Tip Generously!
 

Okay, I have to vent for a second...

I HATE, HATE, HATE people who are bad tippers or who are just cheap in general. When I graduated, I thought the days of haggling over the bill were over, as everyone got real jobs and made decent money.

Well, tonight, a group of us go out and get drinks. First of all, this girl that was there starts arguing with the waiter telling him that he overcharged us. He didn't... she was just being dumb. Then, she doesn't even put in enough money to cover her drinks... and gets mad when we say we need more tip. She's like "I already put it in but I guess I'll give three more dollars." Meanwhile, I had tipped $5 on one drink, and someone else had left a $10 tip on her $14 tab... to cover the people who were being cheap!

I just want to tell you all to tip well, please! It really makes your friends mad when you are cheap, and it totally sucks for the servers that work their asses off for almost nothing-hourly wages.

OKay, thanks for listening!

Great message.... some people have no class. Hope your good manners rub off on the freeloaders. Good service deserves a proper gratuity. On the other hand, bad service demands...

Yes, tip well! You never know whose friend your waiter/waitress is. Or when you might be serving them in some capacity. Bad karma bites you in the ass like a rabid dog.

I'd also have to add, stop going out with the freeloaders. You don't need that kind of embarrassment, and it doesn't say much about their character if they are going to haggle over a few dollars.

Having lived in Las Vegas and having a younger brother who works in the gaming industry (he's been in the grind 13 years, started off as a craps dealer and now is a boxman/floorman at a casino off the Strip) I've been used to making sure to tip generously whenever possible. (Dealers call good tippers 'Georges' in their lingo. A 'Big George' tips the 'boys' very well.)

My general rule is start at 20% and then it drops down based on the service. Most times it pretty much stays at 20%, sometimes for very special service I might tip 25%. It's rare for me to go below 15%, and only once have I walked out of a restaurant and did not tip the waiter/waitress.

I also dislike people who tip cheaply... c'mon, it ain't that hard to calculate a tip in your head... just round up the total bill to the nearest dollar, take 10% of that (move the decimal point), and add half of that 10% figure for a 15% tip or double it for a 20% tip. And if the service is outstanding I'll take the tip total and round up to the nearest dollar or two. Pinching off pocket change and leaving it as a tip ain't a very good way to treat the wait staff.

Some good tipping rules of thumb if you're playing in Vegas (or other casinos):

Craps: Place a bet for the dealers behind or to the side of your pass line bet and be sure to let the stickman know you have a bet for the dealers by saying 'Boys play the pass line' (I know there are many craps dealers that are women, but 'boys' has remained in the casino lingo for ages.) Likewise, you can also bet for them on the field (say: 'Boys play the field') or the prop bets (hardways, C and E (any craps, any 11) -- dont waste your money on 'Any Seven' -- say 'Boys play the hard (4, 6, 8, 10)' or 'Boys play the C and E'). If they win the bet, the stickman will tap his stick nearest your spot on the table to thank you for the bet.

21: Next to or in front of your bet, let the dealer know that the bet is for the dealer.

Slots/video poker: If you're lucky to hit a jackpot that requires the change person to hand-pay you the jackpot, it's traditional that you tip generously; $50 if the jackpot is between $500 and $1000, $100 if it's over $1000. This is more of an unwritten tradition in the locals bars.

I think it should be mandatory for everyone to be a server once in their lives...then they might realize the importance of tipping to servers.

I swear, sometimes I don't think people know that servers only get around 2.13 an hour, and that they are counting on tips to make up the rest of the difference to get minimum wage.

The other thing is: if you are getting bad service, tell your server!!! I've had one table tell me that they weren't happy with the service I was giving them (which was the same as I was giving everyone else I though), and the NICELY said that they weren't happy...let me tell you I up my effort on everything for that table and in the end they thanked me and gave me a nice 19% tip. As long as you are nice about it, and aren't making demands that can't be met, I don't know of any server who isnt' going to change what they can to make you happy.

Finally, I can't believe that people haggle over a couple dollars. I have one friend who is like that and I simply won't go any where with him that might require us to split the check b/c of the way he acts. All my other friends...it's such a non issue. We keep general idea of what is what over the course of several months and if one is way ahead than the other guy will buy his dinner and everything will be settled...In the grand scheme of things it just doens't make sense to haggle over a couple bucks unless you simply don't have the money.

