italy and demand your pasta as a side dish and not a first course, yelling at the waiter to follow your custom instead of their own. Or like this one British couple I saw in a Mexican restaurant demanding dinner rolls, unable to comprehend that all they had were tortillas.
Come to think of it, when I visit Britain, I think I'll drive on the right side of the road because, goddamnit, that's the way it should be done. The government should change it to the "right" way, and we should give them a nudge by crashing into innocent motorists.
Does it make you feel any better if we don't call it a tip? Let's call it a fee just so you can stomach it better. When going to a restaurant in the US, you have to pay a service fee, and guess what, you get to choose how much it is. The fee should be between 10% and 20% of the bill. Our taxis also have fees like this. Depending on how good the driver is, we give a couple dollars in this fee. We have lots of other "culturally expected fees," so if you ever plan on visiting the US, please buy a tour book and read the section on tipping very thoroughly. And if it makes you feel better, just cross out the word "tip" and put "fee."
Seriously, if you can't handle doing a little math at the end of your meal and still pay less for a meal here than in Europe, then just don't bother coming.
Completely agree.
I didn't say it was right. I said it happens.
I wasn't responding to anyone, just stating my case. And you're absolutely right - if you are a regular customer of a restaurant and choose not to tip or are rude to the staff, you asking for trouble...some moron in the kitchen is going to do something unspeakable with your food. Or, at the very least, you'll get crappy service.
Regarding restaurants automatically putting tips on the bill, don't they realize they might be screwing over the servers? There's this one restaurant by my work that my coworkers and I always go to, and if it's a party of 6 or more, it's an automatic 18% tip on the bill. Fair enough, I understand why they do that, but assuming good service, I tend to give 20% or more, especially when my meal is cheap. But if 18% is all they say they want, then 18% is all they get.
And should tips even really be a percentage, or be a fixed amount per person? Lets say there are two separate parties of 5 at a restaurant with the same server. At one table, everyone gets a $50 steak and lobster dinner, at the other table, everyone gets an $8 cheeseburger. If they both tip 15%, then the first table will be leaving a huge tip, and the other will be leaving a small tip even though the server has done the same amount of work among both tables.
And should tips even really be a percentage, or be a fixed amount per person? Lets say there are two separate parties of 5 at a restaurant with the same server. At one table, everyone gets a $50 steak and lobster dinner, at the other table, everyone gets an $8 cheeseburger. If they both tip 15%, then the first table will be leaving a huge tip, and the other will be leaving a small tip even though the server has done the same amount of work among both tables.
That attitudes of some our our non-American members in this thread are absolutely outrageous. Some of you sound like the type of people who go to Italy and demand your pasta as a side dish and not a first course, yelling at the waiter to follow your custom instead of their own. Or like this one British couple I saw in a Mexican restaurant demanding dinner rolls, unable to comprehend that all they had were tortillas.
Come to think of it, when I visit Britain, I think I'll drive on the right side of the road because, goddamnit, that's the way it should be done. The government should change it to the "right" way, and we should give them a nudge by crashing into innocent motorists.
Does it make you feel any better if we don't call it a tip? Let's call it a fee just so you can stomach it better. When going to a restaurant in the US, you have to pay a service fee, and guess what, you get to choose how much it is. The fee should be between 10% and 20% of the bill. Our taxis also have fees like this. Depending on how good the driver is, we give a couple dollars in this fee. We have lots of other "culturally expected fees," so if you ever plan on visiting the US, please buy a tour book and read the section on tipping very thoroughly. And if it makes you feel better, just cross out the word "tip" and put "fee."
Seriously, if you can't handle doing a little math at the end of your meal and still pay less for a meal here than in Europe, then just don't bother coming.
i agree.
i think that in the case of restaurants, a fairer system would be a higher base-salary from the employer, on top of which you pay the tip, but since the system is not going to change anytime soon, so people might as well adapt to it.
you can still leave more, and i am guessing the 18% is worked out so, on average, they don't lose out.
as for the tip based on the bill total. i agree it's not a good system.
I don't feel so bad about earning $4/hr when I worked in the food industry. Now I generously tip, and ALWAYS tip. If the service was/is horrible I'll usually leave a different currency (eg, in the US I'll leave Canadian) its still a tip, it just makes it difficult for them to get their money, kind of how they made my meal less enjoyable. So generally I double the taxes and round up, if I liked the server I'll add a couple more dollars and if I'm with a poor tipper I will put down more money
I've encountered that before - we've just left extra cash on the table to cover the difference.
