Tipping in NYC

NiftyDigits

Coraline wrote: »

Lovelyjoolz is right and summed it up eloquently.

The bottom line is you're going to travel somewhere, do as the locals do. There's usually a good reason they're doing it.

This has nothing to do with comparisons to what you think about one country vs. another's about their wealth. It has to with custom and what's expected, and in the States this is the way it is.

If you don't like the unwritten rules, don't go there. It's kind of the similar argument you hear in most countries "If you don't like it here then go home."

It goes both ways.

(And pay the bloody tip!)

I'm not going to speak with a nasal twang whilst I'm in the US. I tip at my discretion, as is my custom. As it happens, I tip generously anyway. But I certainly won't be told what to tip.

Nick_C

I think the tipping system works very well in the States, and generally produces excellent service. I'm a firm believer in a very low tip if service is poor. The server needs to understand you are not happy, and not just mean. In NY the other week, we went to John's Pizza in the Village. I had never been there before, and will never go again. It was cheap, but the pizza wasn't good and the service was almost non existent. The bill came to $38 (two pizzas and two soft drinks). My American friend that I was with insisted I leave no more than $40 - a $2 tip which I though was insulting. In hindsight he was was right. Although it was a cheap restaurant and the food was mediocre, we'd have left $45 if the service had been up to the standards you expect in the States. The waiter was a lazy sod, and needs to learn a lesson.

Doshwaster

Nick_C wrote: »

I think the tipping system works very well in the States, and generally produces excellent service.... The waiter was a lazy sod, and needs to learn a lesson.

I agree. I spend a lot of time in the US with work and the service in bars and restaurants almost always excellent - much better than you get in the UK. It is remarkable when you do get bad service because of how rare it is.

Good waiters and bartenders in the US, especially in upmarket places, can earn a lot of money and there is a lot of competition for the jobs. One waiter in a NYC steakhouse told us he "declared" $100,000 a year. If you are making a $10-20 tip per customer then that money soon adds up.

andygb

Nick_C wrote: »

I think the tipping system works very well in the States, and generally produces excellent service. I'm a firm believer in a very low tip if service is poor. The server needs to understand you are not happy, and not just mean. In NY the other week, we went to John's Pizza in the Village. I had never been there before, and will never go again. It was cheap, but the pizza wasn't good and the service was almost non existent. The bill came to $38 (two pizzas and two soft drinks). My American friend that I was with insisted I leave no more than $40 - a $2 tip which I though was insulting. In hindsight he was was right. Although it was a cheap restaurant and the food was mediocre, we'd have left $45 if the service had been up to the standards you expect in the States. The waiter was a lazy sod, and needs to learn a lesson.

If the food was bad and the waiter was lazy, then why did you leave any tip?

Mr_Wang

andygb wrote: »

If the food was bad and the waiter was lazy, then why did you leave any tip?

Absolutely, a tip is supposedly a thanks in payment, yet people speak about it like it is obligatory.

Like has already been pointed out, if you tip $1 per beer, that waiter is going to be creaming around $50 an hour for serving drinks, I mean come on!
Unskilled work in the UK nets what, £7 an hour? Yet in the US some Brits believe it it worthy of $1 per drink, some think $2!
Id be paying someone's mortgage every time I went out!

The fact is like I said in my first post, go to Dennys and order a breakfast, watch what the locals leave and you'll see no more than a couple of dollars scrunched up on the table.
Go to a bar and youll see a tip left as the drinker leaves the bar, usually no more than a dollar or two.

Im sorry to say it, but some people are seriously getting fleeced in the States by thinking they are fitting into a tipping culture when they aren't, they are simply shelling out cash for no reason.

Look at it this way, next time you want to give some bloke $10 for popping the top of ten bottles of Bud give him $2, then donate the other $8 to charity.

CCFC_80

Been to US twice just to see the sites. Will never go back again as I hate the in your face tipping system. Realise it's part of their so called culture but not for me. I couldn't name another country that is even similar to their style of tipping system.

NiftyDigits

CCFC_80 wrote: »

Been to US twice just to see the sites. Will never go back again as I hate the in your face [STRIKE]tipping[/STRIKE] begging system. Realise it's part of their so called culture but not for me. I couldn't name another country that is even similar to their style of tipping system.

Took the liberty of editing your post.

zagfles

Mr_Wang wrote: »

Absolutely, a tip is supposedly a thanks in payment, yet people speak about it like it is obligatory.

Like has already been pointed out, if you tip $1 per beer, that waiter is going to be creaming around $50 an hour for serving drinks, I mean come on!
Unskilled work in the UK nets what, £7 an hour? Yet in the US some Brits believe it it worthy of $1 per drink, some think $2!
Id be paying someone's mortgage every time I went out!

The fact is like I said in my first post, go to Dennys and order a breakfast, watch what the locals leave and you'll see no more than a couple of dollars scrunched up on the table.
Go to a bar and youll see a tip left as the drinker leaves the bar, usually no more than a dollar or two.

Im sorry to say it, but some people are seriously getting fleeced in the States by thinking they are fitting into a tipping culture when they aren't, they are simply shelling out cash for no reason.

Look at it this way, next time you want to give some bloke $10 for popping the top of ten bottles of Bud give him $2, then donate the other $8 to charity.

Yes, reminds me of this thread where people were talking about tipping toilet attendants in nightclubs £1 for 10 seconds work!!

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3671353

NiftyDigits

zagfles wrote: »

Yes, reminds me of this thread where people were talking about tipping toilet attendants in nightclubs £1 for 10 seconds work!!

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3671353

I roundly ignore those people.

It's nice to have someone to maintain the bathroom in that environment and I'm happy to place a small tip to not have to use a disgusting toilet.
But I'm certainly not interested in some idiot trying to touch or massage my shoulders or to stand over me to hand me a towel once I;ve washed my hands.
That is simply idiotic and I treat it with the contempt that it deserve.
Though I should add, I don't take it out on the workers. I just smile and do my own thing.

Delree

NiftyDigits wrote: »

Who cares what you think? It is our money and we decide. Perhaps you should drink less.

Yes it is your money and you make whatever decision you want. Do try to find time to enjoy New York inbetween moaning moaning about beggars (wait staff in his parlance) and the prices in general.

To be honest if you can't afford to leave a reasonable tip you probably can't afford to go to this city. If you can cancel and get your money back I think that would be the best thing for you. Try Spain, don't worry there will be plenty for you to moan about there I promise.