41 Comments:
I'm actually quite tired of hearing how hard it is to be a wait-person. All service jobs are difficult simple because you have to deal with people; this is never easy. But... it's not like it's a difficult job in and of itself. I waited tables on and off for years, and I did not find it difficult by any means. I did not have to deal with anything outageous or horrible. And I made a ton of money. How bad is that?
In the end, the only thing that drove me away from it was wanting to do something more meaningful with my life. --not that bringing people food and drinks isn't important...
»» Submitted by Samantha at 12:15 PM on January 25
Wah, wah, wah. Sounds just like NWA flight attendents.
»» Submitted by Tom at 12:23 PM on January 25
I echo Samantha's comment. Many servers really irk me, actually. I did one summer waiting tables. The following summer I worked construction. Serving was much easier for a lot more money.
The fact that all servers are tax cheats (myself included at the time) and the fact that many make in upwards of $30/hour, give me a good excuse for tipping 10% (or nothing at all for bad service). Am I a bad person? Most servers, I realize, would say yes.
»» Submitted by NE Pirate at 12:23 PM on January 25
They might make $30 an hour, but that's only during lunch and dinner times, so yes, you are a bad person.
»» Submitted by Joe at 12:50 PM on January 25
Not to mention that the shifts they make $30 an hour are far outnumbered by the shifts where they make much less than that.
»» Submitted by »»» ajb at 12:54 PM on January 25
i'm all about 18-20% because i think they work hard and they make minimum wage otherwise. and because they are worse people for me to give my money too.
but, i too am a little sick of hearing servers complain. i spent many years as a teenager working in restaurants and this all just reminds me of how everyone working there was convinced theirs was the hardest jobs: the cooks, the servers, the dishwashers, i even had a hostess confide in me one time how she felt like me (a bus boy) and her had the hardest jobs in the joint.
ps - rex, i like the comment preview feature. very nice.
»» Submitted by »»» gerg at 12:59 PM on January 25
If 10% is the most you ever tip, that's pretty horrible. Some servers work really hard. I was a waitress for 2 years, so I understand how awful it can be--- on the other hand, I can't stand it when I go out to a restaurant and my server treats me like an inconvenience, like it's such a pain that he/she has to wait on yet another table. I don't have a lot of extra money to throw around on extravagances like eating out, so I want to have a good experience when I do it.
»» Submitted by annet at 2:15 PM on January 25
i wouldn't have been a server for 3 years if it wasn't for the tips. it's hard work, so fucking what, i got really nice legs out the deal. if you tip less than %15 for adequate service, you are a selfish asshole who will be marked by the team of servers that you screwed until you redeem yourself.
i've also been a bar-back and a bus boy. i can't say it enough, the tips are the only thing that keep people busting their asses to bring you your god damned tuna melts!
minimum wage is a slave's wage people, no one can support a family, much less themselves, on minimum wage. %15 gratuity should be the norm when you consider whether or not you're going out for dinner or drinks. period.
»» Submitted by »»» imagreen at 2:13 PM on January 25
At least no one has trotted out the argument that the new minimum should be 20% or 25% because of inflation. I often go that high, but there's inflation in the food price too, y'know.
»» Submitted by simon at 2:25 PM on January 25
How about tipping on bottles of wine? I know several people who don't, but I do (I am a former server) because I know that the server gets taxed on it.
»» Submitted by »»» ajb at 2:53 PM on January 25
Serving is a great way to make money- it paid my way through college. I don't like when servers whine or feel a sense of entitlement. If you're unprepared to deal with the occassional cheap, rude asshole, then find something else to do. Yes, people should tip at least fifteen percent, but the fact that they sometimes don't is part of the job.
»» Submitted by Katie at 2:58 PM on January 25
Was on Northwest once (long ago when they served meals) and was in the back of the plane...where you get whatsever left. A whiny passenger asked, "Do you mean there's no choice?" to the attendant. The attendant answered, "Sure, you can not eat." I could have kissed her.
