Tipping in restaurants

[twofingers]

Looked over Olivia's comment last week - I guess it was partially tongue-in-cheek humour, but there is something there that irks me. Some servers feel that they are entitled to a tip 'just because'
I just don't agree - Here is my response:
Olivia – Just in case no one told you, tipping is not mandatory. It is a reward for services performed excellently or at least above average.
Just as you say, “If you can’t afford to tip, them stay at home and eat microwave pizza”: well then, “If you can’t afford to pay your service staff a living wage without their having to rely on tips, then perhaps you should consider getting yourself into another line of business”.
Don’t get me wrong; I am not advocating that we customers don’t tip; but you will get tips by earning them.
Don’t expect a tip if you are standing in the kitchen doorway picking your hair and having a gossip session with the line cook while my lunch sits on the pass-through getting cold.
Don’t expect a tip if my coffee cup is empty while you are texting your buddies.
Don’t expect a tip if you arbitrarily add 18% to my bill because there are 8 people in the party. I will not only deduct the illegal 18% adder, I will not come back to this restaurant.
Expect a 20 – 25% tip when you are cheerful, try your hardest to do a great job, work gracefully with your customers when the food that comes out of the kitchen is less than excellent, take your customer’s critiques seriously and pass them along to management, and exhibit proof that you care enough about your career choice to keep yourself well-groomed and immaculately clean.
Expect a tip when you do your part to contribute the tax burden on your entire earnings, (not just 35% of your tips) like the rest of us. Bragging to your pals while in earshot of your customers that you only pay taxes on a little portion of your tip just makes us angry that we are supporting your share of the tax load while you spend your tax-free cash.
Be part of the team. If the washroom needs cleaning, it’s your responsibility to do whatever is necessary to ensure that the situation is rectified.
In closing; NO, we do NOT owe you a living.
Customers – if you get excellence, then tip accordingly. If you don’t, then stand up for yourselves by tipping or not tipping accordingly. If you let the service staff think that mediocrity is worth 15%, then that’s what you will receive.

[The Equalizer]

I agree 100% with you 2 Fingers. As an recent example:

We had a birhtday party for 15 at a newly renovated restuarant on Hyw 33. When we were finished the person (with a company card ) who paid added on a nice tip of 15 %.

Nobody realized the place had already added on 15 % automatically and DID NOT mention it!!

1 month later when the accounting team found out we called the place to complain and were offered nothing but an apology.

The owners and waitress KNEW that night that they made 30 % on a $300 meal bill and did nothing to fix it.

They knew who we were as we are nieghbours and had to reserve the party spot.

Our person made the mistake yes.. but that place will never see another dime from anyone in our office again.

You want our business...try earning it!

[moparmaddness]

TIPS- To Insure Prompt Service or TIP - To Insure Promptness. Im not old enough to remember the days when you tipped before your meal came to you, but legend has it that you did to get the waitress/bar wenches attention to be served first. I would far rather revert to this style of "tipping" then the faux pas version we have now. Like was stated earlier, if your unattractive in dress/grooming, seem bored with life, interrupt my conversation or try to talk to me when my mouth is full - no your not getting a "tip". If Im happy with services rendered then you will be simple as that. Your management should understand that their front of house staff are most interacted with and their back end staff better have food out proper the first time and in a timely fashion. If its not your not getting a "tip". I won't tip a server in a restaurant if they split tips with back of house and the order is wrong, she/he might get cash if they don't pool it if im happy with their personal service.

[Libelle]

Can someone please explain to my why people that serve food, cut hair or serve drinks are entitled to a tip? What is it about their jobs that tipping go hand in hand?

[MAPearce]

Those who expect a tip are the ones who are least likely to get one from me....
Those who offer prompt service with a friendly attitude and can share a laugh or two usually end up with plenty from me...

[FreeRights]

I agree 100% with you 2 Fingers. As an recent example:

We had a birhtday party for 15 at a newly renovated restuarant on Hyw 33. When we were finished the person (with a company card ) who paid added on a nice tip of 15 %.

Nobody realized the place had already added on 15 % automatically and DID NOT mention it!!

1 month later when the accounting team found out we called the place to complain and were offered nothing but an apology.

The owners and waitress KNEW that night that they made 30 % on a $300 meal bill and did nothing to fix it.

They knew who we were as we are nieghbours and had to reserve the party spot.

Our person made the mistake yes.. but that place will never see another dime from anyone in our office again.

You want our business...try earning it!

It sounds to me like not only do you expect good service, but now you expect them to cover up and fix your mistakes as well, now.

For the most part, they are probably not going to comment on how much you tip, regardless if it's a lot or very little. That would be rude.

If a percentage is already added to the bill, it will clearly state such on the receipt. In my opinion, you cannot blame that establishment for your error.

[Mtn Biker]

I suggest most of the posters who don’t or can’t justify a tip have never worked in the service industry. If they have not, they fail to realize how rude and demeaning most people can be when their expectations are not met, whether they are realistic expectations or not. Until you work in the industry you will not understand how often people make outrageous or impossible requests, and then are miffed because they are not fulfilled and then feel it’s their right to be *bleep*. As a server you will require a subservient attitude in order to please normal people. It’s their one chance to boss people around and have a little power trip and if you’re not kissing their backside just right, you’re service is not up to par in their eyes. Then you can add in mandatory tip pool that a server pays based on their gross sales, and whether or not they get a tip, they still pay a percentage to the rest of the team. That means it ends up costing them out of their own pocket just to serve you, the customer, who did not tip for a good reason or not. I suggest, try the lifestyle and serve for bit, and then we’ll see how you feel about tipping.

