Tipping!

[Bro. Dave]

I suppose our circumstances are not the average. We live in a relatively small college town and frequent the same places about weekly. The wait staff is either college students or single moms (I know that's an overstatement and generalization).
Many of them call us by name and know our usual drinks and sometimes our usual orders. I unashamedly over tip almost every time unless something just goes horribly wrong.
I figure it this way: I can afford it; they need it; it does improve service on repeat visits; it makes me feel like I've helped some folks who are trying hard to better themselves. Of course, there are always exceptions to the above.

 

[Golddollar]

A couple years ago I was up in Ohio visiting my brother and we went out to a Mexican restaurant on the west side of Cleveland with his girlfriend. My nephew was still in college nearby so we invited him to join us. Our server was a young man probably of college age. He must have been fairly experienced and he was very attentive to our party. I watched him working the other tables and I was very impressed as to how he was hustling to cover all of his tables. Remembering my poverty stricken student days I picked up the tab for my nephew and our combined bills came to around $45. I was so impressed by the work ethic of our server that I put 15 Golden Dollars in his hand and put a $2 bill on top of them. He was very happy. Hey, he earned it.

 

[Exaviator]

Migrate to either Australia or New Zealand, where tipping is neither expected nor encouraged. The downside is that you will have to leave your firearms behind.

 

[Kiwi cop]

We don't have a tipping culture inn Kiwiland. Having said that a lot of bars and cafe's now have a tip jar on the counter. With a $22.50 minimum wage I don't bother.

On our recent US visit I would leave $5-7 in cash for the waitstaff when we had a meal, depending on the bill (usually $30-$35).

During the time in Joplin, where I was using Uber twice daily, it was always $5 cash for the driver (except the one who took me to Carthage to reclaim our belongings from the car. She earnt $50 for helping me in the pouring rain).

During the last few weeks, when eating alone I just rounded up the $28-$29 every two evenings meal to $35 (I would get a takeout box for the in between nights).

Karen's wheelchair pushers at the airport all received $5.

When Karen got out of hospital and we were getting food to go each night, I just out the change plans a couple of $1 bills in the tip jar.

It just became second nature towards the end.

 

[03hemi]

Let your conscience be your guide, but be willing to eat your conscience because of your belief too.
Look, I was in the industry (gratuity) for many years and I never took part of the common practice of retribution because it was disgusting and morally bankrupt, but know this, servers remember you if you frequent a place.
If you don't tip, you will definitely receive either bodily fluids, trash or what other imaginable thing a vengeful server can find to put in your food.
I tip often and I tip well, plus they'll treat you like Elvis.
Common sense should dictate don't eff off the people fix'n your food.

 

[sigp220.45]

I used to work for tips, so I tip often and a lot.

Waiters, waitresses, bartenders, hair cutters, Door Dashers, movers, and on my last flight I tipped the flight attendant because people on planes treat them like ****.

I tip extra for folks with tattoos.

 

[Bekeart]

Dine Regularly - Tip - a Bribe for Future Service

SWMBO and I have three places we often dine at.
Staffs remember us, our table choices, our drink orders, etc.
I overheard one waitress telling anther.
"THEY ALWAYS TIP $X!"

I do not tip for getting handed a burger at the counter.
If my order is delivered to the table - Bingo - A Tip.

Agree with previous post about up front tip getting larger/quicker refilled drinks from bartender.

 

[Kevin J.]

I was so impressed by the work ethic of our server that I put 15 Golden Dollars in his hand and put a $2 bill on top of them. He was very happy. Hey, he earned it.

15 gold dollars. How many do you typically carry on you?

 

[steelslaver]

When I used to be a party guy, I would give the bar maid and bartender a good tip right up front. Drop a $20 on them both tight off the bat and you were set. This was in the early 80s and I didn't go in high end bars.

I tip decent in restaurants. I was in a good steakhouse a couple weeks ago and had an extremely good waitress, she kept an eye out, stopped by to check on us, laughed with us etc. She got a great tip. I am not tipping at McDs etc.

I do know that a good percentage of new restaurants fail. One of my brothers tried it and failed, a good friend who went to culinary school and is a great host, tried it, had decent backing and location and still failed. It is not an easy business.