»» Submitted by Slim at 3:21 PM on January 25
My friend's brother owned a small restaurant where she waitressed. One (seemingly) slow night, my friend was waitressing and I was hanging out in the kitchen, chatting with her between table waiting until her shift was over. The cook had a sick child at home. My friend offered to cook for her so she could go home and volunteered me to waitress. She insisted it would be a breeze. Tuesdays were "soooo dead". This one turned busy. The hell of the experience made me an over-tipper for life. I consider it a karmic sacrifice to the career Goddess hoping she will never place me in a position where I have to wait tables to earn my daily bread.
Tom, I predict that in some future plane emergency an NWA flight attendent will use you to wedge open the exit door so others can escape more easily - and she'll do it cheerfully and for less money than most waiters/waitresses.
»» Submitted by Carrie at 3:16 PM on January 25
If all you can afford is 10%, then go to a self-serve restaurant or eat at home.
Serving & bartending does suck. Sure, the money can be good (20/hr for casual places and much for for fine dining), but is money the only reason we choose a job. I know alot of you make less than 40K annually ($20/hr), but you do it for a higher purpose or because it's your passion.
Before you jackasses even THINK about saying no-one is forced to work in hospitality, let me remind you of your arrogance during the smoking ban debate, when many of you assailed any ban opponent who dared suggest that someone could choose to switch fields if they didn't like smoke.
Jackasses.
»» Submitted by russ at 4:59 PM on January 25
I used to be a bartender and I think the servers who feel they are entitled to a 15 percent minimum tip need to have their heads examinied. I'm purely a consumer know, here is my view: When you approach my table for the first time, your tip sits at $0.00. It will go no lower than that, but may increase at my discretion depending on the all-around quality of your service.
Just showing up in no way entitles you to anything. I don't care how much money you make per hour - your boss pays you to show up, not me. I pay you based on quality of service. The better it is for me, the better it is for you. Do not expect me to make up the difference between your actual salary and what you believe you should earn. That is an issue between you and your employer. I just want some food, not a lesson in social justice.
Just as you reserve the right to be arrogant and provide poor service if you dislike my previous tips, I reserve the right to be arrogant and think that my extravagant tipping should entitle me to a free piece of pie now and then or perhaps a table preference when it's busy. Fair? Good.
One more thing...if I leave my phone number you don't have to call me. That's sleazy on my part.
»» Submitted by Kevin from Minneapolis at 4:59 PM on January 25
0% is the minimum and 15 to 20% is average. I have tipped quite a bit higher, especially when the service was excellent or if we had a larger group (6 to 8+).
»» Submitted by »»» garcia at 5:14 PM on January 25
I tip 20 percent, just because the math is easiest. But if I am dissatisfied with the service, it plummets pretty quickly.
»» Submitted by »»» hipmn at 5:27 PM on January 25
Gonna try to get this link right here
»» Submitted by Kevin from Minneapolis at 5:51 PM on January 25
minimum wage is a slave's wage people, no one can support a family, much less themselves, on minimum wage. %15 gratuity should be the norm when you consider whether or not you're going out for dinner or drinks.
-----------------------
I know alot of you make less than 40K annually ($20/hr), but you do it for a higher purpose or because it's your passion.
there are plenty of folks that work there asses off in service or other jobs for minimum wage or close to it and don't get a tip. and they don't do it as their "passion". ask the person that empties your waste basket tonight. l
Yes, yes, it's good to tip for good service, but let's have a little perspective here people.
I consistently tip 10% for to-go orders (which I handle quite often for my clients) and 15% on dine-in. If the service is outstanding, I tip 20-25%. Of course, the math gets a little different when it comes to bartenders.
I always tip on the pre-tax amount, though. How many others do this?
»» Submitted by »»» alexis at 6:26 PM on January 25
A couple of years ago I was at a local wine bar when two friends and I ordered a bottle of wine to go with our apps. Seeing as we all worked in the arts, we made our specific choice mostly based on price. The waitress agreed that it was a good choice (don't they always?) and retreated with our menus. She returned to say that they had run out of that specific wine, and suggested a comparable wine - which we accepted.
