Tipping

ChicagoBlue said:
In the States, the “standard” tip has been 15% forever. Now, many receipts bills include a 15%, 18%, 20% dollar amount for ease of figuring it out.

What many if you may not know is that restaurants are allowed to pay servers less than the minimum wage BECAUSE they make tips!

Also, the IRS (tax man) can assess you based on EXPECTED tips.

Lastly, most of the people who serve you in restaurants have pretty shit lives, otherwise they would be sitting where you are, not listening to your order and griping about whatever. So, if the extra $1 it takes to make a small tip a good tip is going to kill you, might I suggest you use the McD drive thru?!

I’ve been a waiter and my wife has been a restaurant server. It’s a shitty job for shorty wages in America, unless you are at a place where the average bill is in the hundreds or even four figures.

So, tip your poor servers generously and don’t be so fucking passive aggressive! If somethings not right, call them over and ask them to fix it for you. That’s their job!

If they aren’t doing their job, ask for the Manager, and tell them. But, don’t sit there, get what you wanted, eat the whole thing, then shit on the person who just served you and probably has to clean up your mess for the next bunch of arseholes!

You do what you want, but during the last 2 yrs of pandemic, when we have been allowed to dine out, I’ve been generous and thankful that there has been servers to serve us. MANY places are doing limited seating because there are so few people willing to do the job, and there are literally signs asking for your patience.

If everything is meh, 15% is fine. If the service is attentive, smooth, and helps you enjoy your meal, then I have no problem giving an additional 5%-10%.

On a $50 meal for 2, 15% is $7.50, or less than £6! If the server has been good, then $60 is no big deal!

Hell, we just had a really nice server at a bar restaurant we frequent in FL and the bill was $30, because it was Happy Hour. I gave her $40 and let her keep the change. You’d have thought it was Christmas…for the sake of a few bucks!!!

Reminds me of guys who haggle in China over the price of everything )which is almost required, because they’ll take advantage of foreigners), but don’t realize they just spent the last 5 mins ummming and ahhhing over $1 more or less on the price!!! Then, they think nothing of paying over way the odds for a beer in the hotel bar!! Small time Chinese worker vs multinational corporation!! I’d rather give the lady the $1 and skip the $10 Heineken, but that’s just me!

First time I brought my wife over to Blighty, donkey’s years ago, we went up over the tops to a place supposedly owned by the guy from Last of the Summer Wine.

It wasn’t busy and we sat in the window overlooking the hills and had a nice lunch.

Got up to leave and my wife (American) insisted I leave something for the young waitress. I left a 50p piece and told my wife that the waitress was absolutely not expecting anything.

We are out in the parking lot getting the car and the young woman runs out shouting, “Scuse me! You left a 50p piece on the table!” as she waved it as us!

I look at my wife and smile.

“It’s for you, love. Thanks for a nice lunch!”

Again, the smile alone was worth twice the money! :-)

Do as you please, but I think you’ll find that 15% is normal and 20% is nice for good service IN THE STATES.

Again, to each their own. It’s your money.
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How much $ value in total would a waiter serve in a night at say a mid range place, $2000 ish ? Even at 10% tips that’s $4000 per month in just tips if you work 5 days a week !
 
denislawsbackheel said:
New York has a minimum wage.

New York State's Minimum Wage

www.ny.gov www.ny.gov

in fact federal minimum wage legislation predates ours.

en.m.wikipedia.org

Minimum wage in the United States - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org en.m.wikipedia.org
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So the restaurants and cafes are either not paying it or New York is too expensive to live in.
This is where capitalism, which America is supposed to be king of, should work. Restaurants should pay more to get the best staff rather than them relying on tips to survive.
I was a part owner of a Domino's franchise, we paid staff over and above even though we knew all the drivers regularly got tips. That way we kept the good ones. In turn customers got great service and re-ordered
(Perhaps I should be running Manchester Airport)
 
Blue Mist said:
Good luck with that one, me and Mrs Mist had a starter and 2 average pizzas in a so called restaurant, (cafe ?) in NY. The waiter left the bill and I added 10%. He came back 'was anything wrong Sir only usually its 20%, I just leave the tray with you' and off he went. I took my tip back and left, cheeky bastard.
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Still struggling to believe you emptied all the dead spiders out your wallet and left the 10% in the first place musty.
 
Blue Mist said:
So the restaurants and cafes are either not paying it or New York is too expensive to live in.
This is where capitalism, which America is supposed to be king of, should work. Restaurants should pay more to get the best staff rather than them relying on tips to survive.
I was a part owner of a Domino's franchise, we paid staff over and above even though we knew all the drivers regularly got tips. That way we kept the good ones. In turn customers got great service and re-ordered
(Perhaps I should be running Manchester Airport)
Click to expand...
New York is too expensive to live in.
my son and his US wife live there.
She’s a uni lecturer he is in the third sector.
They can barely afford to rent in Brooklyn.
 
denislawsbackheel said:
New York is too expensive to live in.
my son and his US wife live there.
She’s a uni lecturer he is in the third sector.
They can barely afford to rent in Brooklyn.
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I bet no one tips a uni lecturer and yet she is expected to put 20% extra on a bill to enable someone to afford to live there.
Bizarre.
 
Fode N The Hole said:
True but we can blame you for that too. The spread of Americanised processed sugar rich shite.

:)

Countries in Europe with more traditional indigenous diets are generally slimmer.
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As a country we are only just weaning ourselves off a diet that included sugar in everything. It had nothing to do with America but was the result of the Commonwealth Sugar Agreement. All the sugar producing countries were guaranteed a minimum volume at a minimum price. We had to put the sugar somewhere so it went in everything including vegetables in enormous quantities. Tomato soup was really popular, cos it contained huge amounts of sugar. Now so much boasts NO ADDED SUGAR. Well thanks.
Lesson: avoid processed food, it's shit.
 
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KS55 said:
As a country we are only just weaning ourselves off a diet that included sugar in everything. It had nothing to do with America but was the result of the Commonwealth Sugar Agreement. All the sugar producing countries were guaranteed a minimum volume at a minimum price. We had to put the sugar somewhere so it went in everything including vegetables in enormous quantities. Tomato soup was really popular, cos it contained huge amounts of sugar. Now so much boasts NO ADDED SUGAR. Well thanks.
Lesson: avoid processed food, it's shit.
Click to expand...
I was brought up on it, bannana butties, mashed up and mixed with loads of sugar, 6 slices of white bread = Saturday night tea.
 
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