I worked for tips in high school and college so I'm pro-tipping. I've always considered myself a good tipper, but then I read this article titled, "What You Need to Know About Tipping at Restaurants Today: How Much, When, and Why"

Question:
What are your thoughts on their premise that standard tip is 20% and up?

Choices:
It's bullshit. Standard is 15%, 20% is for above and beyond.
They're spot-on
I'm finicky, persnickety, and fussy so I can't choose one of the above
I don't eat out but just like to vote in polls

Question:
What are your thoughts on their premise that you shouldn't tip less when the service stumbles?

Choices:
It's bullshit. Standard is 15%, percentage goes down when service is substandard.
They're spot-on
I'm finicky, persnickety, and fussy so I can't choose one of the above
I don't eat out but just like to vote in polls

Question:
What are your thoughts on their premise that you need to tip 10% to 15% for takeout?

Choices:
It's bullshit. A couple bucks is standard.
They're spot-on
I'm finicky, persnickety, and fussy so I can't choose one of the above
I don't eat takeout but just like to vote in polls

 

quote:

Is it ever OK to leave no tip?
Answer: No, never.

I once left a penny because the service was so horrible.

Just had a lunch at Yooper Big Boy. $18 bucks. For chicken tenders. I tipped $3. Tips will be a moot point soon if prices keep going up. I am just going to quit dining out.

In CA the servers, bussers, dishwashers, etc. make minimum wage or better which is now around $15/hr and plenty of places are struggling to hire and keep staff at $20/hr. How tips are pooled is on the the house not me.

I've tipped 20% or more for years. I won't penalize the server for the kitchen fucking up. I will speak to a manager to sort things out. If service sucks the tip is gonna suffer. Server's bad attitude doesn't get my money. If that hits the bussers I feel bad for them but maybe they can take it up with the shit server. Take away gets a couple bucks.

Why am I, as the customer, the middle man between owner and server over compensation? We should abolish tipping. Let the house pay their employees what the market demands and leave me out of the transaction. If that increases my bill so be it. I can choose where to eat just like the employees can choose where to work and the owners can choose who to hire and how to run their business to make a profit.

I don't know if it's just me, but someone telling me what I should be doing insults my intelligence.

I'm a decent human, it's my money, and I'm no dumbass, I'll tip what I feel is appropriate in any given situation and won't think twice about it, if it ain't enough, tough fucking luck.

I'll challenge you this, see how many servers give excessive tips back. Shit ain't never enough.

This article puts it on the customer's to provide a "living wage" and even claims tipping is racist.

STFU already.

I can't choose one of the above because none match my tipping. I tip 20%, incl at my favorite, regular take-out restaurants that have sit-down dining.

I tip less for unsatisfactory service. At one dine-in experience, not long ago, at a higher-end restaurant, the service was so poor I left no tip, then called for the manager, told him I'd left no tip, and why. (And it was for sure the waitress, not the kitchen.)

In a past life I had many friends that were waitresses at restaurants or bars. Gives you a whole different perspective on their jobs

In several of the restaurants here you belly up to a counter to order the meal and then they bring it to your table. When you go to pay, a page on a screen pops up after you swipe your card and offers you several different amounts of $$$ they expect as a tip. No option to not tip given. Before you get your food or get a chance to see how the service is. Which for me guarantees the lowest amount option available. The mandatory regardless of service or quality tip is tyranny!

Gotta agree with a lot of what Berto said. I’ll add that when tips are not pooled and the servers tip out to the bussers, the servers that tip out better get better support. One can see the difference if paying attention.

There are sometimes extenuating circumstances. Sometimes a server gets totally slammed by a host that seats a lot of parties all at once in their section. A lot of it (for me at least) is attitude and attention. If they’re paying attention, listening, and trying, they get a bit of grace.

Also agree with OttoSig’s point that the article is full of it.

Further, I thought the poll was way too narrow. I tend to default to 20% for average service, but will adjust down or up as appropriate based on the quality of service.

quote:

Originally posted by radioman:

quote:

Is it ever OK to leave no tip?
Answer: No, never.

I once left a penny because the service was so horrible.

I once left a note on a napkin that said. Your tip is "Don't plant corn in the winter". Well at least I want to use that one day!

