25% default tip !
#16
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2008
Location: San Francisco
Programs: GM on VX, UA, AA, HA, AS, SY; Budget Fastbreak
Posts: 27,223
Was this Manresa??
ive not seen the 25% option but I’ve seen 10% at La Boulangerie (formerly La Boulange, which SBUX bought ages ago), and I want to tell them to ditch that 10% option.
Usa is a tip society. California is a 4% or 5% health surcharge state. It’s not cheap but when we choose to dine out, it includes the societal obligation to tip, usually with giving that CC to a staffer.
ive not seen the 25% option but I’ve seen 10% at La Boulangerie (formerly La Boulange, which SBUX bought ages ago), and I want to tell them to ditch that 10% option.
Usa is a tip society. California is a 4% or 5% health surcharge state. It’s not cheap but when we choose to dine out, it includes the societal obligation to tip, usually with giving that CC to a staffer.
#17
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: Either at the shooting range or anywhere good beer can be found...
Posts: 50,968
After having my card number stolen by a server who claimed my card must've fallen out of the folio and that's why it wasn't returned, I much prefer not giving my card to a server.
#18
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: NY Metro Area
Programs: AA 2MM Yay!, UA MM, Costco General Member
Posts: 48,908
I couldn’t believe it. This is the same restaurant that called me during work hours to confirm a reservation I’d made online.
The service was friendly, but slow and incompetent. One wrong item and one duplicate item was served to my table. The food was nicely presented but tasted like crap. And the prices were exorbitant, but I knew that going in.
Unusual for a restaurant in the US, payment was done by handheld electronic card reader brought to the table. I was asked to sign and select from one of the precomputed tips: 18%, 20%, 25%, with the last option being selected by default. Oh, of course on the receipt a 4% surcharge had already been added for compliance with health insurance laws of California, whatever that means.
25%!
I’m likely to find the restaurant owner’s email address and e-tear him a new one.
The service was friendly, but slow and incompetent. One wrong item and one duplicate item was served to my table. The food was nicely presented but tasted like crap. And the prices were exorbitant, but I knew that going in.
Unusual for a restaurant in the US, payment was done by handheld electronic card reader brought to the table. I was asked to sign and select from one of the precomputed tips: 18%, 20%, 25%, with the last option being selected by default. Oh, of course on the receipt a 4% surcharge had already been added for compliance with health insurance laws of California, whatever that means.
25%!
I’m likely to find the restaurant owner’s email address and e-tear him a new one.
#20
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 1,638
i guess i am a little late to this thread. when a restaurant charges a "surcharge" for their inability to price their food in relation to the wages they pay, i do not tip and encourage everyone else not to tip.
the thing to keep in mind is that legally, restaurants are required to ensure their wait staff receive minimum wage, but the wage for servers assumes a standard 15% tip. if servers' actual wage falls below that level (e.g., customers fail to tip), the restaurant is required to make up the difference.
now in california, servers get full minimum - there is no wage adjustment, meaning tips really are a bonus. but politically speaking, any restaurant charging a surcharge is essentially pushing an anti-worker agenda. in my opinion, the only appropriate response is to encourage that restaurant's workers that they are not working for a place that best serves their interests, and hopefully will encourage the staff to leave.
the thing to keep in mind is that legally, restaurants are required to ensure their wait staff receive minimum wage, but the wage for servers assumes a standard 15% tip. if servers' actual wage falls below that level (e.g., customers fail to tip), the restaurant is required to make up the difference.
now in california, servers get full minimum - there is no wage adjustment, meaning tips really are a bonus. but politically speaking, any restaurant charging a surcharge is essentially pushing an anti-worker agenda. in my opinion, the only appropriate response is to encourage that restaurant's workers that they are not working for a place that best serves their interests, and hopefully will encourage the staff to leave.
#21
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Sydney Australia
Programs: No programs & No Points!!!
Posts: 14,203
#22
Join Date: Jul 2001
Posts: 2,925
#23
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2013
Posts: 4,374
It's a state mandated fee, not correct. The state mandates that the restaurant provide health insurance to its servers. Some restaurants impose a surcharge and blame it on this mandate. The state absolutely does not mandate charging this fee.
#24
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: San Diego, CA
Programs: GE, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 15,467
now in california, servers get full minimum - there is no wage adjustment, meaning tips really are a bonus. but politically speaking, any restaurant charging a surcharge is essentially pushing an anti-worker agenda. in my opinion, the only appropriate response is to encourage that restaurant's workers that they are not working for a place that best serves their interests, and hopefully will encourage the staff to leave.
#25
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: North America
Posts: 2,265
That is an infinite argument. So many job sectors (even some so-called 'salaried' jobs where a person is working 40+ hours) make minimum wage...where do they fit in the ''tipping is mandatory' culture? I realize this (art of tipping) is a never-ending debate.
