Tipping Are you generous or is your wallet welded shut ??
Posted by: mista h on 21 July 2012
Last night i decided to give SWMBO a once in a lifetime treat and go out for an Italian.
Have been to this restaurant several times with no problems and my normal tip is always 10%. Last night however our waiter came with BUILT IN ATTITUDE, so when it came to paying the bill the guy got zilch as a tip. Other half says to me i should leave a little something,but no way was i leaving this toe rag a penny.
Any of you lot out their had problems eating out,and what do you leave tip wise ??
Mista h
I travel a lot & find the whole tipping thing very annoying in that customs & expectations are so different fro country to country.
In UK I tip at a restaurant if the service deserves it.
How much, well that depends. The first thing that gets me mad & in a non-tipping mood is the "hint" that service charge is not included, or 10% will be automatically added to bills of more than X covers.
If the restaurant paid its staff so they did not need tips to make up the shortfall & made it clear that a service is included in the bill & tipping is at the discression of the customer, I for one would be much happier.
I normally round up a bill to a whole number thats +/- 10%. Problem is the round up on a CC bill gets affected by VAT so its not so straightforward & who knows how honest the management is & actually gives these CC tips to the staff. If its just a meal for 2 then I normally ignore the machines "invitation" to add a tip & give the person who served me cash.
Some countries in Europe just do not expect a tip, happy if you do, but don't go all sulky if you don't.
In Africa (not RSA) & India most people are paid peanuts & a tip is always gratefully received. The added problem is what we westerners pay for a meal is a kings ransom in some countries & a 10% tip for a meal, especially a large group, can be more than a waiters pay for a week. So I find it hard to judge what is acceptable.
Then the americas, USA I get real mad with, they expect at least 15%, better with 18%, 20% is normal. Even when you get bad service or there is something wrong with the meal, its still expected.Leave 15% & your risk being asked what was wrong with the service
Then try Mexico, yu get your throat cut if you don't tip 20%.
The same US tipping expectations has spread to Caribbean. Not so bad in the hotels, but its amazing what a few bucks for the barman - plus some friendly banter - will do for service.
We normally leave 10%, but the last meal we went out for, at Carluccio's in Chichester was rubbish. The waiters kept asking if the meal was OK; I should have said no, but being British I said, yes it's fine, like an idiot. And when the time came to pay, it took ages to get their attention and I had to go to the till myself. So they got nothing.
We always pay the basic bill by card, and give cash to the waiter.
In Africa (not RSA) & India most people are paid peanuts & a tip is always gratefully received. The added problem is what we westerners pay for a meal is a kings ransom in some countries & a 10% tip for a meal, especially a large group, can be more than a waiters pay for a week. So I find it hard to judge what is acceptable.
I lived in South Africa for almost thirty years and worked in a few restaurants when I was at university. Trust me - waiting staff there get paid very little and rely on tips to survive. I tipped 99.9% of the time, only not tipping when service was atrocious.
My partner recently returned from a six week stay there and I was completely bemused by her credit card statement. It is still so cheap to eat out there that her brother, who still lives there, tips well over 50% as standard.
Here in New Zealand tipping is the exception rather than the rule - unless you are eating in one of the better restaurants (or one of the tourist areas). I still remember the overwhelming response when leaving a 15% tip at a pub when we first moved here. I didn't quite get it until it was explained to me that tipping was the exception to the rule. On Friday I had a business lunch in an upmarket pub and tried to leave a tip while paying by credit card. The waitress wasn't quite sure how to process it. In retrospect I probably shouldn't have bothered with the tip anyway, as the service wasn't that good.
It's rarely as straight forward as it seems.
Mike
Then the americas, USA I get real mad with, they expect at least 15%, better with 18%, 20% is normal. Even when you get bad service or there is something wrong with the meal, its still expected.Leave 15% & your risk being asked what was wrong with the service
In the US waiting staff get next to nothing as a basic wage and they live on their tips. IMO and experience, US service is streets ahead of the UK (with exceptions obviously) and I have no problem leaving someone a decent tip when they are clearly trying hard to provide good service.
That said I did outrage one waitress in a Washington restaurant by only leaving her 10% (on the food and not the alcohol) after a team dinner to celebrate a large contract win....the tip was still over $100 though...the manager was not happy with me it is fair to say.
Personally I would be much happier if the UK had the same approach instead of the often lethargic and downright disinterested approach that permeates restaurants/cafes and bars here.
Cheers
Jim
I tip my barber! Never otherwise. If a tip might be needed, then I avoid it.
My barber is a genius!
ATB from George
I spend a lot of time in RSA with business interests, and yes I agree, typical restaurant wages are peanuts.
My point for saying "not RSA" is that compared to other areas around Africa they do get a wage that is regulated under employment law these days.
And yes I do tip well if the service deserves it - but not 50%
I tip my barber! Never otherwise. If a tip might be needed, then I avoid it.
My barber is a genius!
ATB from George
My barber is my wife. She's a genius, too.
We normally leave 10%, but the last meal we went out for, at Carluccio's in Chichester was rubbish. The waiters kept asking if the meal was OK; I should have said no, but being British I said, yes it's fine, like an idiot. And when the time came to pay, it took ages to get their attention and I had to go to the till myself. So they got nothing.
We always pay the basic bill by card, and give cash to the waiter.
Was only joking your Lordship. She gets taken out twice a week and if i had my way it would be to Weatherspoons on both nites. Tuesdays they do steak & chips + a pint for £9.00 and Thursdays Curry & a pint £6.25,both blinding deals. However madam wont touch a spoons.
I have 2 females in the house,the other half and Moggs our cat and both are bloody fussy eaters.
Mista H
Generally a 10% tip only if service is good , never on top of the built in service charge. We usually ask how the tips are distributed , and then opt out of the discretionary tip and leave to the server.
We are now getting more and likely to complain, and will answer the "everything OK?" with a no.
We have a free meal for 6 (main courses) at a local Chef and Brewer to take after a recent not so good family meal.
Not sure about the rest of Australia, but here in Perth the reasturant & cafe staff are paid an award wage (which is quite OK to live on ) it is illigal to underpay staff the minimum set award wage.
They then get overtime & weekend penatly rates above that & most cafes pass this onto customers - for example all public holidays attract a 10% fee on top of all meals & drinks prices etc. on these days to cover the owner paying extra wages.
Therefore, no way in hell will I tip already expensive meal prices regardles of service.
The prices in Perth are bloody crazy !