Another napkin tip:
Never stand up in a canoe!

I don't get why I should tip the staff at fast food or self se r ve joints

When I was (much) younger, the average tip was about 10%, often rounded up to the next Dollar. Back in those days, men typically did not tip their barber, either--it was a set fee and that was what was paid. (Women, OTOH, usually did tip their hairdressers.)

As I got older, those standards gradually changed. Now I'm often denigrated because I don't usually tip at least 20% (I do sometimes, if the service was good). I now tip my barber, too (10% rounded up).

For Drive-thru dining, I don't usually tip at all. For takeout, typically none (if I don't sit at a table and get waited on, I don't think a tip is earned--the only person I'm dealing with is essentially a cashier). OTOH, if my takeout order is complex or otherwise special, I may tip something.

I'm in agreement that restaurants should pay their staff what their service is worth, and they should not be relying of the generosity of the patrons to keep them and their families alive. TIP initially was short for "To Insure Promptness" and was a way of expressing satisfaction with excellent service, above and beyond the essential minimum. I believe that it should go back to that premise. If I have to pay more for a meal because the business is paying employees a decent wage, I won't mind. The total would probably not exceed what the current price plus a large tip comes to, anyway.

flashguy

I didn't vote, but my wife was a waitress in high school & college. She believes that 20% on food is sufficient, unless the order was screwed up. But, she does not believe in tipping for drinks (alcohol). Don't get me wrong, we both like to drink a couple (few) beers, but she views beer delivery differently. I don't know why, I've only been married to her for 36+ years.
Then again, I usually pay for most restaurant visits, so I'll add the drink amount to the tip.

As the price of eating out continues to climb, I find we eat out less then half as much as 2 years ago. I typically tip 15-20% based on service and food presentation.

15% is standard for me. Screw it up (rare) it goes down, impress me (getting rarer) and it goes up.
Take away my choices on a computer screen and I'll go to cash and leave random dollar bills.
What restaurant bosses shill for 'normal' strikes me as more than a little self serving.

If they think they know more about what I should do with my money than I do, than they should set a flat price and see wh shows up. Share it anyway you want but that's their problem not mine.

Cut me off for not tipping enough? I suppose it might happen but I doubt it. I'm just not a big spender for Subway or Applebees.

While I still believed in the pandemic and was solely getting takeout I tipped the hell out of places just for coming to work. Getting counseled on what is 'normal' doesn't move me.

quote:

Originally posted by YooperSigs:

In several of the restaurants here you belly up to a counter to order the meal and then they bring it to your table. When you go to pay, a page on a screen pops up after you swipe your card and offers you several different amounts of $$$ they expect as a tip. No option to not tip given. Before you get your food or get a chance to see how the service is. Which for me guarantees the lowest amount option available. The mandatory regardless of service or quality tip is tyranny!

I usually pay with a credit card, but if I were to encounter a card process like the one that you describe, which makes a tip mandatory, I would likely pay that in cash. I might even inform the manager that I will not be returning to that restaurant, and explain why.

The computerized versions of tipping I’ve seen offer a “custom” amount. I always choose that, and tip what I intend to (usually starts at 18%, but easily goes up, rarely goes down). Our regular waitress usually gets a min of 25%, including drinks, and I typically count in the alcohol, so it’s more than 18 or 25.

Sit down takeout, maybe 10% but pizza takeout or coffee through a drive through - no.

I guess I am just a cheap bastard. Tip for take out, why? The only service is making the food which I paid for.

Do these folks tip at fast food restaurants?

I only tip at sit down restaurants where someone comes and takes my order, brings me my food and beverage, checks to make sure everything is ok, etc.

The amount is based according to service, starting at 15% and going up or down depending on how well they do.

quote:

Originally posted by YooperSigs:
Just had a lunch at Yooper Big Boy. $18 bucks. For chicken tenders. I tipped $3. Tips will be a moot point soon if prices keep going up. I am just going to quit dining out.

$18 plus tip for just yourself? They'll be out of business soon. That's too big of a shock for most people and those people just won't go back. I can start eating Ramen again.

As for the screens, all of the ones I've seen allow you to at least name your own percentage or dollar amount.