Pelican brothers, help me settle a "discussion" about tipping

[TerryH]

Originally posted by Dottore
Mr. White had it right.

A tip is a gratuity for good service. You should not tip someone for merely living and breathing.

It is slightly ridiculous that the food industry is able to subsidise their payroll costs in this fashion because of the widespread expecation that people will leave a 15% tip no matter what. Why not just add 15% to menu prices and be done with this mendacity? What other industry explots our gullibility to this degree?

At some establishments, if your party is 12 or more, the tip is included.

[Dottore]

Originally posted by masraum
So, even though the wait staff makes $2/hr or even $4/hr, because you think it's crazy you only tip if they really do a great job. Otherwise you don't tip.

I think it is dishonest of the restaurant industry to expect customers to subsidise their payroll with a knee-jerk tipping practise that makes no sense.

I would prefer that prices are raised - and people paid decently - and that tips are treated as genuine gratuities for exceptional service. This is the way the industry works in much of the rest of the world.

[motion]

If they are taking the time to package the take out and bag it, I tip 10-20%. Starbucks? No way. Tired of seeing tip jars pre-stuffed everywhere I go. Now Lili on the other hand... she's the queen of tipping.

[VINMAN]

Ive always been a generous restaurant tipper. But no tip for counter service. I hate seeing tip cups in Dunkin Donuts and the like.

[Moses]

Originally posted by cantdrv55
I say yes because they take the time to prep it for transport...

What's the alternative? Eat it in the kitchen? Bring your own tupperware and pack it yourself? They are selling food. They have to pack it up.

I just bought a new computer. It came beautifully packaged. I didn't tip the factory.

[lendaddy]

Is the take out girl hot?

[sammyg2]

If I sit down and then come and take my order and serve my order to me at the table, I tip.
If I have to walk up to a counter to order, no friggin way.
I tip for service, not for the selling me something across the counter without screwing it up. That is ridiculous IMO.

A local donut house I go to for coffee recently put out a tip jar, i laughed and said "you gotta be kidding me".

[svandamme]

if you buy something , it should have a price tag
the price tag, should be the price you have to pay.

anything else... is optional and only for those cases where the customer felt he got something "extra" and in return , gives something "extra"


all this you should in that or that case, it's "mandatory" , it's "expected" , "should be 10%" etc etc , that whole system is just beyond me

why can't folks just say " it's this much " ?
why the implied requirement for anybody to calculate anything after a bill is handed to the customer?

[kycarguy 935]

For a place like Chili's or Applebee's I always tip on a carry out order.

[Victor]

If in doubt, tip.

Consider it a small insurance premium / risk reduction strategy against having your food spat in next time you visit.

[campbellcj]

I generally don't tip for carry-out. Here is a related spin-off question though - what about buffets? For instance the resort hotel I am at right now has a big breakfast buffet where the server brings you coffee and your dishes are bussed afterwards, but obviously you serve all your own food and drinks otherwise. I figure the normal 15-20% rule is above and beyond in that situation, eh?

[masraum]

The only buffet that I tip is at a local Indian food restaurant. Even though it's a buffet they bring around naan when it's fresh out of the oven, refill drinks, etc... It's the best service of any buffet I've ever been to.

[RickM]

Originally posted by campbellcj
I generally don't tip for carry-out. Here is a related spin-off question though - what about buffets? For instance the resort hotel I am at right now has a big breakfast buffet where the server brings you coffee and your dishes are bussed afterwards, but obviously you serve all your own food and drinks otherwise. I figure the normal 15-20% rule is above and beyond in that situation, eh?

In this situation I tip a max of 10%.

For full service 20%+

Take out = no tip. Unless a special circumstance.

FWIU not all establishments pool tips. So you never really know who gets your money unless familiar with the place or you ask.

Also, I always start my dining experience at the max tip level. It's up to the service (and perhaps quality) that encourages me to add or subtract from that number.

