tips in restaurants - moral question

Money-Saving-King

PLog86 wrote: »

God, you do see some piffle talked on this site.

e.g.



Rubbish!

Tipping works in EXACTLY the same way in the states as it does here.

You've never been there have you.

PLog86 wrote: »

I find the whole idea of the "expected" percentage tip extremely offensive (as do many Americans of my acquaintance)

Yeah, you really have never been there!

lucy03

PLog86 wrote: »

God, you do see some piffle talked on this site.

e.g.



Rubbish!

Tipping works in EXACTLY the same way in the states as it does here. Whether or not you tip is up to you and the amount you tip is up to you.

I find the whole idea of the "expected" percentage tip extremely offensive (as do many Americans of my acquaintance). You should also be aware that the "expected" tip percentage varies from place to place, even within the same town.

I've worked for a restaurant company in both the UK and the US and the tipping styles are IMO not "exactly the same". Technically whether you tip or not is up to you, but it would be highly unusual not to tip in the US unless the service was poor.

In the UK it is quite usual for customers not to leave a tip even though the majority probably will. In the US it is highly likely that the main server or manager would query a lack of tip, usually asking if something was wrong.

I haven't personally encountered many Americans that hate the system. I prefer it, it is one of the many reasons why American customer service is much better, and it rewards engaging and friendly staff. I tend to tip around 10% in the UK, but frequently less if the service wasn't good, and around 20% in the US.

Incidentally I once asked in a McDonald's in Arizona how much they get in tips. It was over $1,000 a day for just a fast food place, and although I don't know if that's typical, it shows how much people tip even in locations where they're not typically expected to.

Money-Saving-King

Sheldon_Cooper wrote: »

This makes no sense. Polar opposite of his experience?

So you found that tipping was mandatory, the expected amount was mandatory and the same everywhere, and that all Americans were happy with the situation.

Not to put too fine a point on it, it seems to me that you are full of it!

Funny Duchy wrote this.

duchy wrote: »

I travel to the US on a very regular basis and have done so for years and consequently have many friends and acquaintances there. My experience is the polar opposite of yours so in my opinion and speaking from personal experience you are the one mistaken .......or as you so charmingly put it...... Talking Rubbish !

And Lucy03 wrote this:

lucy03 wrote: »

I've worked for a restaurant company in both the UK and the US and the tipping styles are IMO not "exactly the same". Technically whether you tip or not is up to you, but it would be highly unusual not to tip in the US unless the service was poor.

In the UK it is quite usual for customers not to leave a tip even though the majority probably will. In the US it is highly likely that the main server or manager would query a lack of tip, usually asking if something was wrong.

I haven't personally encountered many Americans that hate the system. I prefer it, it is one of the many reasons why American customer service is much better, and it rewards engaging and friendly staff. I tend to tip around 10% in the UK, but frequently less if the service wasn't good, and around 20% in the US.

Incidentally I once asked in a McDonald's in Arizona how much they get in tips. It was over $1,000 a day for just a fast food place, and although I don't know if that's typical, it shows how much people tip even in locations where they're not typically expected to.

It seems Sheldon Cooper your theory is falling apart at the seams, no tip for you then.

19lottie82

JReacher1 wrote: »

They get a decent wage and that should be enough!

You consider minimum wage, "decent"?

I usually leave a tip of around 10% unless the service is below par.

Saying that, on the flip side of the coin, I refuse to pay "optional" service charges. I simply score these off and amend the bill accordingly. I will then tip the staff with cash, as I see fit.

picklekin

My OH and I disagree on this too.. I like to tip, and tip well, when service has been good but feel annoyed at the expectation that we should tip when service has been slow/poor. I'd rather save my hard earned money and buy a big issue on the way home or something. I've worked in lots of crappy low paid jobs (retail, call centre etc) and no one ever tipped me (OK, I did once get sent a box of chocolates but that was ONCE!).. All sort of people on low wages don't get tipped, where did the expectation come from that we'd tip only in restaurants, if its just the fear of people spitting on your food then that's very very sad.

anotheruser

I don't tip.

I don't get tipped in my job; I don't see people tipping the bin men; nor do I see people tipping doctors or nurses.

Tipping is an American culture. I pay (an inflated price) for my food, the restaurant pays (a fair wage) for the servers so why should I pay more?

Why it is worked out by a proportion of the cost of the meal I don't know. Surely it should be worked out on number of dishes or how complicated they are not cost?

Why not tip the chef? They COOKED your food after all.

PenguinJim

It does seem like an insult. "You are so stupid that I did not expect you to manage to carry the correct plate from over there to over here successfully. I am so surprised that you accomplished this that I will give you some money based on the price of whatever happened to be on the plate."

JReacher1

PenguinJim wrote: »

It does seem like an insult. "You are so stupid that I did not expect you to manage to carry the correct plate from over there to over here successfully. I am so surprised that you accomplished this that I will give you some money based on the price of whatever happened to be on the plate."

I like this. I'm going to start using this excuse myself. Its good because it lets me be really mean but gives me the morale high ground of saying I am not being tight, I just don't want to insult you with money.

Its basically a win win

dodger1

anotheruser wrote: »

I don't tip.

I don't get tipped in my job; I don't see people tipping the bin men; nor do I see people tipping doctors or nurses.

Tipping is an American culture. I pay (an inflated price) for my food, the restaurant pays (a fair wage) for the servers so why should I pay more?

Why it is worked out by a proportion of the cost of the meal I don't know. Surely it should be worked out on number of dishes or how complicated they are not cost?

Why not tip the chef? They COOKED your food after all.

It may be an American culture but it started in the UK long before.

The practice of tipping began in Tudor England.[6] "By the 17th century, it was expected that overnight guests to private homes would provide sums of money, known as vails, to the host’s servants. Soon afterwards, customers began tipping in London coffeehouses and other commercial establishments."[6]

As for tipping bin men, that was standard practice 50 years ago, for some reason it gradually died out and I've certainly tipped nurses by means of a gift although not money.

Nick_C

Its been British Culture all my life. My mother used to tip waitresses, taxi drivers, railway porters, and her hairdresser. When I was sent to the barber as a child, I was given money for the haircut and money for the tip. At Xmas, we would tip the paper boy, postman, milkman, and dustmen.

Waiting staff get low wages because they expect to get tips on top of that.

The doormen at top London hotels used to work for nothing, because the tips were fantastic.

Tipping is probably less common than it used to be, but its still very much expected in restaurants. If we had a non tipping culture, prices would go up to compensate, and you would have less control over rewarding good service and penalising poor service.