exiledprincess

pjsparlor, I only asked about the point of sharing because if a restaurant does not show a charge for sharing plates (and it is allowed/encouraged by that restaurant - which not all do), I usually include a little extra in the tip for the extra work the servers and other workers have to do.

Fair is fair.

peterboy

I think that we should think in the
older term "gratuity" rather than
"tip".

"Gratuity" implies that you were grateful for good service and felt
compelled to reward the server.

A gratuity is earned and should not
be assumed. That's the whole idea isn't it?

The only assumption I
make is that I'll tip 20% and start
deducting from there for substandard
service. It is rare that I'll tip less than 20% and sometimes even a
little more. However, there have been a couple of occasions where the gratuity was nearly nonexistent due to nearly nonexistent service. Very rare but it does happen.

As far as the bar manager's reaction...that was WAY out of line and I believe he should be terminated. The owner needs to be made aware of how the employees are treating patrons once he leaves the building. I'd bet dollars to donuts that this incident wouldn't have occurred if he were on the premises.

pjsparlor

Point well taken Exiled princess, no sharing of plates or extra plates. I will post on the Josef's owner reation. I would love to have him post on this sight too. PJ

Dick

I usually tip at least 20%.

On a couple of rare occasions when the service was awful (and no manager responded)...I leave no tip. I then clearly write on the charge slip .."the service was awful". To leave 10% will, IMO, make you look cheap. This way, my intent is clear.

Also, if I get good service from the bus person or support staff, I tip them directly in cash.

pjsparlor

Hello, I sent the letter and the fodorites responses. I never did get a response from Josef. The bartender called and did apologize to me. So that is how the debacle ends. PJ

polly229

Well, the saga is over. But it reminds me of my husband and his "tip meter" idea.

I'm not sure exactly what form/mechanics he has in mind for the meter, but the way it works is that you put it on the table, visible to the server, set at 20%. And you raise or lower the level as the meal goes on. Luckily, we don't usually feel the need for the Tip Meter, but occasionally he says he wishes he had one. (To be serious, it would be insulting for hard-working professional waiters or even high school kids at the local diner who are trying hard. So you'd really only want to take it out when you got one of the losers and it would already be turned down below 15% when you put it on the table. )

I do like the idea of a note explaining a reduced tip, though. Sometimes when I'm leaving 15% and really feeling like a patsy for that much or when (rarely) service was pretty terrible and I'm leaving even less, I figure that the server will just think I'm cheap and the "learning experience" I'd like him to have doesn't happen. But even with an explanation, sometimes the servers who are really poor also seem to have a bit of attitude. So even if they knew your rationale, they would probably rationalize their own responsibility for the smaller tip.

happytrailstoyou

I am curious that several posters tip the same for poor service because they don't want to "look cheap."

Look cheap to whom, I wonder. To waiters who spoiled their meals with inattentive or inept service? Sorry, I don't get it.

Emucom

I have a question... Is it better to leave the tip on the table in the form of cash, or put the tip on a credit card along with the tab?

happytrailstoyou

I leave it on the credit card receipt--very seldom in cash. Therefore, if I have the unpleasant and unwanted experience of tipping less than a 15%-20% tip, I and the recipient are the only ones who know.

If I am constrained to leave a 10% tip or no tip, I don't feel cheap. I feel I have accurately showed the extent of my appreciation for an unpleasant dining experience that was provided for me. I go out to have a good time, not a bad time.

matnikstym

Emucom~put the tip in your water glass and turn it upside down!

toedtoes

Happytrailstoyou - actually by leaving the tip on the credit card slip, you are informing the bookkeeper/boss of the amount, not just the recipient. They will see it written on the slip, but they may never see the cash that's left on the table.

If you want to make sure the boss knows about the service, include the tip on the credit card and add a note on the slip. The server can't "get rid of the evidence" that way.

DebitNM

If you leave a tip on your credit card, it will be reduced by the amount of the service charge the restaurant pays to the credit card company.

I leave tip in cash so server gets full amount.