Along came the bill, and sticker shock, with a $60+ bait and switch. We ultimately ended up paying for it, but not without me letting the waitress know I thought it was a slimy move. I was in the minority with this opinion - and it still bugs me (obviously).
I'm curious to know if others have had similar experiences, and if so, what they did...
»» Submitted by »»» leigha at 6:43 PM on January 25
Alexis - like you, I also tip about 10% on to-go orders (just learned that to-go orders require tips a few months ago - um, oops); and always give 15-20% pre-tax on dine-in, depending on how mathy I'm feeling.
»» Submitted by »»» leigha at 7:03 PM on January 25
I used to get such a rush waiting tables, I waited tables at for several years to stabilize my creative career. My wife still waits tables to help pay for law school. Most of the servers I know are either 1. In un-steady creative careers or school, acting, modeling, art... or 2. Junkies who need a fist full of cash every night. Some are both.
I always thought it was a sweet job and miss it today. Going to work was like throwing a party every night, you met people from all over, and enabled them to have a great time. It was fast paced and good exercise.
I was lucky enough to work for places with experienced diners. The ones that used 15% as a base and went up from there. I didn't care about percentage that much, as there seemed to be a direct correlation between how much you worried about a particular table's tips and how much you made. With serving, you write your own ticket, and being bummed out about one table will affect the next three.
There are people who don't tip, or think it's the restaurant's job, but they're super rare in restaurants more upscale than Dennys. Most people aren't that rude either, and if they are..you can usually turn their table-mates against them so that they're a blubbering mass of apologies by the end of the meal. If the jerk doesn't tip, guaranteed his wife or friends are slipping you $20s on the way out. You've usually got numbers on your side.
As far as tipping goes, tip what you want, but here's is how not to be ignorant about it. Tipping is how servers are paid in this country. Your attitude about it doesn't change that fact.
1. Many restaurants take taxes off of a percentage of a server's sales. (all the sales food AND drink) When you don't tip the server is paying for your tip.
2. Most restaurants have support staff that gets a percentage of a server's tips often from sales. When you don't tip, the server takes money out of their own pockets to cover you.
3. Servers have a super good memory about who tips and who doesn't, and are really good about spreading that news. Bad tippers have bad experiences, and maybe 'bad" food. (though this is more rare than people think, but an impression that servers really like.) Don't bite the hand that literally feeds you.
4. Many states allow servers to make LESS than minimum wage because it's tipable employment, some chain restaurants won't go into states where the server gets minimum wage. Labor costs are VERY high in restaurants, and restaurants will always pay as little as possible to their employees, again..especially chains.
Take a look at the people running the counter at McDonalds next time you go in there. Those are the people who will be waiting tables if it wasn't for tips. Goooooodbye hot waitresses.
»» Submitted by Shad at 7:54 PM on January 25
I will never, ever tip anyone who doesn't bring the food to my table. Sorry take out counter guy. All you did was reach over a counter. There is no way to do that with excellence.
»» Submitted by Kevin from Minneapolis at 8:46 PM on January 25
Much of the commentary on a topic like this is going to be way too speculative. Every situation is different. It's impossible to say what's "appropriate" unless there's a context.
Promptness of service? Well, is the server covering two tables in an empty restaurant on Tuesday afternoon, or seven tables in a packed one on Friday night?
Difficult job? Well, which establishment are we we talking about? What kind of menu? What kind of customers - locals, drunks, tourists, "yuppies", red hat ladies, truck drivers? Adequate staffing? Good support from the cooking staff?
Not the customer's problem? Well, to an extent, no. But if I have eyes and ears and I decide to disregard all the evidence before me - expecting sterling table service when the management hasn't provided for adequate staffing on a given night, for instance, or when there's clearly a huge influx of customers in a short span of time, or whatever, then I'm probably not qualified to spout off about politics or much of anything else, either. The word is 'blinkered'.
