Need tips on tipping

Old Nov 21st, 2002, 05:39 AM
  #21  
TvlPro
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I travel just about every week.
I almost always tip 20% (or more) unless the waitstaff was rude. Since I travel alone I am ofetn treated rude and they try to brush me off to the bar! Having been a waitress at a moderate restaurant, I realize that I am occupying a table for 2 (at least) and if I do not tip generously for good service, I am perpetuating the problem of single diners being pushed to the bar.
On a 30.00 meal, I have tipped up to 30% for excellent service. A great deal since I am the easiest customer in the world, and don't "camp out" at the table.
Car valets are another thing all together. While staying at the Four Season Toronto a couple of weeks ago I witnessed a man in a Rolls Royce tip the valet 50.00. The guy who was lucky enough to fetch my rental Cavalier got 2.00. I was overwhelmed with so much guilt I tipped him 5.00 the next day.
Car valet tipping is somewhat annoying to me.
The airport car park shuttle driver always gets 2.00. If I am running late and he helps me get there fast it can be up to 5.00.
Ditto with hotel a/p shuttle.
I hate having people take my bags to the room and try to refuse but if they force me I pay 1/00 a bag... remember, I asked that they let me do it and they would not.
Last but not least... if you have poor service at a restaurant I ask that you try to determine the cause before you stiff the waitstaff. Problems with your food??? Unless the waitstaff botched your order, this is a kitchen issue NOT a waitstaff issue. If the waiter is hurried and not as attentive as you would like... it may be because someone did not show up for work and he/she is working 2 stations.
I try very hard to make good decisions because most people waiting tables really want to serve you well, sometimes things are just set against it happening.
 
Old Nov 21st, 2002, 10:21 AM
  #22  
beachbum
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Used to be that 10% was an appropriate tip. Then it went to 12%, then 15%, and now it's 15%-20%, with some here suggesting 25% or 30% as sometimes warranted. I don't get it! How does that happen? I don't think any of us really want to pay more in tips, do we? Increasing base wages and increasing menu prices already represent increasing compensation to wait staff. So why does tipping percentage need to increase on top of that?

And no offense, Patrick, but who is it that determines the "proper way" to tip? Seems to me it should be the customers.
 
Old Nov 21st, 2002, 11:34 AM
  #23  
TheBellman
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Patrick may take a big game, but he ALWAYS stiffs the bellman. He indicated that in a previous post.
 
Old Nov 21st, 2002, 01:21 PM
  #24  
xxx
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There are still paperboys. My "paperboy" drives down the street and throws the paper at the end of the driveway even in the rain or snow. However, he always includes a Christmas card with his address before the holidays.
 
Old Nov 21st, 2002, 02:23 PM
  #25  
soso
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Well, since we're talking about paperboys, maybe someone could enlighten me on how/how much to tip the garbage collectors at Christmas time, and the recycle guy?
 
Old Nov 21st, 2002, 03:57 PM
  #26  
tipper
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I don't tip the garbage and recycle collectors. They are paid a good wage for their work. And they're not at my house every day for just a few pennies.
 
Old Nov 21st, 2002, 04:17 PM
  #27  
darvy
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Oh for god sakes you losers, just give the poster the information he/she needs. Not some philosophical tirade that makes you feel better once unloaded onto us.

Tippy, here's the info you need. It's from this very web site, in fact:

At restaurants, a 15% tip is standard for waiters; up to 20% may be expected at more expensive establishments. The same goes for taxi drivers, bartenders, and hairdressers. Coat-check operators usually expect $1; bellhops and porters should get 50 cents to $1 per bag; hotel maids in upscale hotels should get about $1 per day of your stay. On package tours, conductors and drivers usually get $10 per day from the group as a whole; check whether this has already been figured into your cost. For local sightseeing tours, you may individually tip the driver-guide $1 if he or she has been helpful or informative. Ushers in theaters do not expect tips.
 
Old Mar 6th, 2006, 04:07 AM
  #28  
 
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I can understand the idea of tipping by percentage if you go to a very expensive restaurant, but if you go to a place where your meal is $10 or less then you should pay at least $5 per dinner for this service. I work at a breakfast house, and many times not only do I serve their meals and drinks but also have to cook their food too.

I think that everyone that feels that tipping is optional should work for at least one week where they depend on tipping for most of their income. They would walk away a changed person. People who come in, and have worked jobs involving tips are by far the best tippers, often leaving a tip that is bigger than their bill.

Tipping is no different than when you get your car repaired. First you pay for the car parts, then you pay for the service of having them installed. Same with a restaurant. First you pay the business for the food, then you pay your server to bring your food and drinks, keep them drinks full, and clean up your mess.

As to tipping for free drinks. Where I live you would pay at least $8 for mixed drinks, so if I were getting them free, I would tip at least $2 per drink.
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Old Mar 6th, 2006, 06:17 AM
  #29  
 
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You wouldn't have to worry about "keeping them drinks full and cleaning up my mess". I would eat someplace else.
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Old Mar 6th, 2006, 06:27 AM
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She's baaaaaaaaack!

And reviving a thread over 3 years old.
Judy24 is online now  
Old Mar 6th, 2006, 06:58 AM
  #31  
 
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amBooth, thank you. I will add that I seem to be the only person that is open enough to post their email. I truly feel sorry for anyone that ends up as your server as you do not appreciate and seem unwilling to pay for the service you get. Maybe try not paying for service at the auto shop, when they install your cable or phone. The good thing is 90 percent of my customers are good and decent people and do not mind paying a fair amount for good service. The other 10% I can not type what I think of them, and hopefully they do not get what they deserve in life.

