OT - Worst tippers

[Ysabel Kid]

No, not cow tipping!

Saw this on Yahoo news. The list didn't surprise me one bit, considering most of them are high-profile leftist entertainers. Only surprise was # 9.

http://www.thepostgame.com/blog/dish/20 ... ad-tippers

So, how much do you tip? Typically I go 20%. If the service is bad, I decrease from that point. If the service is outstanding I have gone up, but it depends on the total tab, and it really needs to be outstanding. I expect good service when I spend my hard-earned money because that is the person's job. I've never not left a tip - someone may think you forgot. I have left an insultingly low tip on a couple-few occasions to make a point.

The excuse of not having cash is just a cover for being cheap. If you pay the tab with cash, you most likely have enough for a real tip. If you use a charge card or debit, you can always leave the tip that way (which is what I do).

Then again, looking at the names on the list, it wouldn't surprise me if they were incapable of calculating a tip.

[Booger Bill]

Ah yaaaas. If you cant go first class, dont go!

[piller]

Bill Cosby surprises me. I expected better from him.

[buckeyeshooter]

I take this with several grains of salt. No one can say what the service level was to rate a tip or not, other than those at the table.
Personally, I will go to 25% for outstanding service but I have no problem leaving O for bad service. As I have eaten out alot because I have traveled in business--- I get an alarm in my head if the foods not out in 12 minutes (industry standard). A waiter or waitress who comes to the table and interrupts the group when we are having a conversation with a guest or guests -- rather than politely waiting until there is a stop in conversation immediately loses 5%.
Bringing refills on beverages without being asked gets a + 5% as does refills on bread or other items like salsa.

[FWiedner]

As a point, I believe that a 'tip' is properly paid prior to delivery of a service. A 'gratuity is paid afterward.

A tip is paid to a caterer and/or added to a tab automatically. Most people in this country pay gratuities and do so as compensation for the perceived value of service that has already been received.

I agree, but take exception to tipping/gratuities above 20%. That only happens when I don't have change or if I've over-imbibed and can't calculate. Usually starts at 20% and goes down from there. If I can afford more, I eat at a better place.

If I can't presently part with a gratuity for a good server, I'll confine my dining excursion to places decorated with golden arches and the like.

[RIHMFIRE]

hmmm.....all of them were rich liberals....

The Wife is a manager of a restaurant.....
so 20% is the minimum....and if its real good service...
and she knows them........oh God...please....

well..... there goes another box of shells

[2X22]

My wife waited tables for 20 years before she got tired of the attitudes and went back to school to become a school teacher

To this day she swears the cheapest tippers were the folks just out of Church on Sundays, no question. Followed by Slope Dopes heading up to the ski resort to ski.

Next worse were the most affluent business owners. Seemed liked the more money they had the less they tipped.

The best tippers? HUNTERS!

My wife makes sure we leave AT LEAST 20%. Usually more

2x22

[AJMD429]

No "automatic" percentage for me. Typically anywhere from 5% to 25% though (most often 18-20%). I don't hesitate to pay well for 'above average' service, but just doing the job 'adequately' will not yield an above average tip.

Keep in mind that some meals may not be expensive, but may be difficult to serve or you are leaving a mess due to having six kids with you and being in a hurry, but everyone ate cheap stuff and drank water. There maybe a 50% tip is called for!

On the other hand, if I went someplace alone, 'splurged' for a big steak, didn't order any odd other stuff, and the waiter/ress only performed the basics, albeit efficiently, a 10% tip would be more representative of the work relative to the previous example.

[shooter]

Bill Cosby is the one that surprised me.

I do not hesitate to tip well for good service. I will tip at least 20% for good service. I do not, however, tip well at all for poor service. I know wait staff depend on tips to make a living. It is my opinion that they should perform their job well if they want to make a good living. In my current situation (sales), I don't get paid unless I perform well. There are no paychecks for really trying hard.

I hate to sound harsh, but I work extremely hard for my money, as I'm sure we all do, and when I spend it on luxuries I expect to get what I pay for. I drink a lot with my meal, so usually the measure of good service is keeping my glass full. I do take into account if the restaurant is understaffed or exceptionally busy. I'm not too much of a tight wad, it's just that I don't tip just to tip. I believe people should get what they earn.

