JohnG I think you have me confused with some other curious. I rarely am on the European board unless it's to ask or answer a specific travel related question as I did this morning, regarding the best places for kids in Europe. And I don't work in the city but my husband does. Those who know me know I'm not a troll but an avid traveler who has helped and been helped by many others on this board.<BR><BR>Annie I did not break the rule. I will say, for one last time, that I did not "share" my husbands sandwich. I ordered a bowl of soup, he a sandwich, he tried my soup, asked me if I wanted to taste his sandwich, I did and the waitress charged me $ 4.00. I don't need the ethicist to tell me who was wrong and who was right in that situation. When I saw that charge on the check I was furious, as I can only assume most people would be. If it were you in that situation, maybe you would think they were justified in charging you the 4 bucks, but I most certainly don't.

Annie, one last thing and then I promise not to post on this thread again. In what way did I break the rule? The menu says there will be a $ 4.00 charge for sharing a sandwich. I did not share the sandwich. It did not say, if you so much as take a bite of someone else's sandwich we will charge you $ 4.00. Never in my wildest imagination did I think they would charge someone for tasting their partner's food. Had I known about it, I would have never gone their. At least anyone who is reading this thread has been forewarned, and can decide for themselves if Carnegie Deli is for them.

Someone ought to print this out and send it to the Carnegie Deli. (Not that it would do any good. I just like cheap thrills.)

curious - First, I do not agree with the policy. I think it's ridiculous. However, perhaps you should have asked them to clarify the rule - which, technically, you DID break. A bite can certainly be construed as sharing, and if the waitress saw you take one bite why would she have reason to think you wouldn't be taking more? I'm sure they encounter people who try to take advantage of their system in that way all the time. Please note that I am not saying that's what you and your husband were doing. They have a policy; this was breaking it. If the waitress's manager had seen you take the bite, and not seen the sharing charge on the bill, she would have been in trouble.<BR><BR>I would have tipped the waitress, never gone back, and - as you have done successfully here - made sure as many people as possible were aware of the silly sharing policy at Carnegie Deli.<BR><BR>Also, FYI, I do not think you are a troll - I liked your brief report of the day in NYC with your family...<BR>

A friend and I went there last year on a trip to NYC. We paid the extra $4 and shared a sandwich. As the saying goes, Been there, Done that, Won't go back. Next time I'll look for something that tastes better, is less expensive, and off the beaten path.

Well, we (two)went there mid-afternoon, split a huge Reuben "sandwich" for $18, and that was the major meal for the day. We were staying nearby, so dinner was from one of the all-night salad bars close by. That means we ate VERY inexpensively for a day in NYC, although I wouldn't want to make a steady diet of it. An $18 Reuben is an outrageous price until you realize that no one person can realistically eat it all by him/herself.

Lets face it, those huge sandwiches can feed a family of 4, so the Carnegie is only trying to protect themselves from exactly that -- a family ordering 1 sandwich and splitting it. In that respect I can't find fault with them. This is a capitalist society and the Carnegie Deli is as capitalist as it gets. But it was big time bad judgment for the waitress to charge curious $4 for taking 1 bite (or even 2) of her husband's sandwich. But it was big time GOOD judgment for curious to not tip the waitress for her literal interpretation of the rules. The turnover in those delis is great and I'm sure that waitress has moved on to greener pastures by now.<BR>

How much for tuna on wheat?

I love it when the cheap midwestern types get taken for a ride in the big city. Stay home, hayseeds, stay home!

Tuna on wheat? $36.50.

Hey Manhattan Guy, I thought you wanted all of our tourists dollars? Why we're just suckers for you sophisticated cityfolk.

Why not just get the sandwich to go and you can feed as many as you please and sit outside getting fresh air. Or does the waitress follow you around the city until you eat it HHHmmmm. Thanks for the lighthearted discussioin here, I needed it. If only all of our problems were like this.