To the person who said she's back,if you had a real point, you would have made it.
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Old Mar 6th, 2006, 07:26 AM
  #32  
 
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I think over-tipping is just as bad as under-tipping.

It is just fine to tip 15% for meals. Tip more if the bill is small. For instance if a 15% tip would be $2.50, tip $3.00.

I have been the guest of people who give 20% tips for rude and thoughtless service. I think this practice lowers service standards for everybody.

If you want to save tip money, carry your own bags in hotels. It strikes me as odd that when I have obviously carried my bags from an airport to a hotel somebody wants me to pay him to put my bags on a trolley to take them to my room. If you get roped into using a bellboy, have him stay until you thoroughly inspected the room and, if you are dissatisfied with the room in any way, have him call the desk to relocate you in a more desirable room. This is worth a generous tip.

It seems to me that people who drink in bars tip too much--$1 or $2 per drink.

Tip valets when they return your car. I find they say "thank you" for a $1 tip.

Don't forget the housekeeper at your hotels.

I'm sure bus and shuttle drives are happy to get tips, but I don't think most people tip them.

How much to tip taxi drivers seems to differ from city to city--15% in some and nothing or little in others.

I don't think there is a good answer to how much to tip people who pour water and remove plates at buffets. A dollar or two under each plate should do it.
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Old Mar 6th, 2006, 07:42 AM
  #33  
 
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I think tipping is strictly personal and, frankly, I want it to stay that way so that I can overtip or undertip as I please since I am the one who received/didn't receive the service(s) being tipped for.
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Old Mar 6th, 2006, 09:26 AM
  #34  
 
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Happytrailstoyou is correct about over-tipping being as bad as under-tipping. When you do that, you get servers like ilovecharlotte who feel so entitled to YOUR money that they think we should tip $5 on a $10 meal. WHAT KIND OF KOOLAID HAS S/HE BEEN DRINKING?

Ilovecharlotte - on my $10 meal, you're gonna get $2. Seldom more or less. And I have worked tables, bars, and room-service - I know how it is and how it isn't. It's time you consider a new vocation.
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Old Mar 7th, 2006, 03:36 AM
  #35  
 
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rb_travelerxATyahoo. the good news for me is most of my customers don't feel like you do, and 90% of them would tip anywhere from $4 to $5 for a $10 meal(I have been given as much as $10 on a $10 meal). Also 90% of the time I am happy with what I am doing.

It is the small 10% of the people that drive all of us crzzy. You greet them as soon as they walk in. They come in mad at the world, and seem to find it eary to unload their anger on us. They are 10 times as demanding as any other guest, never happy with their food, leave a huge mess(bad enough sometimes to make everyone wonder if any of the food reached their mouth). You wait on them hand and foot. You do everything possilbe to make them happy, but of course nothing works. Then leave a very small tip or no tip at all. Yet they come back week after week. I never say anything to them, but have had other customers get angry because of the lack of tipping and have said plenty.

Then why complian? Simply the 10% don't always come spaced out. There are weeks when they all come in on the same night.

Yes with the kind of service I give my customers, yes I feel I deserve at least $5, regardless of what their bill adds up to. I greet them at the door, regulars have what they want waiting for them, their drinks are filled before they ask, if they are getting a meal for two small children to share, I divided everything on two plates, holidays come around kids get special treats(That I buy not the business), they feel like talking I talk. I am getting married in a couple of weeks and moving out of state and my regular customers are very upset about it. They are happy for me, but really hate to see me leave.

In closing I find it shocking that some people feel tipping is optional. I have said it before and will say it again, not tipping is no different than not paying for your food. THe only reason the non tippers pay for their food is the business has legal resources to press charges for not paying. Again, it is no different than going to have your car repaired. Try doing that saying you will only pay for the parts but not the labor. Same with tipping for your meals. You pay the business for the food, and the server for the labor of taking your order, bringing your food, keeping your drinks filled, doing special things for you, and cleaning up your mess. When I go out I tip as much as I can, as I fully appreciate being able to just sit there and have my food brought to me, and then just being able to walk away and have someone else clean up for me.
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Old Mar 7th, 2006, 04:04 AM
  #36  
 
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Ilovecharlotte, may I ask: Where do you work that 90% of your customers tip 40-50% for their $10 meal?????

It defies logic.
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Old Mar 7th, 2006, 04:15 AM
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Post where I work in this shark tank? Not likely. It is very logical to tip 50%. First in the year 2006 a $10 meal at a full service restaurant is very cheap. Plus people with common sense and who go back to the same place every week understand the idea of you get what you pay for. Some just come to like you after you have been waiting on the for some time. Some just understand that regardless of how small their bill is, you have put at least $5 worth of work into it. People tip that much for as many reasons as there are people. One man tipped me $5 on a $4.10 bill because when he was growing up his mom had to work two jobs as a server.

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Old Mar 7th, 2006, 05:56 AM
  #38  
 
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The problem is, charlotte, that a mechanic is being paid for their work by the owner/operator, and the customer is not expected to subsidize substandard pay. It's the only area of work where people can get paid below the federal minimum wage and others are expected to make up the difference.
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Old Mar 7th, 2006, 07:07 AM
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Here is a great article in today's Times about tipping hotel maids:

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/07/business/07road.html
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Old Mar 7th, 2006, 08:18 AM
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sylvia3, yes you are paying a huge sum to the business for the service of having your car repaired and then the business pays the worker a very small part of it. You however are still pay for the service, so it is no different.
The way I see it when I eat out is the server is like an independent contractor and I pay them or at least try to pay what it is worth. If someone can not afford this service they should not go to a full service.

Another way to tip, would be to think how much would you want to be paid if you were doing everything you ask your server to do.
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