 

[JohnRippert]

Back in my younger drinking days I tipped a buck a drink. Always got damn good service and even some friendship from the wait staff. I worked in the kitchen of a Red Lobster as one of my first jobs, and when on break I saw what the wait staff had to put up with. These days my tipping starts at 20% for decent service up to 30% for great service. Bad service still gets 10%. Maybe they are having a bad day and I tend to give the benefit of a doubt. Went out to Saltgrass Steakhouse yesterday to take my best friend to lunch on his birthday. Food was great and the service matched it. I handed our waiter a Benjamin and a twenty, and my buddy chipped in a ten. We were both quite happy.

 

[Farmer17]

I went to a new salon near my new home to get a haircut a few days ago. When the lady was finished I went to the front waiting area to pay the bill and the person working the register was speaking pretty loudly when I was paying with my credit card. She said loudly "WOULD YOU LIKE TO LEAVE A GRATUITY?" like she was wanting everyone in the waiting area to hear and and pressure me into saying a higher amount so I wouldn't seem like a cheapskate. I said add ten dollars and left a bit irritated by her actions. Then when I got home and saw my haircut I got even more mad, it was awful.

 

[zeke]

I used to work as a volunteer bartender at the American Legion when the Sons were helping to reestablish the bar to benefit the veterans. I didn't get wages but got to keep the tips. It was a small bar, and didn't require having to mix drinks, just sell beer and pop and handle the tickets. It required some hustling to make sure that nobody went more than 10 seconds with an empty bottle in front of them. I always thought I was a decent tipper, but from that bartending stint I upped my game tipping. It was an experience seeing something about the lives of people who lived on tips. I always hope that the Golden Dollars help servers remember that I left them a good tip. But I do keep a critical eye on the service.

As the saying goes "the best tippers are ex servers"

 

[mchom]

Just a few thoughts …

I guess I don’t understand the restaurant industry, but I simply cannot understand how food can be marked up so much, alcohol even more, and restaurant owners are basically given almost free labor, as tipping accounts for much of the serving staff’s wages—and yet so many restaurants can’t make it. Where does all the money go?

Off the top of my head In the arena I have familiarity with
( harder for mom & pop locations):
Food and paper (non alcohol) typically run 33%
Operating & cleaning supplies 3%
(Suppliers pass on any increase in goods caused by supply chain issues/costs)
Labor (Mgt/Staff/Payroll tax) around 27% (Non tipping establishment)
Utilities 5%
Outside services (landscaping, grease service, exhaust cleaning, alarm service / maint etc, etc…) up to 10%
Most Credit card handlers will charge 3%
Bus insurance / Employee injury Insurance 5%
Uniforms/linens 1-3%
Maint & Repairs (this can be a tough one) 5%
Accounting/Admin/Payroll admin 2%
Small parts and new equip 1-5%
There can be occasional large equipment but usually capitalized
But effects cash flow
Debt service/ primary loan repayment …won’t show on P&L but again affects cash flow. For most small bus it’s 7 years to repay
Property taxes typically $15-25k annually per site. Just a guess tho…I am in middle of country. I can imagine much worse in certain areas of country.

There is more but point is most establishments run on thin margins. It’s so easy to have zero at end month. Or less…


And consider Govt by nature adds costs over time.

I’m not disputing the frustration we all feel
just sharing where the money goes.

 

[Golddollar]

15 gold dollars. How many do you typically carry on you?

While they come from the mint in $25 rolls, usually it's a matter of how many loose coins a particular bank has when I go in to acquire them.

 

[jeffrefrig]

I’m following this “tipping” trend lately, and much of the thing you do with the person holding the card reader thing doesn’t deserve or warrant a tip. Any sit down place is an instant 20%, +/- . Okay so I am important enough to have personal security. Some squirrel comes out and wants a piece of me. All of a sudden one of my guys comes up with a thing to choose the tip. These are my personal protection personnel. Hell of a choice here! Weird situations deserve some thought.
Gotta go recharge..

 

[Ματθιας]

Is it a tip when I give folks money to get things done faster?

 

[Bekeart]

Bribe vs Tip

Is it a tip when I give folks money to get things done faster?

