Forum Index
»
Off-Topic
Tipping/Gratuity on Restaurant tab - FIL tipped 11-12%!
![[Post New]](/jforum/templates/default/images/icon_minipost_new.gif){kind=icon}
Anonymous
| Had a wonderful multi-course dinner, excellent, attentive service at a nice restaurant - entrees $20-30, bottle of wine, etc. -with husband and inlaws. All around pleasant experience. But, I was kind of flabbergasted to see the miserly tip that FIL wrote in as we all left the table...I was really mortified, actually kind of shocked. I haven't said anything to husband (and probably won't) but I feel really bad for waitstaff (totally been there!). I kind of wish I didn't know. But, then I think it's better I do know FIL is stingy tipper. I don't ever want to go out to eat with FIL unless 1.) it's clear we are treating or 2.) it's a big enough party the restaurant automatically tabulates the gratuity. Thanks for allowing me to vent here! |
Anonymous
| Why didn't you throw another 20 on the table then? |
Anonymous
| 12% is a bit cheap, but not that bad. jeeze, but harsh. maybe he tips 15% normally and didnt like the sevice so deducted a few points. or maybe he is bad at math. what is his background? when i was waiting, certain ethnic groups wouldnt tip at all. maybe 5% tops. |
Anonymous
| It is possible he was tipping on pre tax total (which is appropriate and correct). Also, there are differing opinions re: tipping on cost of alcohol, especially if it is a more expensive bottle of wine. Your FIL probably wasn't that out of line, or out of line at all. The 18-20% tipping "standard" didn't come into play until the last few years when everyone had loads of money to throw around - and never caught on in many parts of the country. I'd be curious what current tipping averages are now that the economy is in the toilet. |
Anonymous
| I agree, that's cheap. My solution to those situations is to excuse myself to go to the restroom and instead find the waiter and give him/her extra money to at least get the tip to 15%. (20% of pre-tax, preferably.) It's a pain, but you save the FIL from potential embarassment, and I'd rather shell out the money than have the wait staff get screwed out of a decent tip. Most waiters are not paid well, and most have to "tip out" a set percentage to bartenders, bus boys, etc. so if you leave a low tip they're doing a lot of work for nothing. |
Anonymous
|
my darling grandfather got bad at math about 10 years ago. We either help him with the math under the guise of the lighting was bad and he forgot his reading glasses, or we give the waiter an additional tip as we leave (and are always sure to have cash on hand when we dine with him). The wait staff totally understood that it happens. By doing this, you'll be able to go back to those restaurants and get good service. Older guests sometimes need a little more attention, and it is worth an extra large tip.
Mention it to your DH so that he can also be alert to it and make sure that the staff doesn't get short changed. And if this is a new thing, it could be a symptom of dementia, alzheimers, or other health problem. |
Anonymous
Yes, this could be it. |
Anonymous
While the pre-tax tipping standard may be "correct", I think it is an excellent way to identify real cheapskates. Say the tax on a restaurant meal is 10%. On a $100 dinner, the tax is $10, and the tip on the tax (if you're tipping 20%) is $2. So if you're paying a $1000 tab, the tip on the tax is $20. Look at the number on the bottom line, move the decimal point one place to the left, multiply by 2, and adjust as necessary based on very good or very bad service. |
Anonymous
such as? |
Anonymous
|
Anonymous
Yeah, I'm not touching that one with a ten foot pole (pole, that is, not Pole.) |
Anonymous
Congratulations on being such a generous tipper. That doesn't mean you're right, nor does it mean that people who tip correctly are cheapskates. But your post sure does mean you're judgmental! |
Anonymous
| my experience as a waiter was that, as a general rule (which is what stereotypes are of course), black families rarely tipped. if they did, no chance it was anywhere near 20%. because i saw this again and again, i assumed it must be some kind of cultural thing. who knows. just my observation. |
Anonymous
| When I was a waitress in college in California, it was the Mexican families who didn't tip. In fact, it was because of repeated experiences with Mexican groups that the restaurant changed the automatic gratuity number from parties of 8 to parties of 6. It helped. |
Anonymous
|
In my waitressing experiences, it was the white Europeans who didn't tip.
Do we have most shades of potential non-tippers covered now? Did we miss any? |