Are you a big tipper?

[Skid]

Does that mean that you give your waitress more than you give the Lord?

[Gray Ghost]

The Lord decreed that his portion was the tithe, meaning ten percent. But he also said not to muzzle the oz when it is treading out the grain. When I go to the dealer to have my bike worked on, I pay a large amount to account for the mechanics time. My company charges it's customers a large amount to account for my time. Unfortunately most restaurants do not pay their wait staff spit, so I will continue to pay what I consider an appropriate amount so that maybe that waiter/waitress could afford to eat a meal in that same restaurant every now and then.

 

I guess it is just my thing that I remember when I wasn't making any money to speak of and those times when someone went out of their way to treat me decently.

[SilvrT]

A lot of very interesting comments about this topic...wow! One of them that really sticks out is the wages for servers in the USA. We here in Canada have a minimum wage (and I know you all in the US do also and it varies a lot). A server here makes at the very least $8 an hour. Now in comparison, one might think that's a lot but around here it really isn't. The thing is though, there are a lot of people working a variety of "service" related jobs who make exactly the same wage, work just as hard, deal with people all day long (and many of you know what that's like), put up with all kinds of crap from their employers (a lot of it against the labour relations act) .... and get no tips at all. It's just not fair.

[hipshot]

The Lord decreed that his portion was the tithe, meaning ten percent. But he also said not to muzzle the oz when it is treading out the grain. When I go to the dealer to have my bike worked on, I pay a large amount to account for the mechanics time. My company charges it's customers a large amount to account for my time. Unfortunately most restaurants do not pay their wait staff spit, so I will continue to pay what I consider an appropriate amount so that maybe that waiter/waitress could afford to eat a meal in that same restaurant every now and then.

 

I guess it is just my thing that I remember when I wasn't making any money to speak of and those times when someone went out of their way to treat me decently.

cliff.

this "tithe" thing doesn't apply , here.

when the lord said "10%", he was referring to "10% of your all!"

meaning , 10% of EVERYTHING YOU HAVE" children included!!!!!!

 

just jt

[BradT]

I Always tip, but it depends on the service.

 

I too have a Question, What do you tip at a buffett ? Often she brings you a drink and barley see then again except for the bill Time.

 

Also have you ever considered the fact that a waitress/waiter may not be giving poor service if she is slow, it may be the company she is working for has given her more tables than she should be handling or the cook is just really slow or over worked. I personally try to take this into consideration if the service is poor.

 

BRad

[BoxerX2]

Having owned a restaurant, I know how hard some of the service people work. Therefore, I do tip very generously, 20% or more. If the service is bad, I still leave a little something, 20 or 25 cents. I want to get the message across that the service was bad, and if I leave nothing, the help just thinks I'm cheap, not that it was any thing they did or didn't do

[SilvrT]

Does that mean that you give your waitress more than you give the Lord?

The Lord decreed that his portion was the tithe, meaning ten percent. But he also said not to muzzle the oz when it is treading out the grain.

 

ummmmmmmmmmmmmm... who is the "lord"? and where does he/she fit in here?

[dray]

I dont know about every were else but here in michigan they can pay wait staff whats called sub minimum even though minimum wage is 7.45 now if im right they can pay waitresses say 2.50 or 3.50 per hour. what ever it is now then the restrant will take out a percentage of that for taxes per hour. so on a slow day and a few days of low tips i have seen when a girl could work all week and then end up owing the restraunt instead of getting a paycheck so i try to tip them good. i think twice i have left a penny with a nasty note and one time and only one time did i leave just a note and called the owners i would say most of the time i have had very good service

[timk]

I know most watresses are just gettin by, so I leave at least 20% at normal(low cost) eateries.

[Keitho]

Came across this and since it's something that gets "under my skin" from time to time, thought I'd bring it up just to see what others do and think about it.