#26
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: HH Diamond, Marriott Gold, IHG Gold, Hyatt something
Posts: 33,476
Tipping is always a sensitive subject on FT. 25% as the default tip is also pretty silly. Add in the 4% scamcharge, and yeah, it’s too much.
If the food was horrid, send it back. Or were you trying to impress someone by taking them to a fancy place?
Last weekend, I went to my favorite conveyor-belt sushi place. While the food is good, and service is fine, the recommended tip was 18%. Table service only consists of water, clearing the sushi plates at the end of dining, and bringing the bill. Similar to a buffet, when it comes to tipping.
If the food was horrid, send it back. Or were you trying to impress someone by taking them to a fancy place?
Last weekend, I went to my favorite conveyor-belt sushi place. While the food is good, and service is fine, the recommended tip was 18%. Table service only consists of water, clearing the sushi plates at the end of dining, and bringing the bill. Similar to a buffet, when it comes to tipping.
#27
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Toronto, ON but someday (hopefully) OGG or ACK
Programs: DL, AA, US, AC, Marriott Platinum, HHhonors Silver (Woo Hoo!)
Posts: 263
Sometimes when I am in a real salty mood, I will use my no foreign transaction fee US credit card to pay for a bill at a Canadian restaurant. It's a guilty pleasure of mine to watch the staff scramble to find a pen. But I try not do this too often.
I have also noticed that when I pay the Canadian restaurant tab with a U.S. credit card, the machine will give me the option of charging me in Canadian dollars or U.S. dollars. I always choose the former because the U.S. credit card issuer will provide a better currency exchange rate than the handheld payment machine.
One last thing, I have been told by a banker friend of mine that the Durbin Amendment is the reason why there is not widespread acceptance of the chip and pin cards in the U.S. as there is in other countries. So it does not appear to be an issue of Americans not being able to handle emerging payment technologies. Since the Durbin Amendment is so highly regarded in other areas, I don't see the US joining the rest of the world on this matter anytime soon.
#28
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: San Diego, CA
Programs: GE, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 15,467
Speaking of culture, it may be more accurate to say that it's a cultural expectation to tip service workers (with a lack of a "living wage"--whatever that entails--as rationalization). As people know, it's difficult and challenging to change cultural norms, especially if there's a group that benefits from the status quo.
I must preface what I am about to write by saying that so far I have been lucky in that I have never been the victim of credit card theft in the US due to handing the wait staff my credit card to pay the bill (I'm sure if that ever happened to me, my feelings would change).
BTW, there are devices that implement pay at the table that are more like what Americans are used to. They aren't all that common, though, at least not yet. A possibly cheaper solution would be to just leave the device on the table while you're serving other customers, but I get staff/owners being concerned about loss/damage by doing that. In addition, tip adjust is still allowed by card network rules in the US, so a fair number of pay at the table restaurants just have people write tip amounts on receipts anyway.
One last thing, I have been told by a banker friend of mine that the Durbin Amendment is the reason why there is not widespread acceptance of the chip and pin cards in the U.S. as there is in other countries. So it does not appear to be an issue of Americans not being able to handle emerging payment technologies. Since the Durbin Amendment is so highly regarded in other areas, I don't see the US joining the rest of the world on this matter anytime soon.
IMO, it was more that the existing lost/stolen fraud levels weren't high enough to justify it, especially since there was already awareness that the US was two generations behind in payment technology by the time we transitioned. Completely catching up (by adopting contactless cards/mobile wallets) would mean that PIN ideally wouldn't be asked for with smaller transactions anyway (and likely never will thanks to not supporting PIN for transactions in the first place and/or having the role of PIN be replaced by biometrics).
#29
Join Date: Jun 2016
Location: Prince Edward Island
Programs: Air Canada P25K, Hilton Honors Gold, Marriott Gold, MGM Gold
Posts: 1,580
Back on topic, a default tip of 25% is ridiculous. One local restaurant uses a machine that equates each tip with a level of service, to make you feel guilty for choosing a lower tip option. It actually gives you choices like "15% = adequate service, 18% = good service, 25% = great service".
#30
Suspended
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: Ontario, Canada
Programs: Aeroplan, IHG, Enterprise, Avios, Nexus
Posts: 8,355
Whenever the wait staff hands me the payment machine to calculate the tip and enter my pin on the total amount, they always look over my shoulder to see what amount I enter as my tip. In fact one time after I entered my tip, the server yelled out "OH C'MON!" (This was for a relatively standard 15% tip). I prefer the US system where they hand you the bill in the little book after running it through and then walk away to leave you alone to calculate the tip.
One last thing, I have been told by a banker friend of mine that the Durbin Amendment is the reason why there is not widespread acceptance of the chip and pin cards in the U.S. as there is in other countries. So it does not appear to be an issue of Americans not being able to handle emerging payment technologies. Since the Durbin Amendment is so highly regarded in other areas, I don't see the US joining the rest of the world on this matter anytime soon.