Tips And Tipping

[dbigtex56]

This is a topic that affects nearly everyone, yet no one seems to talk much about it. How much do you tip, and who do you tip?

The standard amount for restaurant service now seems to be around 15-20%. Many people use twice the sales tax as a guide (I remember when 10% was the norm, but that was years ago.) I regularly tip that amount, or more if the service warrants it.

However, all service is not created equal. In some restaurants, customers are expected to place orders at a counter, and the food is brought to the table by a server. In other cases, the customer is expected to pick up his own food. Yet, there seems to be this attitude that someone who only stops by occasionally to refill your iced tea deserves as much of a tip as a 'full-service' server. IMHO, this sucks.

Worse yet are these trendy little coffee places, where one is expected to tip some condescending, hipper-than-thou kid for merely taking your money and handing you a cup. The people who work at fast-food places do more work, provide more service and generally have a better attitude - but they don't have a jar cutely labelled "KARMA" on their counters.

And if the service is really bad, do you leave a smaller amount (5-10%), or nothing at all? Complain to the management? Or do you guiltily shell out the standard amount?

Comments, please.

[Kirzania]

I'm as frugal as they come. Generally, I tip 15% for general, good service. 20% for outstanding service. I've tipped our regular server at Hobbit Hole 35% just because he got them to make us breakfast after breakfast hours.

However, for piss-poor service, I either don't tip or I'll leave just enough tip so they'll know how bad it was. At the Alama Drafthouse, on a not-so busy night, our server only had our table out of the whole theatre (out of maybe a dozen?). He showed up twice. I left him a $.20 tip. Yes. 20 cents.

I've worked in the food industry, so I know how it is. I give people the best possible service all the time and I expect the same from them. Tips are gratutity, not a necessity. No one is obligated to leave anything. I heartily disagree with the whole "25% gratutity automatically included for groups of six or more.)

As far as "tip jars" at your coffeehouse... It's a scam, ok? At Starbucks, we're not allowed to label that jar/box "tips" because that's not really what it's about. Sure, if someone gave you above and beyond service, you're perfectly welcome to call it a tip. However, it's more like "the change people don't want to hang on to." I can't tell you the amount of people who just drop those three cents in the jar because they don't want that change in their pockets/purses. (I'm included.) If everyone just dropped a dime in because they "didn't want it," our tips would be mad awesome.

[pineda]

The standard amount for restaurant service now seems to be around 15-20%.

This is still the going rate.

In some restaurants, customers are expected to place orders at a counter, and the food is brought to the table by a server.

No tip expected.

In other cases, the customer is expected to pick up his own food.

No tip expected for this either.

someone who only stops by occasionally to refill your iced tea

your discretion on this one.

merely taking your money and handing you a cup

No tip expected, unless you're like a regular there, and you have some kind of friendly relationship with the servers there, then you might leave something small, but not expected.

And if the service is really bad, do you leave a smaller amount (5-10%), or nothing at all? Complain to the management? Or do you guiltily shell out the standard amount?

Always, always, always complain! If the food is bad, then you should complain right away, as soon as you get it and discover it is lacking in some way, not after you've eaten 95% of it. The manager should fix it right away, no charge and the server does not get penalized because they did not cook the food. However, if your service is bad, whenever you've decided you've had enough, either after waiting 20-30 minutes to be noticed by a server at all, or waiting the same amount of time for the first drink to arrive, or at the end of the meal, when the check is presented for payment, do not pay that bill until you have talked with a manager. Do not pay the bill until you are satisfied with their answers. They may even compensate you for the poor experience, not typically, but occassionally it happens. The last thing any GOOD restaurant manager wants is you walking out the door looking to tell ALL your buddies about your poor experience, and the manager never knew it. If they do not satisfactorily answer you as to why things went the way they did or worse treat you in a condescending fashion, then pay the bill, no tip, and make a mental note not to patronize that place EVER AGAIN, and then do it!

[MidtownCoog]

I think I tip well. Anywhere from 10-20 depending on where and what. I even tip for take out.

Worse yet are these trendy little coffee places, where one is expected to tip some condescending, hipper-than-thou kid for merely taking your money and handing you a cup.

But to these fools my tip is:

"Get a real job you hippie granola freak".

[sevfiv]

i usually end up eating cheap (and i am not picky about food - so it has less chance of coming out wrong), so i end up tipping up to 30-35% range (or more depending).

for an extreme example, at tel-wink, two people can eat large meals for about ten dollars - and the waitstaff is usually great, so i'd end up tipping more than half the meal cost...

[Casual Observer]

I go to a restuarant for one of two reasons - atmosphere or the food.

