Tips and service

RetiredUSNChief

RetiredUSNChief

Get over it, snowflake.
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Tips are a bit of a sore spot with me.

Not because I'm a miser, mind you, but because they've long become an area of greedy entitlement.

Used to be the standard was 15%...and that was pre-tax total this was figured by.

Now it's more like 20% standard, figured post-tax.

Now, I'm a good tipper, provided of course that the service is good. And good service means prompt service, drinks don't go empty, and timely checks during the meal to tend to wants/needs. That's it.

In general, my minimum tip is $5 for anything less than $25. If I go out after work by myself for a relaxing bite and the meal is $15, they're still getting a $5 tip. I can afford it and it's no skin off my back provided I've got good service.

Given that much of my time is away from home for work, my way of unwinding is to relax to some reading during my meal. Which means I'll likely tip even better, because I'm taking up a seat for a longer time which might otherwise go to another paying customer.

HOWEVER...the effin' government(s) ain't doing anything for me to warrant paying a tip on the taxes they're ALREADY taking from me. Even though the tip goes to the server. It's kinda like paying a fine for the privilege of having my money taken from me.

And what's with some of the people at fast food joints asking for tips? The ONLY "service" they provide is food delivery from the fryer to the counter (or drive through window). And, quite frankly, a significant fraction of that ends up being screwed up. I can't count the times I've driven away from the drive through and then found out my order was wrong.

Add to this the fact that some places take orders by kiosk or apps. Where's the human interaction I'm normally paying a tip for?
 
I dunno....... I have worked in a restaurant and that experience turned me into a very good tipper and a patient person. People can be a pain to deal with.... some complain over nothing, trying to get something for free and to a server that tip is their salary. We do the same minimum tip also, even if it's a small bill I usually leave a $5 anyway. We don't go to a sit down restaurant very often anymore, so a big tip here and there isn't a big deal for us.

I have walked out of a restaurant three times??? because the service was so bad.

However, I don't tip fast food or kiosks either.

I think everyone's cost of living is going up and everyone is trying to get a bigger piece of the pie.
 
I always tip pre-tax, regardless of the suggested amounts on the receipt, and make sure to add back in any discounts that might’ve applied before calculating the subtotal.
 
I like to think I'm generous with my tips.

My youngest and I ate at Country Home Cafe, I the way back from Camp Old Indian where we hauled a Scout trailer up for the weekend.

Never been there before (a key element to "Hey, let's try that place!"). A quaint place, the usual fare, decent prices. They have a lot of animals outside around the place (saw an albino bunny on the way out, lots of goats, etc.).

One of those places that's family owned and operated, a toddler that all the staff took turns keeping an eye on, and not one waitress was slacking off. If they weren't tending to a customer, they were prepping silverware and napkins, ensuring tables, chairs, and floors were clean, immediately greeting customers as soon as they walked in, etc.

I think it tab came out to about $30. Waitress rang up our check and swiveled the display around and asked if I wanted to leave a tip.

"Yep. Ten dollars."

She looked shocked, but smiled and finished ringing us up.

(I suspected she was the mother of the toddler everybody was caring for. If she was working as hard as she was, and doing a fantastic job of it under those circumstances, then I felt she earned it.)

On the way out, we got ice cream cones at the little ice cream shack outside. Left a $5 tip there, which made the kid a happy camper indeed.


BUT...if it takes forever to get me menues and drink orders, if the drinks are constantly going empty due to lack of service, if all I ever see of the wait staff is due the check...good luck on a tip.

ESPECIALLY when business is slow. (Which, for some reason, seems to be when most of the poor service happens on average.)
 
I may be weird with tips, dunno. I rarely tip for takeout. I tip based on service provided and I tip well. I always tip in cash and always hand it directly to the server, not on the table. I will generally tip a little better at our regular spots.
 
I tip 20% or nothing. There’s no in between. They either got it right the first time or they didn’t.
 
The whole concept is an American drummed up idea so greedy restaurant owners could pay $2.15 wages and have you pay the rest of the salary. Now every ticket starts at 20%, then 25%, then 30%. At six in a group most have added an automatic 20% to the bill. Total horse hockey. I’ve been in the restaurant management business and feel this way although I always tip 15% or more. I wish it would go away and the owners paid fair wages like the other imdustries.
 
I usually tip something unless the service is awful. If service is exceptionally good I try to reward that, monetarily and verbally. Fast food tips, maybe, but not much. I worked in a kitchen and dated enough bartenders and servers to know a little about it. When kitchen staff gets tips those folks are thrilled btw, I could count on one hand the times waitstaff shared anything and have fingers left over, so don't pass it thru them.
 
I don't tip fast food, and I don't tip carry-out. Dine-in I tip according to service received, not by any "guideline".
My "server" should understand that he/she is working on tips, and that should resonate in the service that they give, period.

The wife, on the other hand, is not happy until the server is making more than we do.
 
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