[El Chivo]

I only go to tipping restaurants about twice a year, and I usually tip 20%. However, when I was young the norm was 10%, and by the time I was old enough to become a waiter it was 15%. Now that's considered cheap, and the prices have certainly gone up. Waitresses at a place I worked in college were making $300 a night for a 5 or 6 hour shift. I think that's a little high.

I try to think in terms of work (trips) more than the bill itself. It doesn't always correlate. I remember times where the bill was big and I only saw the waiter once for 30 seconds and a busboy brought the food out. Other times I got a lot of attention and refills.

I think of a sliding scale where a lower check gets a higher percentage. Compare a $10 check at Denny's to a $100.00 check at La Chez Whiz, $2.00 and $20.00 respectively. Why does the Denny's waitress get only $2.00 and the other one $20.00? I'd be inclined to give the Denny's waitress $3.00 or $5.00 and the other one $10.00 or $15.00.

I remember getting some snooty waiters in Chicago, and I always tipped normally and then never went back. Only once did I stiff someone and that was a legendary bad experience involving hours of waiting (in an empty restaurant).

[6pt-sika]

When I go to the Philippines I tip 20% same as here . However my family over there says thats to much ! When the bill for 6 people at a nice resteraunt is only $50 a 20% tip on top seems like nothing compared to what you pay for just the meal here in the USA .
My GF's godsister married an american from Texas and that guy wouldn't leave a tip for anything definite CHEAP CHARLIE !

[Tycer]

These days I rarely eat in a restaurant that costs enough to warrant percentages, but when we do it starts at 20% and goes down. Generally we add two bucks a head at lunch and four at dinner. Servers generally tip out busboys, hostesses, dishwashers and cooks such that that equals a buck a head at lunch and 2.75 at dinner take home pay. Figure a section per server that holds 15-20 people and on a good day in a busy restaurant they might get two turns of each seat so that's $35 at lunch and $100 at dinner in gratuities to take home on a good day, $0 on a day where they go in an hour or two early, set up and stand there for another hour waiting for business that never shows and get sent home, which happens more and more these days. In my mind, it's not much for setting up, handling your needs and dirty dishes, remembering 900 different things a minute thrown at them in a short period of time, cleaning up, restocking, setting for the next shift and putting up with bosses that have little or no training in personnel management.

In most states, taxes eat 100% of all paychecks so gratuity is the only take home pay. It adds up to a range of $5-$15 bucks an hour in most restaurants.

So remember that only one of those two dimes you left for that server to put up with your sassy mug goes home to pay for baby's new shoes.

[Cliff]

Some good comments. I tip high. Where I live we have a big influx of out of staters and Canadians in the winter months. I am amazed when a a table of 4 to 6 people get up to leave and lay down a couple of quarters apiece. I have found many of the resturants also expect the wait staff to split their tips with the kitchen people. I like to use the dollar coins colored gold, when I can get them. They do draw attention of staff and if it is a place I like to eat, it sure picks up the service for me. I will normally tip a minimum of 5 dollars regardless of meal cost which is usually ten to 12 dollars. I always get good service. If the service is bad and you want to really let them know how displeased, leave a penny. I only eat out about three times a week but I am picky of where I eat. Having worked in the prison system for over 20 years I found a lot of the back room workers can consist of former inmates who might know me, I try to avoid these places. Most work release programs always have a demand for inmates working on work release here in Florida. They have pretty much closed the work release programs down now. If you appreciate the service and like the food let the boss know and tip well. Just my take on it. ATB

[Chas.]

I tip commensurate with service, but philosophically, I'm against tipping at all. I resent the restaurant management expecting me to pay his/her employees.

[stretch]

I usually tip around 20% nowadays, and err on the generous side. I am
a bit shocked by Mr. Cosby and Ms. Ray. One promoting good food who
doesn't know how to tip, and one who should know better. That said, "Cos"
hasn't lost a step - I saw him a month or two ago, and he's still as funny as ever.

I worked as a busboy/waiter/bartender in both high school and college.
Along with the draft, I think every American ought to work in food service
for at least a year! (I'm only half-joking about the food service thing.... )
At least where I was employed, one worked one's backside off. No bennies,
$2 hr. wage, the rest was tips. If ya worked harder, smarter, and faster, ya
made more. I had some memorable tips. As a busboy in the 70s, I made
over $100 one night. That was BIG money for a 17-year-old kid back then.
The bar never wanted for ice or glasses, and my waiters never had to ask
me to do things - they just got done.