If I go for the food, I don't care about the service as long as its at least mediocre. For the minimum, I always tip 15-20%. If I get great service at a place I'm at for the food, then that's just extra for the server.

If I go somewhere for the atmosphere, then I'm likely paying double what the food is worth, so I want damn good, catered service for my meal. Its at restaurants like these that I'm more critical of the service.

Either way, good service = good tip. Its not that hard of an equation. If the service sucks, I immediately bring it up with the manager. I ask them bluntly why the service is lacking.

I have left tips as large as the meal, even though the food sucked - ONLY because our server was kind enough to talk to us (myself and my wife) throughout the meal, explain where our food was, make up for it with extra wine - free desert - or discount on the check.

As for places like Starbucks - oh hell no. Oh, any of you that eat in Chinatown (Bellaire or Downtown) and leave a normal tip - that's usual 5-6 times what other Asians leave. The standard tip at a Vietnamese noodle house is 1 dollar per patron.

[groovehouse]

Tipping? double the tax... at 8.25% that's 16.5%, not bad... most times I tip more.

[ToolMan]

I go to a restuarant for one of two reasons - atmosphere or the food.

What, do you go to Chotchkie's? I like their flair!!

People go the for the food and th attitude!!!

[Casual Observer]

If all the waitresses look like Jennifer Anniston - then yes, Chotchskie's it it.

[MidtownCoog]

Just don't get the potato shooters, or the extreme fajitas.

I just stick with their coffee.

[Casual Observer]

For the bonus round - how many pieces of flair is the minimum?

[Kirzania]

15!

Unless you want to be the pretty boy over there and then it's 37.

[RedScare]

Always, always, always complain! If the food is bad, then you should complain right away, as soon as you get it and discover it is lacking in some way, not after you've eaten 95% of it. The manager should fix it right away, no charge and the server does not get penalized because they did not cook the food. However, if your service is bad, whenever you've decided you've had enough, either after waiting 20-30 minutes to be noticed by a server at all, or waiting the same amount of time for the first drink to arrive, or at the end of the meal, when the check is presented for payment, do not pay that bill until you have talked with a manager. Do not pay the bill until you are satisfied with their answers. They may even compensate you for the poor experience, not typically, but occassionally it happens. The last thing any GOOD restaurant manager wants is you walking out the door looking to tell ALL your buddies about your poor experience, and the manager never knew it. If they do not satisfactorily answer you as to why things went the way they did or worse treat you in a condescending fashion, then pay the bill, no tip, and make a mental note not to patronize that place EVER AGAIN, and then do it!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

When I go out to eat, I don't want to do the manager's job for him. I work all day, so I don't want to do it at night. If the order is wrong, or cold, I will ask them to fix it. If the service is bad, or the food is mediocre, I don't complain. I will tip accordingly, 10% for bad service, 20% or more for good.

I know that restaurants want me to tell them if things weren't right, but I want to enjoy myself, and critiquing my meal isn't enjoyable. This is the price we pay in a corporate world. Since the owners are in a Dallas suburb or a building on the West Loop, they want us to do quality control for them, and I will not do it. If the meal or service sucks, I don't go back...and I tell my friends.

The same applies to quality of service surveys by service providers. In the last 6 months, I have been subjected to surveys on my bank, DirecTV, my phone and my cell service. This is a huge waste of my time. I pay for the service. Do I now have to spend 20 minutes telling you how wonderful it is? Especially, when I have never noticed an increase in service after one of these surveys.

The only time I see results are when the owner is in the restaurant asking how things are. Then, you see results.

So:

Full service - 15-20%

Bar - 20%

Buffet - $1 for the ice tea person.

Counter help (including Starbucks) - nothing

[groovehouse]

[ToolMan]

Looks like I have started on Office Space thread:

Joanna: You know what, Stan, if you want me to wear 37 pieces of flair, like your pretty boy over there Bryan, why don't you make the minimum 37 pieces of flair?

Stan, Chotchkie's Manager: Well, I thought I remembered you saying that you wanted to express yourself.

Joanna: You know what, I do want to express myself, okay. And I don't need 37 pieces of flair to do it.

[flips off Stan]

[pineda]

When I go out to eat, I don't want to do the manager's job for him. I work all day, so I don't want to do it at night. If the order is wrong, or cold, I will ask them to fix it. If the service is bad, or the food is mediocre, I don't complain.

I understand, some people naturally recoil from confrontational situations which call for more assertiveness than they're willing to deal with it, BUT...