[Jims5543]

Carry out at a place like Chili's or Fridays usually has a waitress putting your order together. I tip about 15%.

Chinese carry out where the owner is handling the order? No tip.

Deli style, counter service or Take out joints with no dine in? A buck or 2 in the jar.

Buffet? 10-15% depending on the little service they give. (refilling drinks, clearing plates etc)

When we were in Atlantis Nassau, Bahamas EVERYTHING had a 15% tip added in automatically. Even a Beer from the bar had a 15% tip. We went to a couple of restaurants off the Atlantis property and the service was horrible. (i.e. we were short a setting at breakfast and it took over 10 minutes for the waitress to go get one while the food got cold) They added a 15% tip to the bill and that was too much. Same crap happened at dinner. "Hey, mon we are on Island time" only goes so far.

[TerryBPP]

Have you noticed that even places like subway have a tip line on your reciept if you use a debit card? Its hard for me to tip for assembly line service. Sometimes I draw a line through it and sometimes I tip a buck. So I either feel guilty for not tipping or stiffed for having to tip on a $5 meal with no real service.

I have asked the sexy 19 yr old girl at outback if most people leave a tip. She said only old people don't leave her atleast a buck. I suspect she might be biased.

[dhoward]

Indescriminate tipping was invented by liberals to perpetuate the entitlement mentality...

[ben parrish]

I run a resort in the Bahamas and this is a VERY SORE subject with me. We add 15% onto every bill and I HATE IT. This system has been used for many years but I want to abolish it. The wait staff, kitchen staff and bus boys all get a portion of it. To me, it perpetuates lazy service and apathy. The owners are concerned that by eliminating this “convenience” the staff will see a decrease in money. Our restaurant is very busy and entrées are in the $30-$50 range. I believe that the girls will make more money if we eliminated this “robbery” and let them earn their tips. My gripe is that I can get better service in a Waffle House in the states than I can at our own restaurant and it is all because at the end of the day, no matter what the level of service, the wait staff knows they will get paid considerable gratuities. This is a terrible way to ensure quality service in restaurants.
The Bahamas are beautiful but they have the poorest service in restaurants that I have ever experienced. This “auto tip” is mainly responsible for the lackadaisical attitude toward service.
I will always tip at least 20% for good service but I will leave a penny if the service warrants it. I will NEVER tip for take out or fast food because I believe that the service provided does not justify a tip. Take out delivery drivers always gets a good tip if it is on time.
I am and have been in the business and if the person serving food wants more money they are in control of their raise. If you don’t make enough, step it up or GET A NEW JOB!!

Sorry for yelling; this is a sore subject that is a no-brainer in my book.
Ben

[dhoward]

+1

[Moses]

Originally posted by ben parrish
... this is a sore subject that is a no-brainer in my book.
Ben

You've got it figured out. The owners would be fools to continue the present system.

The first question any small business should ask is; "Who is the customer?" Is it the wait staff?, The busboys? Don't think so. If you had a reputation for the best service in the Bahamas, you could raise your prices.

[cashflyer]

No brass pole?
No FM shoes?
No garter?
Then NO TIP.


Actually, my practices tend to agree with RickM.

Buffet meal with drink service - I tip a max of 10%.
For GOOD full service 20%+
Take out = no tip, unless boobs are involved.

While it's true that somebody cooked the food, and somebody tossed it into a CFC free, compartmentalized styrofoam transport tray, you are not taking table space, you are not getting refills, you are not consuming any of the waitresses time, or the busboys time, and you are not having your dishes washed in the AutoChlor 5000. And the reality is that with a carry out order, the profit margin is usually higher. Let them pay the person who spent 2 minutes ladling gravy onto my roast - and my carrots, beans, bread, apple pie, and napkins.



"FWIW not all establishments pool tips."

But some do... This is why I tip cash to the person who earned it. I never tip on the CC receipt, and I don't just leave the $$ lying on the table.