One time I waited on a table of 25 or so. The bill was hundreds of bucks, and it
was the only table I had that night. $10 for 4 hours of really good work. No mistakes,
no spils, evertything on time, correct and hot. I was NOT a happy camper!
After that, I got permission from the management of the place
to include an 18% gratuity on large parties. The next large party I had, I did just that.
They also had a HUGE bill, which they paid without batting an eyelash, tip included.
THEN they left me a quite decent tip. I felt a little bit guilty, so I discretely pointed
out to the gentleman who paid the check that the gratuity was already included. He
hadn't realized that after a number of drinks.
"Keep it!", was his cheerful reply!!

-Stretch

[Pete44ru]

Since all my kids worked restaurants at one time or another, I too know how much the waitstaff depends upon tips for their subsistance.

While I never tip @ a fast-food chain, at a sit-down restaurant w/waitstaff, I tip either 20% for good service, 25% for outstanding service, or a single penny to let some idiot know I didn't stiff them.

.

[bdhold]

Bill Cosby surprises me. I expected better from him.

yep

When it comes down to it, the extra buck means a lot more to them than it does to you.
I always think of it as me renting their real estate.

[adirondakjack]

I don't eat out a lot, but when I do, it's either on the rare occassion the wife and I go out, or when I'm travelling, which means I am generally bone tired, not in a good mood, etc.

I try VERY hard not to let my mood influence the tip. If a good job is done, it is rewarded. If the service is excellent, even in a dive, the tip will be well in excess of the expected percentages.

Here's a little related factoid. One of the most telling aspects of a person's charcter is how they treat people who they think are beneath them or at the very least cannot hurt them. If your date is a slave driver or otherwise mean to a waiter/waitress it ought to be a huge red flag, even if there was some error or ommission by the waiter that seems to justify a complaint, HOW that is handled speaks volumes.

Bill Cosby being cheap or even mean, yeah, I can see that.

[stretch]

If your date is a slave driver or otherwise mean to a waiter/waitress it ought to be a huge red flag, even if there was some error or ommission by the waiter that seems to justify a complaint, HOW that is handled speaks volumes.

Right you are! One's character always shows through in the end.

-Stretch

[mikld]

I worked for several years as a bartender/bar manager/restraunt mgr. in and around Los Angeles. Some of that time was in large restaurants and hotels. Sadly to say, with nearly 12 years experience, the breakdown of tipping, in this area, can be easily done by race. Forgive me for being racist, but one race is notoriously bad/low tippers. Not only my opinion, and several co-workers during this time (even those of the same race), my wife waited tables and came to the same conclusion...

[Hobie]

Yep, how you treat those who can do nothing for you is a measure of who you are. I firmly believe that and have taken the sign as noted above to stop dating a couple of women.

I generally start at 20% (used to be 15% years ago) and work from there based on service AND attitude (theirs AND mine). Sometimes I'm tired and grumpy and I leave extra if they've dealt well with me. My view is that the server is my personal rep with the kitchen staff. If they hustle, I'm happy, if they don't, I'm not happy. I guess Lynn is the only one here to have seen me tip as Griff picked up the tab for our lunch (and, yes, I owe you one Griff!). BTW, Griff is a good tipper, too.

[Ben_Rumson]

20% here mostly, but I once left a gratuity for just being seated where I could be alone.... I was minutes away from having just put my mother in a rest home and was feeling pretty mixed up...In sort of a daze I wound up in a steak house... I told the waitress I wanted to be seated away from the crowd... I guess she could see I was pretty bummed... she got me seated and took off to get the menu... about thirty seconds after she left I knew I wouldn’t be able to hang in there... Left a five spot under the A-1 sauce and left...

[GonnePhishin]

Who the heck is Jeremy Piven???????

[Ysabel Kid]

Eating out is a treat for the family. We probably average once every two weeks. The kids really appreciate it, as does the wife. I eat out far too often, but it is because I spend so much time on the road for my job. When I get home from a business trip the last thing I want to do is go out to eat. Fortunately my wife is a great cook, and we eat better than we d at most restaurants for 1/4 or less the cost.

