JayhawkCO writes:
And, as a server, I have no problem with this line of thinking. If you don't like paying a premium for eating out, please DO stay at home. I'm not trying to be offensive in the least with that statement either. There's plenty of people who like things a certain way, etc. and are never happy with their restaurant experience. I often wonder why they come out to eat at all if they're not content. It's nice to know there are some people who have figured that fact out for themselves.
I am one of those people who really would rather eat my own cooking in my own home and I do so whenever possible. I know what I like, I know how I like it, and am just as happy as a clam feeding myself.
Real life, however, really does require me to eat out, far more often than I would like. There are a few local restaurants where I am comfortable knowing that I will get a really good meal. Most, however, don't much please me. As a result, I usually end up eating only salads in restaurants, and even then it is a struggle to get them served just the way I prefer, and, strangely, it sometimes seems that the more expensive the restaurant, the more difficult it is to get things the way I want them.
Crazily enough, we recently had lunch at a restaurant in the airport at PDX and my meal, ordered to my very picky tastes, was absolutely perfect the first time around. I was amazed. That waitress got a great tip.
Fortunately for both me and the wait staff, I am rarely the one paying the bill so I usually have no idea how much we tip.
FWIW, I did once serve my time as a waitress at Disneyland. We worked as hard as I have ever worked in my life, were held to unbelievably high standards, and made a ton of money. Even the shade of our lipstick had to be regulation. We had people waiting in line for tables from the time we opened until the time we closed and there was little or no time for rest. We were required to make eye contact with every table in our station, every time we passed them, even if both arms were loaded with trays. That is when I learned to wink.
It is amazing how much people appreciate a wait person making eye-contact and mouthing "Are you OK?" even when they obviously can't really do anything about it at the moment.
That is my standard of service and one I rarely see in today's world, outside of very tony restaurants in Europe and a few owner operated ethnic restaurants in the USA.
I hate it when tips are added to the bill and, when they are, that is all they get.
If the service is horrible, I have no problem removing the "automatic tip". I can remember one instance where the service was totally dreadful, the food just awful and, to top it off, the waitress spilled an entire tray of drinks on us and our table. Not only did they charge us for the drinks she spilled, but they also added an 18% automatic tip. EEK! I removed the charge for the drinks we received in our laps, removed the service charge and asked for the manager. He very unhappily acquiesced and we have never been, nor will be back to that restaurant. Actually they have since gone out of business, Praise the Lord.
Good service deserves a good tip. Great service deserves a great tip. Mediocre service deserves a mediocre tip. Poor service deserves nothing, IMHO.