My, My, My...seems we have hit upon a touchy subject here today.
Yes, I do believe it is crass to have a tip jar out in front at a fast serve food joint...Just as I believe it is crass there is a tip jar at the counter of the cigar store I frequent for my stogies. Neither one get's the left over change, if I have any coming back...
There are many "SERVICE" industries that are on the low end of the pay scale to be sure...Do you tip the dry cleaners, the swimming pool cleaner, the guy who fixed your car or truck? Probably not. Why Not? Because usually those are paid at least a minimum wage...Sorry folks, but even those at the fast food joint are paid minimum wage. It's the sit down folks that have a specific waiter/;waitress, they are paid at the minimum of $2.00 and the remainder of their income to be made up from the tips. That's why the IRS dings them right off they must report their tips. Because they listed their occupation as waiter/waitress. Where as the fast food worker does not.
Now back to the eating joint. Who is it got you what you wanted? Was it the waiter/waitress, or was it the cook/chef? The waiter/waitress didn't prepare the salad with extra dressing, or hold the tomatoes. Was it the waiter/waitress that cooked your streak or favorite seafood, the way you wanted it cooked, or was it the waiter/waitress?
Did the waiter/waitress share the tip with the cook/chef, or did they keep it to them selves, and the cook/chef had to live on the minimum wages?
Ask for the cook/chef to come to your table in person, you want to talk to that person, and it doesn't hurt to have the owner/manager accompany. Then you can complement the cook/chef, the owner manager knows they have a good one, and maybe will pay them more. And you can tip the cook/chef right then and there, knowing they get the tip.
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Now as far as rant's go....I will not pay for a required tip of 15% or more to be added on to the bill if there is more than 10 people being served. That money is going to the owner/manager as total receipts for the night, not for the waiter/waitresses.
Serving 10 people at one table is no different than serving 2 people at 5 tables.
Here's another little tid bit....If you pay with a credit card, and it list a place to add a tip...don't...If you're going to tip, give it directly to the person who served you...The tip get's added right into the total for the night. They don't go through the nights receipts and see who, what waiter/waitress served what meal, and how much the tip was. Many of the final bills don't even have the waiter/waitress names on it, so how are they going to know who to give the money to? When your monthly bill comes from your credit card company, it doesn't break down what is a tip and what is a bill does it? I didn't think so.......
There...Put that in your pipe and smoke it.!!!!!
WuzzFuzz