 

http://travel.sympatico.msn.ca/Travelling+Heres+when+to+tip++and+how+much/TravelFeatures/ContentPosting.aspx?isfa=1&newsitemid=237015&feedname=TRANS-HOMEMAKERS&show=False&number=0&showbyline=True&subtitle=&detect=&abc=abc

 

Personally, I believe in tipping when I get good service. I don't believe that I should tip "just because". People get hired to do a job at a specific rate of pay. "Just because" they work in a restaurant does not mean that they are entitled to a tip irregardless of how they go about serving me. At least around here, their rate of pay is about the same as people in other businesses...do they get a tip?... not...yet they may well still be in a service-related industry!

 

Hi SilvrT. My wife is in the restaurant buisness, and as I, I am sure that she would agree with you,when you say that you "believe in tipping for good service". But there (liquor servers) wages are a $1.05 LESS than minimum wage. http://www.labour.gov.on.ca/english/es/factsheets/fs_wage.html

 

There is nothing saying that you have too leave a tip,(unless specified on the menu),and as you say if you don't get good service you don't tip we are the same. But when it comes to tax time my wife has to pay out 10% extra of her total income in taxes, because the Government assumes that she has made those tips, that are not mandatory. But that's in Ontario.

 

Keith.

[1BigDog]

I tip well when the service is good, and I tip lousy, or not at all when its lousy. We usually eat out at least once a weekend and if the service is bad more than a few times that restaurant is scratched off of our list.

 

You might want to check out this site:

 

www.bitterwaitress.com just click on forums....

[SilvrT]

Hi SilvrT. My wife is in the restaurant buisness, and as I, I am sure that she would agree with you,when you say that you "believe in tipping for good service". But there (liquor servers) wages are a $1.05 LESS than minimum wage. http://www.labour.gov.on.ca/english/es/factsheets/fs_wage.html

 

There is nothing saying that you have too leave a tip,(unless specified on the menu),and as you say if you don't get good service you don't tip we are the same. But when it comes to tax time my wife has to pay out 10% extra of her total income in taxes, because the Government assumes that she has made those tips, that are not mandatory. But that's in Ontario.

 

Keith.

 

I took a look at that link and IMO, that sucks. Now, are you saying that she has to add 10% to her total income for her "assumed" tips? For example, if she worked full time for the whole year, her wages would be around $14,500 (based on $6.95/hr)... does she add a minimum of 10% of that ($1450) for expected tip income?

[Sailor]

I tip for service. For good service 15 to 20%. For lousy or no service I make my point with 2 cents. If the server is realy good and makes the experience enjoyable I also put in a good word for them with the cashier or or anyone who looks to be in charge.

[kantornado]

I got a kick out of reading all of these.

My wife and I always tip and always have, We where raised to do so.

We eat out almost always now and at the places we eat out most often the wait staff seam to fight over us.(kinda nice)

We do have our favorites also.

 

We tip for the SERVICE we received, not the food, that's a whole different matter.(my wait person can not help it if the cook can not cook.)

We also leave tips for the cooks as well.

 

I have always looked at tipping for good service as a way to say thank you to someone who waits on me and makes me feel special and has not spit in my food or some other vile thing.

 

I know there are people who give a lot of excuses as to why they don't tip.

Like the person who brings 1 tomato to feed 25 people at a pot luck and will slice it thin).

Sad but true.

 

Then there are those that bring 25 tomato's because its the right thing to do.

 

It really does not matter to us if our waitperson has 4 tables and 4 at each table of 25.00 each because that is not what we tip for.(the percentage of there take).If that waitperson is kick-in 1K a night in tips that means there good.

Most people we see only tip a small amount on a 200.00 meal anyway.(15 bucks or less)

 

My family members who wait and cook would love to have the ones on this board who tip 15 to 20% at there places of business.

 

Sadly tho they generally get the ones who grip or make excuses or want a free dinner.( my sister once had a guy who said his food was to hot and wanted a comped meal said he burned his tongue and could not taste the food.But he ate it all.(go figure) looking for a angle.