I've always tipped well. Had a bunch of friends who've depended on tips, and I can't think of screwing someone over like that.

There are exceptions (if the person is extremely rude, etc.), but most of the time I will tip very well.

It's sad that there are so many people that rely on tips - which are supposed to be a reward for good service - to be able to put food on the table or pay the rent. :(

I generally tip 15%-20% unless the service is really horrible. I also usually add a couple of bucks if I'm picking up a takeout order - which I think is unusual around here, because I always get thanked profusely!

I once dated a guy who refused to tip. We went out to dinner one evening... I didn't see the check, so I don't know if he tipped at the restaurant, but we took taxis, and I know he didn't tip either driver. :mad:

It's sad that a tip is almost required in order to help the server break even. I grew up in a pretty tourist-heavy environment, and I have lots of friends who took jobs waiting tables so I know the kind of work they have to do for such little pay. I like to tip 20% as a basis.

I think most people don't tip because they're stingy bastards. If you can't afford it, don't go out to eat.

Sororitygirl2! Good to see you again:)

I won't go out with those cheap people again or make them get seperate checks.

Last time i went out with a fraternity brother and his sorority girl friend it cost me 30 dollars plus to cover their "oops didn't bring enough money" as well as the fact that they wouldn't have tipped anyway. I know them. Keep in mind they both work.

I tend to overtip. 40-50 percent is not uncommon for me at all. And I despise people that give the appearance of quibbling. You can quibble, but don't let it show lol.

There is one place that I go to regularly where 50% would be the norm but I have gone as high as a 100% before because I will sometimes get generous freebies, like comp drinks and food.

In any restaraunt I go to where I get recognized, I get incredible service.

Hey, James!

Yeah, I agree with you all. My standard on food is usually 25% or so, and more on just drinks. And if the bartender hooks me up... I usually give about 50%. I mean, if a drink costs $5+tip normally, and he gives it to me for $1, I usually tip $3 because that brings the total to $4, still a dollar less than what I should of been paying to begin with. Smart bartenders totally know this trick and screw their bar so they can clean up, but whatever...

I don't know why people don't get it! Anyway, I won't be going out with that girl again... she was just a friend of a friend, and I don't enjoy her company anyway.

I'm glad to hear there are so many classy people here on GC who know etiquette!

That's another part of it, more so at bars for me - if you give a good tip at the beginning of the night, you usually get quicker drink service, better drinks, and sometimes even free drinks.

Not the only reason I tip well, but a nice reward for doing so.

Yeah, and another trick at bars. I try to get the same bartended. tipping is also about establishing a relationship.

So if you tip well and keep hitting the same bartended you get better all around service.

I went to a restaurant to celebrate my sister's birthday. The check came. I added in the tip and divided it by the number of people there. I told them it was $30 each since we were paying for my sister's birthday dinner. Everyone was surprised the bill was so little. A few days later, same restaurant, different people, I get the check, add the tip divide by the number of people. I told them it was $25 each. Everyone looked shocked as if I had said it was $125. The quibbling began. (Thanks for the word, James.) Now for me a $25 or $30 check is not a big deal, but I guess everyone's situation is different. This is a restaurant in Manhattan so I wasn't too surprised. People started with, "I didn't drink alcohol so I am only paying $20." An alcoholic drink is $7 and a soda, Coke, pop whatever you call it is $5. What is the big freaking deal?! It was very tacky!

I waited tables for almost 5 years. I tend to overtip now - I remember how great it felt to get a really good tip!!

Tough stuff here.

My mom waited tables and worked as a carhop for a number of years after she and my dad divorced. She was very attentive and did reasonably well -- so I have always been a pretty good tipper.

However, in the past few years, service has started going down the old crapper. Parts of dinner aren't delivered -- you wait forever for your check -- you have set off fireworks to get drinks refilled -- and, sometimes, wait staff is downright surley.

Here's my present rule, even given the above paragraph. I start out at 15%, and then round up to the next dollar (or $5 if it's a big dinner/check) That way, the tip is never less than 15% and sometimes 20% plus.

We recently moved into a country club community and the tip (18%, I think) is automatically added to each meal at the clubhouse. I generally leave an extra buck or two because I think the service is generally pretty decent.

LOL, dude I think that's pretty much the norm. Unless the people that recognize you dislike you.

And man, tipping 50-100%?! And being able to spend $1000 in a matter of weekends - what do you do for a living? For reals.....

