Worst Tippers
 

Any former or current European waitstaff out there? Who are the best/worst tippers?<BR><BR>I have heard from friends that used to be waiters in Rome & Paris that the Japanese were the most generous tippers (maybe because these guys used to "alter" the checks)<BR>and "other" groups were poor tippers.<BR>Don't want to offend anyone just get your input on this topic.

Unbelievably some of the richest people from the United Arab Emirates.

African-Americans - and I am one!

I'm assuming you're talking "worst" with the 2 previous responses. Maybe we could say "best" "worst" after each one?<BR>I'm not in the service industry so I don't know - but this could get good.

I've always heard that teachers are the worst tippers (I actually knew one who refused to tip because no one tipped her for teaching! And she was from a wealthy family). However, LV is a very tip-conscious town, so I try not to be cheap.

Generally, Canadians and British were among the worst tippers. Chinese and Japanese were the best.

I find that Americans scrutinize the check the most and that Japanese will pay what the check states without question.<BR>I worked at a 4 star restaurant in Rome for 6 years and always got the best tips from Asian people.

This was a major story here in Miami a while back. An Asian restauraneur automatically added a tip to an African-American patron's bill. The patron asked the white customers sitting around him, and tips weren't included in their bills. The man asked the restaurant owner why the tip was added, and the response was "Because you people don't tip well." This was all over the news, and it led to a County ordinance whereby tip policies must be universally applied and posted in the establishment.

When I was an undergraduate at Dartmouth, I worked as a waiter and I found that Asians were very good tippers as were Catholic priests. The worst tippers are (sorry, but it is true) overweight women 35-45. Canadians, other than French Canadians, are also HORRIBLE tippers, especially those from Nova Scotia.

Best tippers are Americans because they eat the most - just look at the Taking Food for Breakfast thread

There used to be a joke in the restaurant biz:<BR><BR>What's the difference between a canoe and a European? A canoe tips.

American's tip well b/c it is part of our cultural custom (and damn well expected in fact) in our own country. When you are used to tipping 15-20% and are in a country where less is expected, we still tend to tip a bit more, just out of habit.<BR><BR>And of course, when Europeans come to our country, they bring their habits with them too. No one is trying to be rude, it's just a cultural difference.<BR><BR>

As a traveling Canadian, I've heard a joke among the Europeans several times that Canadians were the worst tippers, never buy the round of drinks when it's their turn, and never offer to buy a drink (even to a lady they've been chatting up for the last hour).

Oh Please, John Thin and gorgious! Again you have proven that you are all hot air. I am a great tipper. My thin friends are far worse because they believe their presence is an honor enough.

Okay, does this mean that if you are a server you will give poorer service to Europeans, or African-Americans, or middle-aged overweight women, or Canadians, or British, just because someone has said they are poor tippers?<BR><BR>Maybe that's why I -- a member of one or more of those groups -- get such poor service sometimes. My baseline is 20% and if you don't screw up, that's what you get. <BR><BR>My experience at least in the US: wealthier people are cheapest; poorer people shell out. I'm always having to slip an extra $1 or $5 on top of a really chintzy tip my wealthy brother-in-law leaves.<BR><BR>Let me give you a hint: if you assume I'm going to be a poor tipper (no Gore jokes here, please) and give me crummy service, it'll be a circular, self-fulfilling prophecy.

Demographic, Your BASELINE is 20%? You are generous indeed! What if you get fabulous service? And what do you tip in France?

In Japan there is NO tipping and Japanese people are not used to tipping, so they usually don't. Since I am against tipping, I think they are right.

And I think the fact that European wait staff usually get a "normal" salary (unlike the under-minimum-wage hourly rates that wait staff usually get paid in the USA)lends Europeans not to feel the moral obligation to tip their wait staff as much as we do here in the States. In the USA, I usually tip well (20% on average) out of guilt, even when the service was lousy. In Europe, I tip well as a compliment and recognition of good service. I personally prefer the latter.

For some reason, professional women between 40 & 50 years old. I always get better tips from men of all ages than women in this age group.

It's not a cultural or moral thing, but pure economics. In Europe the waiters' salary is included in the price of the meal. In the States it is not. That's why the word "tip" is wrong. It's a "Service charge". Both systems are fine, as long as you know the difference.<BR>The most misleading are cruise ships, where you are told how much to "tip" the staff. On my first (and certainly last) cruise in the Caribbean, I realized I had unknowingly become the employer of 8 staff members. They should force cruise lines to include in their advertising: "Staff salaries NOT included". Just like port taxes.