When I tip I do so the same way whether it is on my dime or the company's. I figure you only live once, so tip generously if it has been earned. As noted, it often means more to the server than it does to you. For outstanding service, I've not only tipped well, but also asked for the manager, and then told them how nice of an experience their employee made for me. This can have a huge impact on them.

[gundownunder]

I'm with Chas on this one, I would resent the restaurateur expecting me to pay his staff, especially if I was paying top dollar for the meal.

That said, I don't really have a problem in that regard anyway, as here in Oz tipping is not a part of our culture.

When I go to Indonesia I tip in relation to the service received. It costs very little in our money to leave a generous tip in their money
I do not tip in restaurants which clearly state on the bill that tips are included in the bill (some do this to ensure that all staff including the people in the kitchen get their share). The exception being, if I have my grandson with me and one of the waitstaff makes an extra effort to keep him entertained while we eat. We have found that as a general rule one or more of them will always pounce on him and take him away, it always amazes me the love they have for children, and especially babies. In that case I will slip that person an extra tip that the house doesn't see.

[adirondakjack]

Eating out is a treat for the family. We probably average once every two weeks. The kids really appreciate it, as does the wife. I eat out far too often, but it is because I spend so much time on the road for my job. When I get home from a business trip the last thing I want to do is go out to eat. Fortunately my wife is a great cook, and we eat better than we d at most restaurants for 1/4 or less the cost.

When I tip I do so the same way whether it is on my dime or the company's. I figure you only live once, so tip generously if it has been earned. As noted, it often means more to the server than it does to you. For outstanding service, I've not only tipped well, but also asked for the manager, and then told them how nice of an experience their employee made for me. This can have a huge impact on them.

THIS!

Not long after we married, the wife and I took our first trip to DC. We'd not been able to sleep the night before, so had left home at midnight, driven all night, and toured the city all day. By dinner time we were beat, but since we were splurging, staying in a 5 star hotel, we HAD TO go down to have dinner. The service was very slow and the waiter (a Morrocan native who barely spoke English, but it was a Morrocan restaurant) messed up my wife's order. We decided to retire to the bar while they tried again, and eventually we got our dinner. Then they took a dessert order and forgot us...... BUT, when I got up and went to speak to the Maitre D', a cool-headed DC native black lady about 35, she got em on the hustle, and took the dessert and 1/3 the price of the meal off the bill. As far as I am concerned, the waiter earned exactly what he got, a $2 tip on a $90 tab.


Now we're not exactly ORDINARY five star customers, (I think we were both in jeans and sneakers, but I at least had a nice shirt on), but I was impressed that among the folks wearing $500 SHOES (I didn't know it until I met him a few days later as we were checking out, but the PM of Nigeria and his entourage was at the next table), she did her thing as if we were VIPs.
The next evening when we went into the restaurant, she was talking to the hotel manager, and I corraled them both and told him I was very impressed with how she dealt with us when we were over-tired, and not at all happy campers. "A real pro".....

[RIHMFIRE]

in florida I have always heard the snowbirds and african americans dont tip well, if at all...

[Old Savage]

On the other side, I have a patient who is a waiter at a high-end Italian restaurant in the LA area. Jennifer Anniston asked them to stay open for her and a date. Dinner there can cost a couple hundred - she tipped $600.

[Meeteetse]

I tip commensurate with service, but philosophically, I'm against tipping at all. I resent the restaurant management expecting me to pay his/her employees.

+1. . . .never understood where the idea of tipping came from anyway. When I was plowing snow (my job for a while) for some idiot who got buried in a drift I didn't expect to get a gratuity for doing my job. When I moved up and became an administrator providing information for people I didn't expect a tip. When I was working for the Sheriff's office and helped someone, should I have expected a tip? I doubt it. . . .I realize that working tables is not high paying job, but most understand that when they take it. Several members of my family, brothers and sisters worked tables. Were they happy if tipped, of course they were, but they didn't sit around and calculate the percentage. I tip, usually very well based on service, but I think the idea is bogus. If the waitstaff needs higher wages, give it to them. I would rather pay higher base prices for the meal and know the "tip" was built in. It doesn't leave you a chance to show your displeasure by not tipping, but at least you don't have to prove what a great guy you are every time you pick up the tab at a restaurant or club you frequent regularly, and if you don't like the higher prices, don't go. . . . . . . . .a little more than 2 cents worth, but as I've gotten older I've gotten cranky. . . . . . .