LOL

Man-Whore :p

I realized this last night...
 

I tend to tip better when I'm drunk than when I am sober. Case in point: last night. The cab driver got a $3 tip on a 5 dollar ride, the bartender got $5 for a $6 pitcher (Coors Light). I guess I feel that when the staff is nice to me when I'm drunk, they deserve an extra-special tip. :)

I think the message here is two-fold...

1. Don't be a stingy tipper (unless the service was REALLY that bad)
2. When you go out in large groups, don't be that a$$hole who makes the whole group short on cash. I hate this! DON'T BE THAT GUY (or girl)! PAY UP!

As a server, I just wanted to say....

If your server deserves a good tip, tip them well. Our job is to make your dining experience an enjoyable one, to get what you need, and make sure your needs are taken care of. If they do all these things, then PLEASE tip well.

However, if your server is rude, ignores your table, then I say don't tip well. If they are NOT doing their job like they SHOULD be doing....well tough on them.

Sorry, I am a server and I bust my a$$ to make sure I take care of my customers, I'm polite and nice, I always have a smile on my face, and I get everything they need. I get REALLY mad when other slacker servers make as much or sometimes even more, when they don't give two sh*ts about their customers.

OH FOR THE LOVE OF GOD TIP WELL!

i have always been a good tipper, and i thought karma would come around when i started serving here recently, but of course not. if you haven't read the random thread, i was tipped a CONDOM today...and i gave them hella service. what made it funny, though, was it was a small one.

jerks.......

What about pizza delivery people? I know in my college town they have a lot of deals and pizza's are as cheap as 4.00. I know if it's just me and a friend we don't buy more than one. So I usually tip $1-$2.

Definitely should tip at least $2-3 on the pizza (more if it's snowing or if very prompt)... they came all the way to your house whether they brought one pizza or five.

I really dislike it when the peopel I am with divide up the bill "evenly" and I get sutck paying $8 for a coke when it was a $2 drink. It's nice to acknowledge when someone got a salad instead of prime rib and not expect them to pay as much.

Yeah on the one hand don't be cheap. On the other hand don't be a leech on your friends. Also remember where the other person's money comes from. A lot of my friends have this desire to call people cheap when they still get allowances.

-Rudey

When a group goes out to dinner, I think that it is easier to divide the bill evenly if you have comparable meals. If I a more expensive entree, I will pay more. Most places where I eat, an alcoholic drink and a soft drink are almost the same price. I think that it is better to overpay than underpay anytime you go out. Luckily, when I go out to restaurants, it is usually with my boyfriend who would never consider letting me pay.

Another way to combat this problem is to go to a restaurant with fixed price menu. That way the bill is the same for every person. :)

You got that right, Diva... [Noo Yawk accent on]Geddef*ckouddahere! [/Noo Yawk accent off] now that is the epitome of low class! Too cheap to even leave a tip... jeez!

ONLY when deserved!
 

My family went out for mother's day. There are 6 of us. The restraunt we went to was extreamly packed and when we were finally seated it was in a booth towards the back.
Well they had a door open and that day it wasn't sunny and it was rather windy...thus blowing cold air in. My father joking asked the server if they were taking orders for blankets cuz it was so cold; thinking he'd get the hint. He didn't. So my father asked him if they could shut the door cuz not only our table, but many around us were FREEZING!

They didn't shut the door. So our dinning atmosphere was rather COLD. Then the waiter never bussed our table after our apetizers. We had to do it ourselves. He asked us if we wanted anything else to drink instead of just BRINGING us new drinks. Then our food came out and he never stopped by the table again to ask how the meal was or if we wanted a refill (we got ONE refill the whole time we were there).

Finally we wanted 2-go boxes and my mom said he could combine the two spaghetti plates. He said, "yeah that'd be more conveinent for me".

EXCUSE ME! Since when did it become what's conveinent for you? We're the guests here.

So on a $100 bill my father (i found out later) left a BUCK tip. Poor service + unhappy customers = NO TIP!

alphasig, i'm tellin you, dude......it really didn't hit me what happened until we slowed down....then i was like, "Wait a minute..........." but i remember their faces and won't serve them again.....and if i have to (which i shouldn't)........some special sauce is comin their way. BWAHAHA!!!!

;)

Tipping with a tab??
 

How are you supposed to tip when you have a tab?

