Depends on service.

Booze is 10% / Food is from 0 - 30%.

Not on Tax

This message has been edited. Last edited by: nra-life-member,

Total, for all the reasons mentioned. Generally rounding up to something easy to add from 20%. If in a college town, usually 30-40% or some easy math (I've been a broke student). If in a destitute town where someone is busting it (say, Greenwood, MS yesterday) same.

In today's world with all of the shortages, I'm just happy that people are willing to show up for work and put in an honest day's worth.

I'll take the post tax total time 1.2, and round up to the nearest dollar or two.

If we are being PARTICULAR then it a percentage of the pre tax amount. Tipping on tax makes zero sense. In real life the difference is so minimal that rounding errors usually account for it. On a hundred dollar meal it would be around a dollar. Rounding error.

I’m a 20% guy unless you suck.

always have done off the total. I generally tip 20% or more - especially at our local places. As others have mentioned - the difference pre/post tax isn't enough that I care.

quote:

Originally posted by sreding:
always have done off the total. I generally tip 20% or more - especially at our local places. As others have mentioned - the difference pre/post tax isn't enough that I care.

Exactly this.

I look at the tax and tip double that. (If service warrants)

I'm not going to weaponize the tip amount to penalize a hard-working waitress living on the edge of poverty.
I double the total to get to 20% and then add a few more bucks, at least five in a diner, more in a fancy joint.
You can tell a lot about a person's character by the way he treats people that can do him no good.
I live on a fixed income from a military pension and certainly have no extra cash. But I always feel blessed to be able to keep up with my bills and being a bit generous to service people is what I do.

Tim

I tip based on the pre-tax amount, and the amt. of the tip based on the quality of service (generally 15% - 20%).

Now, if the waiter or waitress is working hard, professional and polite, etc., I am not going to hold it against them and penalize their tip if the kitchen or another dept. messes something up, but I’ll inform them about it.

If the service is acceptable I use the listed tax and double it for easy math = 16.5%.

I then find an easy dollar amount above, trying to get to 20%, as I have been blessed by the lord and remember starting out.

HK Ag

On a $100 tab worrying about pre/post tax is less than $2 (difference).
So why worry?
I round up/down anyway to make the total come out even so the tip percentage can vary slightly anyway.

Good lord, who the hell cares?

On a $40 meal, at an 8% tax rate, and a 20% tip rate, the difference is $0.64. If the 64 cents is worth thinking about, you shouldn't be eating $40 meals. And who needs the money more - you or some waiter working at sub-minimum wage plus tips?

Don't be a cheapskate.

quote:

Originally posted by jhe888:
Good lord, who the hell cares?

On a $40 meal, at an 8% tax rate, and a 20% tip rate, the difference is $0.64. If the 64 cents is worth thinking about, you shouldn't be eating $40 meals. And who needs the money more - you or some waiter working at sub-minimum wage plus tips?

Don't be a cheapskate.

Not entirely true. Some states require employers to pay the full minimum wage of $7.25 then tips are additional income. I realize many states allow for assumed tips and thus pay servers something like $2.30/hr. Nevada is one such state where full minimum wage is paid, and then tips added to that. On top of that, there is no state income tax. There are a lot of waiters making close to or more than six figures with no state income tax in Las Vegas-at least in the touristy parts of town. Point being that in some places, waitstaff isn’t exactly hurting. Depends a lot on where you are.

I’m in Texas, and our local sales tax is 8%+. So we can comfortably double the sales tax amount to get a reasonable tip amount.

In general, we tend to tip a little more. In retirement and trying to eat healthier, my wife and I will often split a meal. We’ll add to the tip based somewhat on the reduced overall ticket amount. Very good or exceptional service should get recognized as well. Also during Covid, we have recognized those that have showed up!

I am retired and while it may not be gangbusters, we are comfortable. If the tip amount becomes a sticking point to eating out, then I don’t need to be eating out as much. Retail and service industry work is a tough gig. If I can show support in a small way, hopefully I will.

quote:

Originally posted by Mutiny:
There are a lot of waiters making close to or more than six figures with no state income tax in Las Vegas-at least in the touristy parts of town. Point being that in some places, waitstaff isn’t exactly hurting. Depends a lot on where you are.

Okay, sure, some states require minimum wage pay. That isn't really the point. And there is no way that a lot of waiters are pushing $100K. I have no doubt some small faction of waiters at the nicest joints can make money, but the vast majority earn less than half that.

The feds say the average waiter earns 11.73 an hour and the top 10% earns $18.49 an hour or from $37,000 to $42,000 a year. Even if they are cheating on their taxes and reporting only half their income, that isn't six figures.

https://work.chron.com/much-mo...per-month-22289.html

quote:

In general, we tend to tip a little more. In retirement and trying to eat healthier, my wife and I will often split a meal. We’ll add to the tip based somewhat on the reduced overall ticket amount.

I try to be mindful of the time spent in the seat. I have tipped what would look like an insane amount as a percentage where I've spent 2 hours in a seat catching up with an old friend, etc. You're killing that server for the misfortune of drawing the seating lottery and getting you otherwise.

Pro-tip; asking for check and filling that in in the MIDDLE of a long stay will get you refills and a pleasant look instead of dagger eyes.

I am aware of the pre tax train of thought, but I just tip on the total after tax. I start at 20% and normally I increase the tip for good service or if hanging out longer than normal. And then I add on more to get an even dollar total.

Its a tough job that I've been blessed to never have to do and I appreciate that they are usually very hard working folks trying to support themselves and a family. They have to be pretty bad before I even consider a tip less than 20%, and then I may drop it to 15%.

At the watering hole where my buds and I often hang out I usually tip well above 25% just because I've been hanging there so long and the staff is friendly and the bills aren't that large any way.

20% on the whole, assuming it was pretty good. If it was kind of not so good, I might be annoyed enough to do the math on 15%. But I'm pretty lazy, so I like the 20% math better. I would never bother to try to figure out pre-tax and calculate on that.

Hell no, I'm not tipping on tax,

quote:

Originally posted by parabellum:
Hell no, I'm not tipping on tax,

Even though our rooms and meals tax just dropped from 9%->8.5%, I'm not tipping on it.

Though we still have no general sales tax here, R&M hits tourists and residents alke.