It's impossible to say "serving is easy" or "serving is hard" without defining the terms. Digging a hole the size of a tulip bulb with a sharpened stone would be easy, digging a hole the size of one's back yard would be anything but. Once again, context is everything. If I did tables once in my life, I'm probably qualified to speak about my experience, but not necessarily that of others.
Tax cheats? Please. The annual tax dodging on the part of one large multi-national corporation likely eclipses the "tax cheating" on the part of every table server in the U.S. many times over.
10%, "always"? If the server came at me wielding a hatchet partway through my meal, then 10% or less would be in order, for sure. Or if he seemed deliberately indifferent to my needs, I'd probably be inclined to consider less than usual too.
On the other hand, tipping reasonably well and trying to engage the server under those circumstances might actually help facilitate a subtle change of attitude in the right direction for the next customer down the line. Who knows? It can't hurt. And for those who laugh at such things, and run around wielding their pocketbooks like weapons and directing their little nickle-and-dime volleys at the people around them rather than more productive targets - like, say, our exalted leader, who's responsible for the deaths of so many people he's not fit to be the doormat for John Wayne Gacy - you're not helping. C'mon, life is short. Make it matter where it counts.
»» Submitted by Dave at 2:35 PM on January 25
Kevin: I think my 10% for take-out rule is fair, especially at casual dining restaurants, where the person you're most likely to be dealing with is the bartender. That person takes your order, either enters it into the computer or runs the ticket back to the kitchen, checks on the order (particularly if you're waiting for it), packages it up with condiments/silverware/napkins, rings you up, thanks you, and says "have a nice day". Sometimes that's more than you get from a server, depending on their mood.
»» Submitted by »»» alexis at 11:23 PM on January 25
k-tron:
that's pretty cheap dude.
»» Submitted by russ at 11:43 PM on January 25
I should have said that by a whopping margin, the only place i get take out is the uptown green mill and i can't imagine a more unfriendly take out counter. they're dreadful. they should pay us to do take out there. there system seems to be answer the phone, put you on hold, take your order, no thank you, and then when you pick it up they're like robots. not to make enemies, but i stopped doing goloneys when the kid behind the counter scoffed when i didn't leave a tip for him taking my order and then proceeded to put everything on my sandwich that i didn't ask for and then smirked at me when he gave it to me. bad expereince there.
»» Submitted by Kevin from Minneapolis at 7:33 AM on January 26
"server" a more poilitically correct term that wiatress and waiter?
»» Submitted by Paul at 8:41 AM on January 26
Kudo's to Dave for one of the few posts that strikes the right chord in this thread.
»» Submitted by Henry Hormann at 1:44 PM on January 26
yeah, i worked for 2.23/hour in Michigan....basically if you didn't make at least minimum in tips the company would cover you - but then subtract it from your next pay check if when you did cover minimum. _ just like Marshalls Fields does to people on commision.
»» Submitted by carrie at 4:22 PM on January 26
Wow, I thought we'd keep politics out of this one. Silly me.
»» Submitted by Kevin from Minneapolis at 6:42 PM on January 26
Sorry Kev, if you're referring to me. Yeah, it's easy to get carried away. But I can't really think of much that's not informed by politics on some level, anyway. Every choice, every act has its ramifications, no?
»» Submitted by Dave at 4:13 PM on January 27
I am a server at a nice resturant. I worked tonight and made good money for few tables. I know the works for good tips when you are not busy. Never be too quick with the food. If you have a soup and salad before, wait to put the order in. They can finish that and have another drink while waiting for their food. I made alot of money off 7 tables. One had a 92 dollar check and he handed me $120.00. Told me to keep the change!
»» Submitted by mary at 12:50 AM on February 11
I go out to restaurants all the time and dont believe in tipping. If the service is good I might leave a buck but that's it. It isn't my job to pay the server their salary. It's their employers job to pay them fairly not my job to pay the difference. Besides i'm going to get my food either if I do or don't tip. If I don't have to tip I wont, its a waste of money.
»» Submitted by andy minneapolis at 2:56 AM on February 13
Your absolutely correct andy. Tipping is a waste of money and I rather spend it on myself. I once went to the Olive Garden with a party of 6, ate and drank for 3 hours and when we left I was the last person to leave and I took all of the tip money and pocketed it.