Tip every round or wait 'til the end?

I have never had a tab before, usually someone else is paying, so I am not sure of the rules. The other night a friend and I went to play some pool and we opened a tab. I didn't tip the waitress 'til the very end, but then realized the reason why she really didn't come back around much while we had an open tab was probably because we weren't tipping her. :confused:

Re: Tipping with a tab??
 

Traditionally, when it comes to drinks on the tab, you tip a small amount when served. I usually round up the cost of the drink to the nearest dollar. You could also tip at the end of the evening when you close out the tab.

When my meals and drinks are more expensive I pay more. When their meals and drinks are more expensive I divide the check evenly.

Oddly enough no one ever complains either way :p sigh . . .

I have a couple good friends that just divide the check in half, and there are a couple people i know that just wouldn't squabble over a few dollars either way.

Some of it depends on how stingy you are. You can tell the people that parting with money really bothers, its in the painful expression on their faces.

Well, the whole dividing evenly thing depends on the situation. No, I don't mind putting in a little more than I really should, 5-10 bucks I guess. But once I went out with a friend for her birthday and we joined a group of her friend's friends. They ordered pitchers of drinks and plates of appetizers - none of us had any of that. They ordered 3 bottles of Port after dinner - none of us had any of that. The bill came, they split it evenly - $70 a person! My total meal w/tip was about $40! I'm sorry, I don't need to pay an additional $30 for crap you ordered without even asking me! :mad: :rolleyes:

Also, normally I am a great tipper. I have never served myself, but I am in the arts and most of my friends do wait tables. We were at the bar once in college and my drink was $4.50. I gave her a five and actually intended on giving her an extra dollar PLUS the 50 cents change. Well, she gave me my drink and didn't even ask if I wanted the change, just walked off. So I made a stink to my friends. Suddenly, a hand comes over my shoulder and slams the 50 cents on the table! So, I proceeded to rack up a bill and at the end of the night, I left her the 50 cents...and nothing else. Mean, yes. But she was a b*tch...

Ugh...this is one of my pet peeves! I can NOT stand it when a group of people won't just split the check evenly, but rather, whip out the calculators. Yes, I've seen it happen! Mr RedRose has some acquaintances that do this, and it makes going out with them a rather unpleasant experience! Tacky, tacky, tacky.

We always just check out the bill, figure out what everyone orderd (or ate if someone ordered a big appetizer that I didn't eat) then round the prices of everyones individual items up to cover tax. That should cover the bill portion. THen we take the total, figure out what is 20%, and divide that among everyone there. This usually takes care of the people who ordered really expensive items, next to the person who had a side salad and water. Did anyone see the Friends episode that revolved around this very topic?? Good stuff.

:eek:

I think that is kind of unfair.

The person who only ordered a side salad w/ water and the other person who ordered a freaking feast probably did so because of a reason...whether they can afford it or not.

I would be pissed if I ordered a soda and ate some bread and have to increase my tip for someone who ordered $25 worth of food.

And, I would feel guilty if I ordered $25 worth of food and people who barely ate anything would have to increase their tip money.

I usually always tip at least 20%. Many waiters/waitresses are college students who need this money to pay for their education.

I will tip more (like 50%) if the waiter/waitress hooks us up. For instance, if they give us our drinks for free or give a discount.

I will tip 15% if I'm not impressed by the service.

There has only been once where I've tipped under 15%. I was at Friday's and the waitress was really rude to us. There was a table of guys next to us who were giving her a really hard time. Unfortunately, this put her in a bad mood but this does not entitle her to take it out on other customers. She was snotty, the food took forever (and was cold when she brought it to us), and she rolled her eyes back when my friend asked for more sour cream. On a $30 bill, we tipped her a quarter and we wrote on the bill "Check your attitude!".

A friend of my husband's actually has an application on his Palm Pilot that will split a check... you can enter the total of the check, tax, the percentage you want to tip, and the number of people, and it will split the check evenly, or if you want to be really anal, you can enter the prices of everyone's food and drinks, and it will prorate the tax and tip accordingly. :rolleyes:

There's nothing like watching a bunch of drunk MIT students haggling over a bill... it makes bid matching look like simple addition :D

That is too funny! It reminds me of Seinfeld when Jerry gives his father in Florida a wizard calculator thing. He kept figuring out the tip on this thing. Funny stuff! :)