That attitudes of some our our non-American members in this thread are absolutely outrageous. Some of you sound like the type of people who go to Italy and demand your pasta as a side dish and not a first course, yelling at the waiter to follow your custom instead of their own. Or like this one British couple I saw in a Mexican restaurant demanding dinner rolls, unable to comprehend that all they had were tortillas.
Come to think of it, when I visit Britain, I think I'll drive on the right side of the road because, goddamnit, that's the way it should be done. The government should change it to the "right" way, and we should give them a nudge by crashing into innocent motorists.
Does it make you feel any better if we don't call it a tip? Let's call it a fee just so you can stomach it better. When going to a restaurant in the US, you have to pay a service fee, and guess what, you get to choose how much it is. The fee should be between 10% and 20% of the bill. Our taxis also have fees like this. Depending on how good the driver is, we give a couple dollars in this fee. We have lots of other "culturally expected fees," so if you ever plan on visiting the US, please buy a tour book and read the section on tipping very thoroughly. And if it makes you feel better, just cross out the word "tip" and put "fee."
Seriously, if you can't handle doing a little math at the end of your meal and still pay less for a meal here than in Europe, then just don't bother coming.
Perhaps they could put their sob story on the menu or the bill then? I'm sure that would encourage some tips
As people have said earlier in the thread, no one forced these people to work in this industry. They took jobs knowing that they would not have a guaranteed income, and while I believe that they should, I do not think it is the responsibility of the person dining in a restaurant to pay the staff. That is the concern of the business owner - if the person is unhappy with their pay and conditions of working, they are free to leave, join a union to get something sorted out for them or speak to their employer themselves.
Someone else mentioned that because I think that there should be a minimum wage for these people I should make up the difference because it would be the Government enforcing it. I don't understand that attitude. Even if there was a higher minimum wage, that money would be coming from the employer, not the taxpayer.
Perhaps they could put their sob story on the menu or the bill then? I'm sure that would encourage some tips
As people have said earlier in the thread, no one forced these people to work in this industry. They took jobs knowing that they would not have a guaranteed income, and while I believe that they should, I do not think it is the responsibility of the person dining in a restaurant to pay the staff. That is the concern of the business owner - if the person is unhappy with their pay and conditions of working, they are free to leave, join a union to get something sorted out for them or speak to their employer themselves.
Someone else mentioned that because I think that there should be a minimum wage for these people I should make up the difference because it would be the Government enforcing it. I don't understand that attitude. Even if there was a higher minimum wage, that money would be coming from the employer, not the taxpayer.
And all of a sudden people over the sees have no right to complain about Americans. If you can not accept the customs over here or in another country DO NOT LEAVE YOURS.
If they spit in your food or you get crappy services because of it. Sorry not my fault you. you are not willing to pay the extra amount for it. You get what you pay for. The "tip" is what you pay for the service. Pay cheap you get cheap service plan and simple.
Perhaps they could put their sob story on the menu or the bill then? I'm sure that would encourage some tips
As people have said earlier in the thread, no one forced these people to work in this industry. They took jobs knowing that they would not have a guaranteed income, and while I believe that they should, I do not think it is the responsibility of the person dining in a restaurant to pay the staff. That is the concern of the business owner - if the person is unhappy with their pay and conditions of working, they are free to leave, join a union to get something sorted out for them or speak to their employer themselves.
Someone else mentioned that because I think that there should be a minimum wage for these people I should make up the difference because it would be the Government enforcing it. I don't understand that attitude. Even if there was a higher minimum wage, that money would be coming from the employer, not the taxpayer.
I really don't care if you understand it or not. While you're here, please respect that that's the way things are. You don't have to like it, but don't take it out on the very people you claim to support.
And if it really offends your sensibilities that much, then don't eat out while you're visiting the US. The owner of the restaurant won't get your money, and the service staff definitely won't miss you.
I tip well.
And in my job I don't get tips and you know what? I deserve some.
one thing I don't understand is the whole 'sabotage your food thing'
How would they know before the food was served and bill paid with tip on it?