Restaurant managers are some of the hardest working people out there. They're in the front of the house and then in the back of the house. They're dealing (typically) with high school or college age kids who are working part-time as servers, not as their careers, so there are bound to be hiccups in service oriented fields like that. The managers really DO appreciate your honest feedback, it's what they thrive on, improving, constantly improving your restaurant "experience", so even though it may be hard for you to do, if your server screws up, or the food is awful, speak up and let them know. They can't be everywhere at once, and at every table, hovering over you. In this very competitive restaurant city, the managers want to do the best job by you.

[RedScare]

Funny that I'm butting heads with you on 2 different threads, pineda, but here goes...

I am a trial lawyer, so I am not the least bit averse to confrontation, however, this is my meal we are talking about here. I don't want the dinner that I pay for to be confrontational, especially when it was their fault, not mine.

As to how hard restaurant managers work, I know. I've been one. Twice. And, I've owned my own restaurant. Knowing what a restaurant manager does (and what many of them don't do), I do not want to do their job for them, especially in corporate restaurants, who only care about customer head counts, ticket averages, food costs, labor costs, and other financial numbers, while giving a nod to customer service by asking me to complain if I don't like something.

Well, why don't they concentrate on doing it right the first time, instead of making me tell them? For those who love to critique their meal with a manager, good for you. I don't, and won't.

[pineda]

As to how hard restaurant managers work, I know. I've been one. Twice. And, I've owned my own restaurant.

Ditto for me! Are you my evil twin?

[MidtownCoog]

Everytime I hear somebody say "but restaurant mangaers work hard" I think to myself:

"Nobody is forcing them to work there. If they can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen".

[pineda]

They DO work hard, but you know what, I don't think there is a more fun job out there!

[Kirzania]

They DO work hard, but you know what, I don't think there is a more fun job out there!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I don't know about that. You really can't beat being a Tissue Engineer.

And what about being a meteorologist? There's a lot to say for a guy who can be dead wrong 75% of the time and NOT get fired. 20% chance of rain today, for the record.

[pineda]

I don't think there is a more fun job out there!

I'm sure you're right, I was only stating my opinion, based upon my experiences of course. For the record, I have no idea what a Tissue Engineer is, are you one? And today, I think it would be really cool to be on the Space Shuttle.

[Kirzania]

I'm sure you're right, I was only stating my opinion, based upon my experiences of course. For the record, I have no idea what a Tissue Engineer is, are you one?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Ha. No. That's a random answer thanks to Google. I should use my :sarcasm: tags more liberally.

[JR3985]

What about take out orders? For example, Pappasitos has a separate person for all take out orders. I am always confused on how much to tip them.

[MidtownCoog]

I give them a buck or two.

I get take out at Van Loc all the time. Place your order, have a Tsing Tao, read the Houston Press, and there it is.

That's worth a buck or two.

[Casual Observer]

Nope. Nothing for take-out. All they're doing is reading your name off the ticket and ringing you up.

SHOCKING REPORT - THAT'S THEIR JOB!

[editor]

Here's a question -- how many of you have ever caught a waiter/waitress giving themselves an extra tip from your credit card? I have twice. I tend to not throw away receipts until I match them up with my bank statement, and twice at Bennigans (Southwest Freeway) caught different members of the wait staff inflating their tips by a few dollars.

[rps324]

Okay what about Sonic's? If you park in one of the stalls or use the drive through and they bring it out to you. What do you tip, or do you?

[Casual Observer]

Here's a question -- how many of you have ever caught a waiter/waitress giving themselves an extra tip from your credit card?  I have twice.  I tend to not throw away receipts until I match them up with my bank statement, and twice at Bennigans (Southwest Freeway) caught different members of the wait staff inflating their tips by a few dollars.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Its never been done on my check card. Maybe the logic is that people don't check their credit card statements with their receipts.

Did you press charges?

[ssullivan]

Never have had the tip on my credit card inflated, but one of my best friends has had it happen multiple times.

I generally tip about 20% unless service is bad, then I go lower and often say something about it. Then there are times when I'm on business trips and the client has limits on tips -- the worst I've seen is one that won't reimburse over a 10% tip! I refuse to be that cheap so I end up leaving my usual amount and just not putting the full tip on the expense report. I figure if I'm getting reimbursed for almost a full week's worth of meals, I can afford an extra $10-15 over the course of five days in unreimbursed tips.

I do not tip at restaurants where I order at a counter, pick up my own food, and fill/refill my own drink. I'm insulted that they even put a tip jar out or a place to fill in a tip on my credit card receipt.

Slightly changing the subject, but still on tips... how many of you leave tips for the housekeepers at hotels?