[adirondakjack]

I tip commensurate with service, but philosophically, I'm against tipping at all. I resent the restaurant management expecting me to pay his/her employees.

+1. . . .never understood where the idea of tipping came from anyway. When I was plowing snow (my job for a while) for some idiot who got buried in a drift I didn't expect to get a gratuity for doing my job. When I moved up and became an administrator providing information for people I didn't expect a tip. When I was working for the Sheriff's office and helped someone, should I have expected a tip? I doubt it. . . .I realize that working tables is not high paying job, but most understand that when they take it. Several members of my family, brothers and sisters worked tables. Were they happy if tipped, of course they were, but they didn't sit around and calculate the percentage. I tip, usually very well based on service, but I think the idea is bogus. If the waitstaff needs higher wages, give it to them. I would rather pay higher base prices for the meal and know the "tip" was built in. It doesn't leave you a chance to show your displeasure by not tipping, but at least you don't have to prove what a great guy you are every time you pick up the tab at a restaurant or club you frequent regularly, and if you don't like the higher prices, don't go. . . . . . . . .a little more than 2 cents worth, but as I've gotten older I've gotten cranky. . . . . . .

"Would you like fries with that Big Mac?" No tipping required, nearly universal lousy service.

[Old Savage]

Let me say that my wife and I are always good tippers but just why did the tip percentage wind its way from 10% to 15% to 20% to now 25% - that seems ridiculous to me. There are some tip heroes and I have certainly been one at times but it should depend on the service you got not some expectation of if you are a good person.

[madman4570]

Probably shouldn't matter but it depends first on what/where I'm eating.
Example,go in the dinner for breakfast while wife is gone somewhere.
2 eggs/toast/coffee=$2.95 (I usually leave $2 tip) so that is about 66%
Wife and myself out for a greek tenderloin dinner with a nice bottle of red wine=$100 (usually tip 22%)if they don't throw the food at me.
But if they really screw up or act very unprofessional (I might starting yelling)

Example: Few weeks back wife and I went to a Ruby Tuesdays.
While having a drink and waiting for our lunch,the staff in the kitchen was loudly laughing as a group and several times I heard someone say (dude,don't)and they laughed.
In my mind I am thinking (someone is SEASONING our food) ya know,spitting in it/dropping it on the floor etc.)
I called the waitress over and asked to speak to the Manager, in about 5 mins this young punk came out and I explained the deal.
I said,on those circumstances we are finishing our drinks(which I already paid for) at the bar)and leaving (forget the food)
As I was starting to leave that punk brought out the food in containers to go,and said here its on the house.
I looked at him and said Thanks,grabbing the brown bag I walked over the the trash can and dropped it in.

[Griff]

As a kid we rarely ate out... so I didn't have a clue as to what constutited an acceptablr tip (venacular). 40 years ago, 10% was ok, 15% large. My wife broke me of the habit of not tipping when she explained the food industy's norms for pay.

I never leave without tipping. If service is poor, w/o apparent cause, i.e. over-booked, under-staffed, etc., I'll leave $.02, (my two cents worth for truly horrendous service)! Seldom is this lost on any but the most dense wait-staff. And I rarely leave less than $2, as my typical truck stop meal is about $10 or less after that dandy "senior citizen" discount. If it's more than just me, I always try to be the last one to leave so I can check the tip left. Even if I pick up the tab and ask someone else to lesve the tip, I try to check. If someone elsr picks up the tab, I'll ask the payeer the amount of it to calculate the tip. If just me & one other, I stick with about 20%, then add 5% for every 2 additional folks up to 6.

Lastly, I always tip w/cash, unless I just don't have any... what they claim is their business.

[Meeteetse]

I tip commensurate with service, but philosophically, I'm against tipping at all. I resent the restaurant management expecting me to pay his/her employees.