 

It really is nice to see the one's who offer no excuse and pay people for a job well done for them.

It does me good to know that there are those that believe hard work deserves a good reward and not UN excuse of there going to make good money on the other tables so I don't have to tip.

We reap what we sow. IMO......................................Ron

[hig4s]

It really is nice to see the one's who offer no excuse and pay people for a job well done for them.

 

I agree with that statement, but I believe it should be the employer that pays for a job well done. And the government shouldn't make laws allowing the cheap (expletive here) to avoid paying their help. My wife worked in the food industry many years before going back to college to become a teacher. After many years she worked her way up to an assistant chief at a fancy resort. She made more per hour than any of the wait staff, but got none of the tips so with all her experience and training made less a year than most of them.

 

She decided as much as she loved cooking that the food industry was just to screwed up and got out. She found something she loved even more, teaching. So now why she makes more than she did, she is in the lowest paid profession in this country that requires a degree!!!!

[spear]

Tipping is an obviously very American thing.

Doesn't rate a mention in Australia.

Not needed, not practised and so pretentious.

[Keitho]

I took a look at that link and IMO, that sucks. Now, are you saying that she has to add 10% to her total income for her "assumed" tips? For example, if she worked full time for the whole year, her wages would be around $14,500 (based on $6.95/hr)... does she add a minimum of 10% of that ($1450) for expected tip income?

 

That is correct.

 

Keith.

[SilvrT]

I took a look at that link and IMO, that sucks. Now, are you saying that she has to add 10% to her total income for her "assumed" tips? For example, if she worked full time for the whole year, her wages would be around $14,500 (based on $6.95/hr)... does she add a minimum of 10% of that ($1450) for expected tip income?

That is correct.

 

Keith.

 

That then being correct, at that wage ($6.95/hr)... working full time all year long, the max wages she'd earn is around $14,500 for the year. 10% of that is $1450 for a total income of $15950. Now, I've been in business for myself for 20 yrs, took personal and small business tax prep courses and done my own taxes for all those years plus taxes for others. If this is the correct scenario (I'm reading you correctly), then that 10% will amount to next to nothing in additional tax and being that she's a liquor server, I doubt very much that she'd ever make less than that ($1450) in one year in tips. That's like getting $27 in tips for a whole week and I know for a fact that is highly unlikely that anyone serving liquor would make that little in a whole week (at least not around here). My wifes twin daughters (they're 23) are both waitresses and both have their bartender's licences. They both work in "trendy" restaurants that have bars and it's not uncommon for them to make $150 in ONE EVENING in tips. So, I guess what I'm trying to say here is... if all you have to do is report an additional 10% income on a min wage of $6.95/hr and you're making decent tips, then that little additional tax you have to pay is really nothing to be quibbling about.

 

Having said all that, if I offended you, please accept my apologies.

 

The fact that those girls can make $150 in one evening in tips brings up a whole 'nuther take on this discussion. Did they make that because they are exceptional servers or does it have more to do with the establishment and the clientelle?

[Freebird]

Even if everything you just typed is correct, it ONLY works out so long as not too many people feel the same way about tipping as you do. Heck...if everybody shared your opinion, your girls wouldn't be doing very well.

[SilvrT]

Even if everything you just typed is correct, it ONLY works out so long as not too many people feel the same way about tipping as you do. Heck...if everybody shared your opinion, your girls wouldn't be doing very well.

 

After polling the girls, their average sales for a shift is around $950 and their average tips are around $100. So that would suggest that the average tipper tips around 10%. Of course, these girls only give superlative customer service so having said that, I am must be in the "average" category.

 

 

I guess they're not doing very well then......or maybe us Canucks are just cheap...