[Thinktank]

All of a sudden, I am supposed to calculate how 'prompt' the waitress was?
I don't to cacluate such things. i just want to eat. And besides, they are usually
satisfactory.

so I gess a 10% tip all the time, because on average waitresses are good. I'm not going
to get out a stopwatch and try figure out which waitress was slightly faster than the others.

[Lady tehMa]

I have been a waitress. I will tip, if I get good service. If I get excellent service, I will tip more. If a member of my party is obnoxious, I will tip in apology for their behaviour.

If I get poor service or attitude, there might be a few pennies left on the table as an idicator. Any restaurant that presumes to calculate a tip for me will not get my business again, and I will actively tell everyone I know to avoid the spot.

Hospitality is not this easiest way to earn a living and I respect that. However, it IS a service industry, and too many forget that.

[Joe Public]

The concept of tipping is twofold; first for excellent (not standard) service and second to compensate for the low wages that servers earn.

I have changed my habits and have substantially reduced eating out in protest of political issues; the HST, which the food industry supported to the grave. As well, there have been several substantiated stories that certain restaurant owners in town offered IPADS to their managers for signing up the most Liberal members, which is immoral and illegal.

When I do eat out, I tip according to the level of service from the establishment, not just the server. "I'm sorry, the kitchen screwed up your order" or "I'm sorry, I was too busy to get to your table in the first ten minutes" or "I'm sorry, the bartender forgot your order" or "I'm sorry, I'm too lazy to list the specials off once again" just doesn't cut it and no one gets a tip. The server is responsible for coordinating the entire dining experience, not just for being a face at the table.

When I do tip, and the server winces, snorts, rolls their eyes or otherwise indicates that they deserved more, the entire establishment is off my list.

But after reading the story in Vancouver where the server made $300 tax free per night (which is $500 to the rest of us), which works out to about $75 per hour, then I don't really see the need to tip at all.

[KAFINC]

Tipping is overrated, and is not realistic in todays age. This fad, has gotten worse and worse over the years, and more demanding, That is why I will leave a loonie if they are lucky.

I am actually in the food service industry. We say, a tip to us, is if the customer loves the food and service and comes back. They don't owe us anything more than that. They already pay for the food as it is


Another reason I firmly don`t believe in tips.... ive done lots of hard work, and I`ll use water delivery for example. I probally worked harder and longer than any waiter or waitress, but never got tipped ever. So go figure.

[twofingers]

Yup. If the girl in the paint department gets your paint mixed to exactly the right shade, you grab it and head to the till.....no tip!
If she screws it up, you let her know.
What makes this world so much different from the restaurant scene?
We have allowed ourselves (typical too-nice Canadians) to be pushed into a corner and held hostage to pay extra money for mediocrity.
It's all so wrong.
The restaurant service industry is no different than any other sector of the service industry. Why would I expect a tip for doing an outstanding job of customer satisfaction?

[KAFINC]

Yup. If the girl in the paint department gets your paint mixed to exactly the right shade, you grab it and head to the till.....no tip!
If she screws it up, you let her know.
What makes this world so much different from the restaurant scene?
We have allowed ourselves (typical too-nice Canadians) to be pushed into a corner and held hostage to pay extra money for mediocrity.
It's all so wrong.
The restaurant service industry is no different than any other sector of the service industry. Why would I expect a tip for doing an outstanding job of customer satisfaction?

Exactly what I am saying. Home depot helps me to the truck with my lumber order, save on foods will help anyone take groceries to the car. The list goes on and on.

The wage argument is no longer valued, because there are alot of other jobs that pay minimum wage, with zero tips.

[Mtn Biker]

To tip or not to tip . . . what a dilemma! I suggest those who don’t tip flat out for any reason, are the same types that don’t say thank you to anyone for anything, wouldn’t go out of their way to help a stranger, and probably lead of life of entitlement and me first please. Those that do tip have either worked in the service industry or recognize the effort that a server displays to make sure their night out is meaningful and enjoyable and offer a small token of appreciation. The rest fall somewhere in between. After many years of serving, I was tipped by 95%+ of the customers I served. The ones that didn’t tip didn’t make or break my evening because the averages always balance out in the end, and some make up for others. In the time I worked, I have never seen a regular that didn’t tip. You don’t become a regular if you’re cheap because all the staff will eventually know you and you’re experiences will be painful and slow, so these people eventually just move on and go somewhere else. So, to each their own and I will continue my traditions of rewarding good service and not frequenting anywhere it is not. Pretty simple.

[grammafreddy]

To tip or not to tip . . . what a dilemma! I suggest those who don’t tip flat out for any reason, are the same types that don’t say thank you to anyone for anything, wouldn’t go out of their way to help a stranger, and probably lead of life of entitlement and me first please.

You would be VERY wrong.