+1. . . .never understood where the idea of tipping came from anyway. When I was plowing snow (my job for a while) for some idiot who got buried in a drift I didn't expect to get a gratuity for doing my job. When I moved up and became an administrator providing information for people I didn't expect a tip. When I was working for the Sheriff's office and helped someone, should I have expected a tip? I doubt it. . . .I realize that working tables is not high paying job, but most understand that when they take it. Several members of my family, brothers and sisters worked tables. Were they happy if tipped, of course they were, but they didn't sit around and calculate the percentage. I tip, usually very well based on service, but I think the idea is bogus. If the waitstaff needs higher wages, give it to them. I would rather pay higher base prices for the meal and know the "tip" was built in. It doesn't leave you a chance to show your displeasure by not tipping, but at least you don't have to prove what a great guy you are every time you pick up the tab at a restaurant or club you frequent regularly, and if you don't like the higher prices, don't go. . . . . . . . .a little more than 2 cents worth, but as I've gotten older I've gotten cranky. . . . . . .

"Would you like fries with that Big Mac?" No tipping required, nearly universal lousy service.

No different than many high end places these days and they get tipped accordingly. I get my order served correctly more often at Mickey D's than several high dollar places I've been to lately between where I am and the west coast. Maybe things are different east of here.

[Sixgun]

The BEST tippers are blue collar white guys who have had a bit too much to drink and the waitress is a "looker". (my wife was a waitress at her uncle's truck stop and she told me so ) (always wondered why she came home late )

If the bill is $10-20 dollars, I'll leave them $10. I don't eat out at places where the bill comes to much more than $25 or so. I wear blue jeans and a t-shirt---usually with a gun of some sort on it

The cheapest bums are the liberals who drive foreign luxury cars and the next in line for #1 cheapskate are the parasites that the liberal guys in luxury foreign cars support politically-----I just tell it like it is -------------------------Sixgun

[adirondakjack]

As a kid we rarely ate out... so I didn't have a clue as to what constutited an acceptablr tip (venacular). 40 years ago, 10% was ok, 15% large. My wife broke me of the habit of not tipping when she explained the food industy's norms for pay.

I never leave without tipping. If service is poor, w/o apparent cause, i.e. over-booked, under-staffed, etc., I'll leave $.02, (my two cents worth for truly horrendous service)! Seldom is this lost on any but the most dense wait-staff. And I rarely leave less than $2, as my typical truck stop meal is about $10 or less after that dandy "senior citizen" discount. If it's more than just me, I always try to be the last one to leave so I can check the tip left. Even if I pick up the tab and ask someone else to lesve the tip, I try to check. If someone elsr picks up the tab, I'll ask the payeer the amount of it to calculate the tip. If just me & one other, I stick with about 20%, then add 5% for every 2 additional folks up to 6.

Lastly, I always tip w/cash, unless I just don't have any... what they claim is their business.

I'm with ya, Griff. I know a flat-footed waitress in a Waffle House or Truckstop works just as hard as a "Looker" grad student in a fancy steak house. A $5.00 sandwich for $10 doesn't hurt me any worse than a $20 plate in another place for $25. Percentages be darned. If it's three or four CAS shooters travelling together, and we're all in a Denny's late at night, if my portion of the bill is $14, I toss a twenty in the pot and urge the rest to do the same, usually with a comment like "these gals bust their butt in here" to give em perspective.....

[RIHMFIRE]

Sterlin Marlin won the Daytona 500 quite a few years ago
and had his celebration at the restaurant my wife is a manager....
the tip was $4000

[BAGTIC]

In many countries tipping is illegal. It would be a good idea here. If the employers weren't so darned cheap the help wouldn't need to depend on handouts and they wouldn't have to put up with **** in order to get it.

"A worker deserves his pay." 1 Timothy 5:18

[Charles]

Every winter, we are mobed by thousands of "Winter Texans"/Snow Diggers trying to get away from the call. They come from all the northern states and Candada.

February, I was on South Padre Island having a great blackend shrimp salad at Dirty Al's which was filled with said Snow Diggers. I am 69 years old, and was dressed in shorts and sandles like all of those folks.

I pulled the waiter aside and spoke to him in Spanish to assure him I was local and not one of those "Pinche Winter Texans". To be confused with those folks is a faith worse than death for a 6th generation Texan.

The waiter asked me is I knew the difference between a canoe and a Candadian? I said no and he said.."A canoe will tip."