Also, I believe that when server has to tip out busboy, bartender etc. it may be a % of tab, not what server actually gets. Not 100% sure about that though. And most servers do have to split tips, so they really don't get what you leave them.

happytrailstoyou

Toes,

That's what I do. Seldom. But I do.

Recently I ate at a respected Italian restaurant in Port Angeles, WA, and I found myself needing to write on my bill, "Our waiter served others, but he completely ignored us." The tip I included, small though it was, did not appear on my Visa statement! HTTY

polly229

I think it depends on the restaurant whether they take the credit percentage out of the server's tip. I have - rarely but on several occasions - seen the cashier in diners or casual places actually take the tip out of the till and hand it to the waitress. Since it was even bills, no change, I feel sure they gave her the entire amount, didn't take $1 from her $5 tip. Obviously, in nicer places, I'd have no idea what they do. Think when they give a percentage to bus staff, etc., it varies how that's handled, too. But I usually tip well enough if service is good that if they lose 2%, it's not a biggie. Two percent of a $5 tip is a dime, for instance. People on expense accounts are better off putting everything on the credit card.

However, outside of the US (and probably Canada), it's a different story. When you need or want to tip, you need to leave the waiter cash - maybe even hand it to the waiter - or they probably won't see it.

Wait staff do have to report for tax purposes some percentage of their check total - something like 8 or 9%, I think I heard one time. If they're not making 9% in tips, that might be a sign that they need to get into another line of work where they can do a better job or move to a better establishment where all the customers aren't so cheap. Hopefully, they can figure out what the problem and the right course of action is.

julzieluv

i always tip 30% - 15% was the proper tip 15 yrs ago

sylvia3

30%??!! Why on earth would you do that?
Prices have gone up and up, and so 15% of a bill has also gone up, commensurately. Do the math.

lippincottfarm

I am a woman who travels by herself on occasion. I routinely leave a 20% tip including tax. A friend who was a waitress told me that women are viewed as poor tippers so if you only leave 10% or no tip because of poor service, you are just viewed as cheap. She said to leave 1 cent. Your message is then received loud and clear. On the few times that I have received really, really bad service, this is what I leave.

mancfi

I just found myself on here by accident, I meant to press on Europe forum but missed anyway, saw this thread and read on as I am interested in visiting the US at some point and have also read some recent thread on the Europe forum on tipping, it can be very confusing! Regarding this situation, I would not have tipped the server if I didn't feel they deserved it and would have felt very defensive if someone had questioned my tip, this really makes me think that this person had assumed the tip was a given regardless of the service. I also think that if they were due to close it was the server/managers responsibility to say this rather than expect the customer to take a hint, so that is not an excuse for bad service and I would not expect bad service if they were prepared to serve. However, I have never visited the US so don't know the rules . My, maybe ignorant assumptions, are that Americans seam to have a reputation of being 'good' tippers wherever they go. I assume they are good tippers because services/food is cheaper there than in UK & Nordics, where I am familiar and when they visit Europe they carry over their tipping ettiquette. I have also read that servers in the US really count on the tips to make up US servers salary unlike over here and that this would in turn make a customer feel obliged to tip, I think I would if I knew a servers basic wage was very low. If my assumptions are correct, which they obviously may not be, I think I'd prefer a system whereby I knew the server got paid a decent basic wage so didn't feel obliged to make that up but simply tip for their good service.
Assumptions now out of the way and I expect these to be corrected, I have seldom been in a position of leaving no tip here in Europe, but it has been an exceptional situation when I have left nothing. I generally leave 10% even though at times the server hasn't deserved it then I scold myself for doing so! I can never imagine leaving 30% unless I am very rich or the food was very cheap

sylvia3

Most Americans would like servers to receive an at least minimum wage, too, but we continue to have to subsidize the bar/restaurant owners.

ira

Hi PJ,

>Just curious, if we were being rude when we left a 10% tip for lousy service.<

Not rude at all, too kind if anything.

The best way to let the waitstaff know that you were not pleased with the service is to leave a penny.