Back in my waitressing years in New York, across from the border, we always noticed our Canadian guests tipped only 10-15%, not the usual 15-20% that is customary in the US. Is this pretty much the standard in Canada. what about tipping a bartender? thanks for the info.

20% is still rare in Canada but so is 10% except perhaps for breakfast. Bartenders or cocktail People usually get 20% on the tab if there's been a few drinks or rounds. For a single drink it probably varies widely.

In Canada there are minimum wages that are around $6cdn per hour.<BR><BR>The combined taxes where I live are 14% so we usually just look at the taxes and round up to the even dollar for most meals.<BR><BR>If our experience was extraordinary, we will leave 20%. If it is bad, my husband leaves 10%. I think if service is bad no tip is in order.<BR><BR>In cocktail lounges, it is typical to leave a coin worth 10-20% depending on the service. In hotel bars, many patrons will just give the coins in change to the next dollar.

thanks for the clarification.

Carol, the minimum wage in Manitoba may be $6, but in BC it hasn't been that low in years. The minimum wage in BC is $8.00.

I tip 15% but I tip on the amount BEFORE the taxes have been added. The tip usually equals the amount of the tax.

Minimum wage is now $8.50 I believe - it was recently raised. I think that's one reason why Canadians tip 15% as opposed to 20%. I believe it's illegal for restaurants to pay anything less than minumum wage - there's no "making up for low wages" involved when tipping.<BR>At least that was my experience when I was in high school working at a local cafe. Alcohol is usually taxed, and where I live in BC, a 14.5% tax is included in that price... <BR><BR>Some Canadians tip *before* the tax, some Canadians (like my baby-boomer parents for instance), don't include the price of the alcohol when they tip here at home... I'm not sure why. I'm sure there are regional differences and regional "rules" such as what I explained. And it's probably these little rules that get taken south with them when they visit the States, hence the variation in tipping practices. It's not a conscious effort to be cheap - just one cultural difference between the two countries.

I forgot to be more specific - the $8.50 minimum wage is in BC.