Random questions to which you seek an answer
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I know, but for a visitor, it is fraught with uncertainty and risk. Paula went to a restaurant in NYC once, picked up the tab and left 15% (way more than you would do in the UK), the waiter came back to the table and in a very aggressive manner asked her what was wrong with the meal. She felt upset, unsettled and confused, she won't be going back….
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Yeah, I get it from your perspective. It's just odd to try to explain, since it's just sort of understood here.
As for your example, that waiter was a dick. Not only should you never go back, I would have complained to a manager. 15% is a respectable tip, and even if it weren't, berating a customer is completely out of bounds.
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If only Americans were more like the Japanese!
I've worked in the food industry for 12 years. I've done every job in the restaurant, and even worked at two restaurants inside a Whole Foods Market, which is why I am posting this:
In America, the only reason tipping is "understood" is because our capitalist society passes the cost of hiring servers/bartenders onto the consumer, and we consumers willingly accept it. For example, at Whole Foods in Columbus, Ohio, we were not allowed to accept tips. The reason? We were making $10+/hr. with benefits as WFM employees. But most restaurants pay their servers between 2 and 5 dollars an hour, with the expected tips making up the large majority of these people's incomes. So the restaurant owners/corporations not only overcharge for everything on their menus, they also skirt the responsibility of paying a living wage. That's why most servers expect the American 20% gratuity, regardless of quality of service, because they need it! Sad.
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Sadly, you are right. Most food service industry (i.e. restaurants and bars) pays minimal wages and expects the tips to make up the rest. Some restaurants will go a step further, taking a % of tip from the waiter at the end of the night!
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I tip 20% pretty well wherever I go, but part of it is because I tend to frequent the same places over and over and being known as a decent tipper can have benefits.
My local gets packed after soccer matches and some of my fellow supporters complain about having to wait 30 minutes for a beer or an hour (or more) for food. I never wait more than 5 minutes for a beer or 20 or so for food.
It's all part of 'treat others how you want to be treated.'
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I have to say that Adams view is my perception also (speaking as a foreigner). I just didn't want to be the one to make that comment as it is a socio-economical issue from a society I don't live in, and an economy I contribute to once every couple of years only with my tourist dollars.
I can see both sides, and as usual the only real winner are the guys at the top, who get away with paying a low wage. Still, I will perpetuate the issue by assuming a 20% tip for all meal purchases, and adopting Doug's full price of the first drink, then a buck or two per drink thereafter policy. Seems like the best way to a good level of service.
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I like Doug's strategy as well.
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I'm just wondering: is the food and are the drinks cheaper?.. Is the cost of the tips taken into consideration?.. I mean: if I had to pay normal price for a drink plus 100 % as tip for first drink and 1-2 bucks for each consecutive drink, I'd need the beer/ wine to be dirt fucking cheap… Why they dupe the consumer like this is beyond me...
Anyhow, yeah: long live the €uro system... In restaurants I tip, for good service I tip in bars as well. That's about it.
What we €uros should do, though, while we're at it, is TIP OUR COURIER/ DELIVERY GUY... These guys driving in these old, haggered down vans, working 14 hour days, for a couple of €uro per hour, théy deserve our tips!.. Food for thought
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What we €uros should do, though, while we're at it, is TIP OUR COURIER/ DELIVERY GUY… These guys driving in these old, haggered down vans, working 14 hour days, for a couple of €uro per hour, théy deserve our tips!.. Food for thought
used to do this, but since we now have like every 2 weeks a new clown, no, but I always give the guys at my local post office a Xmas bonus
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Thanks for the help Omega Man, Alex1976 and simonc. Will pop into a local shop and see what they have to offer. I somehow know that I'll exceed my preset limit of two cigars…
Regarding tips:
I was once out with a Chinese friend of mine having Chinese food. It was delicious. So I wanted to express my satisfaction with a little tip (20%). As I handed over the money to the waitress, my friend looked at me as if I have just killed 100 innocent puppies. She was shocked and I swear she wanted to kill me in that particular moment. Apparently it's unusal to tip in the Chinese culture as well... -
I've never heard of someone tipping $6-8 for a $6-8 beer. That is definitely not normal, but is of course very nice.
A $1 tip a drink unless they're more than $10 is plenty. Bartenders make PLENTY of money. No need to over tip for sometimes 30-90 seconds of their time. If they are assholes, I can leave and go to one of the other 50 fucking bars within walking distance…
A lot of places in NYC are cash only, but if they accept credit I open a tab and tip 18-20% when I'm done, IF they were somewhat prompt with getting my drinks.
As for food, I tip 20% of the total(including tax), which is the normal amount in NYC for average service. In other parts of the US, 15% is usually fine for average service.
For me, it really comes down to how much effort I assume they put into serving me.
I've been a front of the house manager, bus boy, bartender, waiter, prep cook, dishwasher, butcher, host, and cashier in restaurants.
I also go out to eat 4-6 nights a week to sit down restaurants.
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Thanks for the help Omega Man, Alex1976 and simonc. Will pop into a local shop and see what they have to offer. I somehow know that I'll exceed my preset limit of two cigars…
Regarding tips:
I was once out with a Chinese friend of mine having Chinese food. It was delicious. So I wanted to express my satisfaction with a little tip (20%). As I handed over the money to the waitress, my friend looked at me as if I have just killed 100 innocent puppies. She was shocked and I swear she wanted to kill me in that particular moment. Apparently it's unusal to tip in the Chinese culture as well...This was in the US?
That's happened to me in China, but doing so in NYC will almost certainly result in spit or worse in your food the second time around
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I think I have probably got away with 10 - 15% in the past due to being foreign.