We're not talking about Arby's here, we're talking about the Carnegie Deli. They follow you home and if anyone takes a bite off that sandwich before the lights are out and the curtains drawn you can ring up that $5 sharing charge on your next credit card statement. <BR><BR>You remember that murder they had upstairs at the Carnegie Deli a few months ago? At the time they said it had something to do with drugs, but what it was really about was splitting a corned beef on rye.

has anyone considered wearing a sign into Carnegie Deli: "Waitress, take note - you will get no tip if you charge me the sharing fee." If she adds it on, no tip. She was warned.

I have eaten in many restaurants in which there is a "sharing" charge. It is typically akin to a "plating" charge with the implicit (in every place I've been) understanding that two people will more or less split the item, each of them eating their portion as the meal. "Curious" made it clear that she ordered (and consumed) the soup as her entree/meal. A heary bowl of NYC deli soup is a meal for many of us. A bite, one single bite, of a sandwich is just that - a taste or sample and nothing more. It could hardly be defined in any reasonable person's vocabulary as "sharing" (although in the strictest technical definition is). Perhaps due to working in an establishment that draws so many tourists, some of whom may not tip well, the waitress has become overly stringent in her enforcement of the policy. It's hard to imagine that the ownership/management of an establishment as successful as the Carnegie would support the $4.00 charge under the described circumstances. I would have given the benefit of the doubt to the management and respectfully asked to see them and consult before paying the bill. Having once worked for tips waiting tables I can appreciate those posters who feel that it was unfair of the waitress to act as she did but it appears (based on the info offered) that she used very poor judgement and customer service skills. Tips should be based on service. Adequate but nothing special service should yield a 15-18% tip and better service more. If a server is intentionally rude or pushes the limits it's approriate to tip less - in some cases it's the only way to get the message across. I wasn't there and can't truly judge but on the basis of her coments I side with "Curious" (although I reiterate that I would have spoken to management).

I wonder how many fights break out at that deli? I bet they have good insurance. If someone charged me for taking a bite of a sandwich I'd slap them silly!

15% is the standard here (southeast, pop around 50,000.) No one tips more than 15% unless they are unusually demanding of the servers'time or they are at some fancy-smancy place, which there are few around here. So don't go saying that 15-18% is the minimum everywhere. I don't profess to know what it is in NYC but I know what it is where I live.

we really will talk about nothing on this forum simply for the sake of talking. LOL any more analysis out there on whether or not a bite is worth a split charge? COME ON PEOPLE something is wrong with this picture.

Well gosh, Bob... I certainly wasn't looking to stir things up. If I stated that 15-18% is the standard that certainly covers the 15% that is standard in your area, doesn't it? In many restaurants I've been to in the past few years (I'm not including basic inexpensive chain establishments or diners), there is a notation on the menu that management reserves the right to add a gratuity to bills for parties of six or more people. The stated percentage has always been 17% or 18%. If service is good and prices aren't ridiculously high I tend to tip 18 - 20%. If prices are high, I didn't spend an inordinate amount of time after diner hanging out at the table and if service was simply perfuntory but adequate, I tip 15%. If I have breakfast in a diner where my bill comes to $3 or $4 after tax, I typically tip a dollar because the servers are working so hard for their money. I worked as a busboy and as a waiter fo rover two years full time and subsequently I tended bar part-time for ten years. I admit to being a bit biased about tipping but I don't presume to state as a fact what other people tip in my area or elsewhere - I'm simply pointing out what appears to be customary in those areas where I travel and dine out. I'm just curious... have you been polling each and every one of thoser 50,000 people in your area about their tipping habits? Aplogies for the sarcasm but I'm trying to make a point here - a neutral and non-offensive post such as mine does not deserve a snipe in return. Fair enough? Thanks!

I can't imagine that a busy waitress in New York City has the time to notice whether each of her customers is sharing or not. The sharing charge at the Carnegie means that if you don't share your sandwich with the waitress, then she will charge you.