»» Submitted by mary minneapolis at 3:22 AM on February 13
Andy;
I guess its not my job to make sure your food order is right, that it comes to your table on time, or that you get refills then either. Go to micky d's.
»» Submitted by Kara at 10:56 PM on March 6
I wish some of you could post photos so I can prepare myself when you come in where I work.
I am an 23 year old student, who had to take time off of school to pay for medical bills (someone hit me on my bike and drove off), because *SURPRISE*, I cant afford insurance. Not that its anyone elses problem, but that is one of the main reasons why I started serving food and booze. And the fact that I am not really qualified for any other decent paying jobs out there was another main reason.
I do love serving tables. A lot more that what I expected.
I do believe that tipping is based on table to table.
It honestly makes me nausated to hear that mary from minneapolis did that. You dont know about the person that is serving you. And you cant bite the hand the feeds you.
Myself personally, I always tip 15-20%, usually 20%.
»» Submitted by Girl from ipanema at 12:46 PM on March 12
Just remember that you are not only tipping out the person who is taking your order, and serving you food and beverages, you are also tipping out the person who is seating you to your desired table, the person who is making the beverages you are consuming, the person who is clearing your dirty dishes, the person who is preparing and cooking the meal you are enjoying, and the person who is washing the dished you dirtied. I work in a sushi restaurant, and every shift I work, I tip out my sushi chefs, my kitchen chefs, my busser, my diswasher, my host/hostess, and my bartender 20% or more no matter what I make, because sometimes, they need the money more than I do. I give good service, and expect a desent tip, because the more tips I can receive, the more I can give to the people who need the money more than me. I don't think this is too much to ask from people who can afford to eat out.
»» Submitted by Still Waiting at 3:27 PM on February 5
Trust me, a server never forgets a bad tipper, especially a chronic bad tipper, and I have seen servers spit in people's food and drinks, and there is also the Visine eye drop trick.
»» Submitted by dixie cup at 3:41 PM on February 5
as a server who regularly makes 25-30%, the volume of complaints made from every perspective regarding service and tipping often frustrate me. i certainly can't condone servers with a deliberately combatitive attitude towards 'customers' in general. and the arguments of those who either don't tip or tip incredibly low...well, there are no arguments, really.
those who don't tip, or tip deliberately poorly, seem to exalt in it. the fact that no one can force them to tip, that it is not actually required, is usually the justification, as in many of the above posts. and the reasoned arguments against this justification are usually to do with the economic structure of restaurants and service work. which is logical.
i do wish that it would be pointed out more often that the issue of personal choice is not really pertinent in this context. when you choose to undertip, or not tip at all, you are choosing not to adequately compensate an individual, or set of individuals, for the work they are doing on your behalf. doing so in the setting of a restaurant is an action distinct from underpaying in any other context, as dining out is purely a luxury activity.
this is not ethically defensible. one may, of course, make this choice, but its availability does not give it value. we are all familiar with the system of tipping in this country, and it is not possible to enjoy dining out outside of it. to believe that you are making a statement regarding politics or personal liberty by (in effect) depriving people of their wage is naive at best, and more likely a selfish and malicious act.
it is inherently childish.
i believe that i'm well compensated for the work i do because i'm very fast, attentive, and kind. to maintain my own high standard - at my place of employment - is very, very difficult. so while i do make a very good wage most of the time, i believe it to be appropriate compensation for my labor. as in other fields, a high wage for demanding, difficult work is appropriate. those of you who have never had to manage dealings with literally hundreds of people in a high-pressure evening might rethink your assertion that servers are somehow spoiled.
this is of course no justification for poor or indifferent service, which is generally some combination of the server's inherent qualities, particular circumstances of the restaurant and evening, and the amount of support the server does or does not receive. Ideally, we're professional enough to cope with these circumstances, and can help every customer enjoy their experience to the fullest.
»» Submitted by d at 3:53 PM on February 5
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