 

[Gray Ghost]

Tipping is a very dependent on culture. While I was stationed in Germany, everything was figured into the price, and menus were required to be posted outside the restaurant. That made it easy enough that even I could figure out what my bill was going to be. Although even though the gratuity was included, most of us left some pocket change for "drink money".

 

Here in the US we do it different. Doesn't mean we are right or wrong. But it definately means that we need to check our conscience when we are figuring out the tip. I have had some very good mentors over the years who have pounded into my pointy head that I should try to look at things through the eyes of the person I am interacting with. In other words, put yourself in the waiter's shoes and tip accordingly.

 

But there ain't enough money in the world to adequately tip the folks on this forum that are always out front helping everybody else.

[Moose]

Dinner in a nice restaurant is usually 15% to 20% with one exception: I always take off the price of a bottle of wine before figuring the tip. Since the wine is already marked up about 150% by the house and the server really only has to make one trip for drinks, I don't allow the tip to get artificially inflated. If we order drinks, however, I figure them in as the server has to make multiple trips. In a corner joint for sandwiches or breakfast, I leave a standard tip of $5.00. Hash slingers work real hard for very little money so five bucks on a $12.00 breakfast bill doesn't kill me.

[Keitho]

That then being correct, at that wage ($6.95/hr)... working full time all year long, the max wages she'd earn is around $14,500 for the year. 10% of that is $1450 for a total income of $15950. Now, I've been in business for myself for 20 yrs, took personal and small business tax prep courses and done my own taxes for all those years plus taxes for others. If this is the correct scenario (I'm reading you correctly), then that 10% will amount to next to nothing in additional tax and being that she's a liquor server, I doubt very much that she'd ever make less than that ($1450) in one year in tips. That's like getting $27 in tips for a whole week and I know for a fact that is highly unlikely that anyone serving liquor would make that little in a whole week (at least not around here). My wifes twin daughters (they're 23) are both waitresses and both have their bartender's licences. They both work in "trendy" restaurants that have bars and it's not uncommon for them to make $150 in ONE EVENING in tips. So, I guess what I'm trying to say here is... if all you have to do is report an additional 10% income on a min wage of $6.95/hr and you're making decent tips, then that little additional tax you have to pay is really nothing to be quibbling about.

 

Having said all that, if I offended you, please accept my apologies.

 

The fact that those girls can make $150 in one evening in tips brings up a whole 'nuther take on this discussion. Did they make that because they are exceptional servers or does it have more to do with the establishment and the clientelle?

 

No,no,no you have not offended me at all, I am sorry If I appeared to have been, it's pretty hard to offend me I am too layed back for that. You are right in what you say, ad my wife certainly does make very good tips. I was just trying to say that the Government should not be assuming that a waitress makes tips, and subsequently adjust the minimum wage to reflect this.

 

Cheers Keith.:97:Cannot find a beer mug.

[SilvrT]

the Government should not be assuming that a waitress makes tips, and subsequently adjust the minimum wage to reflect this.

 

To a large extent I wholeheartedly agree...but how do we fairly compensate for those others who do similar work but get little or no tips. ie the "Golden Arches" worker (just an example).

 

I note from that website you posted that the reduction to $6.95/hr from $8.00/hr is for "Liquor Servers"... not just "servers". From reading that ....and correct me if I'm wrong... it means if you work in a place that serves food only (no liquor) then you get $8 but if the place goes out and gets a liquor lic and starts serving beer & wine then your wage is $6.95 .

 

 

I guess the govn't thinks that drunk people tip better!!!

[WilCruise]

I start with an average tip (which varies depending on what activity it is) like 12-15% for wait staff. I add or subtract based on my perception of service. I've given everything from 0-30% in this case. I also tip in some cases where it's not expected in cases of very good service. It's a simple way to show people you appreciate good service. Often times the folks on the receiving side rely on tips to make a reasonable living. Yes it should be expected, but it's not something that can be assumed unfortunately. I believe in positive reinforcement whenever it's possible. Tipping is just one example of how I can encourage it.