I would define it as a bribe for future services.
In you case "future" might be a matter of minutes ...

As in poker, call your hand yourself ........

In my dictionary/lexicology. (Great chance to use a fancy word)
Up front payment, before an act, is a bribe.
After the fact payment is a tip/reward.

 

[UncleEd]

In my dictionary/lexicology. (Great chance to use a fancy word)
Up front payment, before an act, is a bribe.
After the fact payment is a tip/reward.

Eh, shades of a SCOTUS ruling?

 

[03hemi]

Now when tipping, I leave a note on the check to support tax free tips.

 

[steelslaver]

Tipping the bartender and barmaid in advance may technically have been a bribe, they didn't care and I didn't wait. I would also signal with money in hand
.
But, then I spend some time as a bouncer, occasional bartender and dated bar maids. Hitting on barmaids is generally a waste of time as it is a constant for them. When you don't, they get curious and you know what they say about curious.

 

[NYlakesider]

Tipping in general.

After I retired on a decent pension waiting the few years for the wife to retire I went out and got a job. My union rules I could not go back on the hire list, nor I could I do work that was similar to my trade. (pipefitter/welder)

I had a CDL and figured I would drive for a while.

My delivery was considered tailgate unless arrangements were made in advance. Now many times I helped out the receipant no matter if they were just a homeowner or a hired contractor.

I got my fair share of tips. I was not doing that to get tips just helping out a little if needed.

I have a lot of bad to say against my state but it appears that the tipping culture the closer to NYC, or delivering to someone that has moved out of that area was interesting.


I delivered in about 60% of upstate and most of the tips or better tips came from what I said last paragraph.

Now I certainly did not need tips but it was a nice feeling to be appreciated.

I did some oddball stuff like soldering up a coupe joints a homeowner had goofed up. Got $25 for under 10 minutes work (This was 1998 and $25 was good money then.)

Also helped out another person when his contractor failed to show and do the unload!. He had a lot of windows and I carried my share into his house.

He said he had no money but I deserved consideration for helping him out. Said all I have is a Travelers check. He cosigned it and gave it to me, It was a $50. Told him I appreciated that but that was way too much. His reply I can afford it and you appeared to work harder than my contractor.

 

[pawngal]

Pay cash, if they can give you the correct change, then tip.
Yes, I'm aware of the "cashless", airports and concert venues.

 

[A-37]

Had my 2-story house washed today by a 2-man team. Price was a reasonable $300. I added $50 and said, "This is for showing up on time and doing a good job."

I'll hire them again next year and expect the same good service.

 

[Beemerguy53]

I had dinner recently in a nice, family-owned steakhouse in Western Maryland (which is a world apart from the rest of the state). I noted this sign on the front door...

 

[AugieTN]

I was ordering lunch online (pickup order) and i looked at my cart and said something is wrong. When I pulled the cart up it was auto adding a 18% pickup tip.

It just seems like a tip on a pickup order is too much.

Personally I don't like the concept of tipping in the first place.

 

[NYlakesider]

I was ordering lunch online (pickup order) and i looked at my cart and said something is wrong. When I pulled the cart up it was auto adding a 18% pickup tip.

It just seems like a tip on a pickup order is too much.

Personally I don't like the concept of tipping in the first place.

Did you get the order, with the tip or without or just plain cancel.

I would have canceled!

 

[brucev]

I tip. I do not quibble about it. If I am not able to tip, then I cannot afford to eat at that restaurant. I go somewhere where I can afford to eat. JMHO. Sincerely. bruce.

 

[AugieTN]

Did you get the order, with the tip or without or just plain cancel.

I would have canceled!

I was able to change the tip to -0-. If I wasn't able to change the tip I would have cancelled.

If i eat at a restaurant, I will normally tip at least 20%. I won't tip someone handing me a sandwich on a pickup order.

Like I said, I don't like the whole idea of tipping so an employee can survive on a below minimum wage.

 

[pantannojack]

Yes it can take me three hours to prepare my own dinner, but then I tip myself 6$, enough for a discount market bottle of good Spanish Red.

 

[Rustyt1953]

Generous tipping can also be viewed as a retainer for future good service.

The staff have long memories.