And in my job I don't get tips and you know what? I deserve some.
one thing I don't understand is the whole 'sabotage your food thing'
How would they know before the food was served and bill paid with tip on it?
Perhaps they could put their sob story on the menu or the bill then? I'm sure that would encourage some tips
As people have said earlier in the thread, no one forced these people to work in this industry. They took jobs knowing that they would not have a guaranteed income, and while I believe that they should, I do not think it is the responsibility of the person dining in a restaurant to pay the staff. That is the concern of the business owner - if the person is unhappy with their pay and conditions of working, they are free to leave, join a union to get something sorted out for them or speak to their employer themselves.
Someone else mentioned that because I think that there should be a minimum wage for these people I should make up the difference because it would be the Government enforcing it. I don't understand that attitude. Even if there was a higher minimum wage, that money would be coming from the employer, not the taxpayer.
I simply cannot comprehend how culturally insensitive you are. Do you not give shoe-shine boys in third-world countries a few extra bucks because you think they should unionize? Since when is it the prerogative of a tourist to change elements of other cultures that they find distasteful. It's not a sob story, it's how things work. I'd love to see you in a country where to haggle the price of everything is customary. I can't imagine you'd refuse to honor their culture and insist on paying list price on everything.
And since when is it the prerogative of a stranger, heck, a tourist from another country, to question the job choice (or lack thereof, you don't know how someone got their job; and today with over 8% employment, there isn't exactly a lot of choice) of someone. Come to think of it, next time I'm at McDonalds I'll pay only half the bill because the person working there should have chosen a different career. Can you imagine trying to pay less than the bill at a British restaurant because you don't like the service? No, because it's not part of the culture to haggle a restaurant bill. Similarly, in the US, if you don't leave a tip, you're not paying full price.
Bottom line: THIS IS NOT THE UK. WE DO THINGS DIFFERENTLY HERE. Suck it up and respect other people's cultures.
I think this is meant for people that don't tip and frequent a certain place or have their food delivered from the same place. I am sure that people that don't tip are remembered more than people that tip well.
That's sometimes something that happens to repeat customers who are regularly intentionally rude, abusive and tip poorly, if at all.
I actually had one regular customer who made insanely rude comments to me and the rest of the staff. One night, one of his fellow diners was horrified by his behavior and said something to him. His reply? "It's OK, he's getting a tip." To which I answered, "Really? That would be a first."
I got yelled at by my boss. I didn't care.
That's sometimes something that happens to repeat customers who are regularly intentionally rude, abusive and tip poorly, if at all.
I actually had one regular customer who made insanely rude comments to me and the rest of the staff. One night, one of his fellow diners was horrified by his behavior and said something to him. His reply? "It's OK, he's getting a tip." To which I answered, "Really? That would be a first."
I got yelled at by my boss. I didn't care.
Mostly I avoid fast food where teenagers are working for health reasons and not wanting my food tampered with. This happened to me at sonic with spit in my slush. I talked to the manager. It's wasn't nice.
But that was an incident where an offending action was taking against me at random with no provocation. I have to wonder how often this occurs.
I find it hard to get my head around the fact that he thought he was justified in behaving appallingly to people simply because he was leaving a tip (or not, as the case was). Almost like he felt that he was buying the right to be abusive towards you.
Also, I'll have your earlier comments about hearing British accents and expecting poor treatment and no tip at the back of my mind when eating out if I ever visit the States. I'll be paranoid that my Englandshire accent will result in some undisclosed ingredients finding their way into my tea...
This guy did this to everybody. He was a terrible person.
Also, I'll have your earlier comments about hearing British accents and expecting poor treatment and no tip at the back of my mind when eating out if I ever visit the States. I'll be paranoid that my Englandshire accent will result in some undisclosed ingredients finding their way into my tea...
Nah- I wouldn't expect that to happen to you, honestly. Just give them some Jaffa Cakes.
Also, I'll have your earlier comments about hearing British accents and expecting poor treatment and no tip at the back of my mind when eating out if I ever visit the States. I'll be paranoid that my Englandshire accent will result in some undisclosed ingredients finding their way into my tea...
Oh, you'll be fine. The chicks dig the accent.
You've not heard mine.Oh, you'll be fine. The chicks dig the accent.
There was one occasion when we were in the Netherlands and we got talking to some Americans in a bar. One of my chums had to act as an interpretor as they couldn't understand me...