again, the US way of tipping everything and everyone is just the wrong approach.

pay your service guys a minimum amount per hour so they can survive without
having to ask for tips .

ITS the system which is wrong and not the attitude of the NON-US citizens.

US posters here always pull the EL-Cheapo card, but why should we non-US citizens pay for your NON-Existend Social System ???

anyway, i would not have blocked a table only for drinks.
i would have ordered a salad , and something to eat.

about the tip, even for me 1USD and blocking the table sounds a bit cheap.

4 pax, 25USD bill, i would have left 10USD total in tips.

i wouldnt mind 40% tip in a situation like this, but i think that 10-15% tip is ok if you have a 500 USD bill in a restaurant.
well my friends in the US always tip 25% ,,, but i think thats a bit too much usually..

dp

It's at least refreshing to hear a non-US citizen endorsing the idea that it's not necessary to conform to the norms of the country one is visiting - that's a common criticism of American tourists.

We've spent a considerable amount of time in the UK, several European countries, and Australia over the past few years, and dined out a few hundred times in total. To generalize perhaps to an absurd degree, I suggest that visitors from those countries can add a modest 15% to the amount of their U.S. restaurant check/bill and still get as good a deal as they would dining at home, amending the fairly common waitstaff perception of the "ugly foreigner" while actually paying for the service rendered.

Just a thought...

Well this is an interesting thread. Here is my 2 cents from someone in the industry. I would say they are cheap and the part about how the server appreciates them being nice versus leaving a big tip that is laughable. No server will ever remember a nice guy but a fat tipper will never be forgotten. I see it all the time and it works anywhere in the world. The ten dollars is fair I would have left twenty but thats me. The four dollars is an insult. Since I figure no one was going to expense this I would not expect anything more. I am sure they only spend big when it is on the company expense report.

The server should have worked harder to show you the door much sooner. Allowing you to hang out in her station during the whole lunch hour having a round of drinks is her faullt. I wouldn't worry to much about it because if she did not try to turn the table sooner shame on her for letting you camp out in her station.

of course each country has its own norms and habbits etc. but do we always have to agree with the norm? ( i mean if something is obviously wrong, and anybody except the US citiziens disagre with this? i mean anybody from asia or eurpoe i have met complain about the rudeness of the employees about tips)

the advice of adding 15% tip should work well in the US.
i would add a bit more than that on smaller amounts i.e <50USD you could add a bit more than the 15%.

anyway DO I LIKE the SUPER Capitalizm in the US ?*?? NO, i dont like it.

I dont like the demanding taxi driver who tried to deny to give my friend his baggage after he only did tip 3USD on a 10USD taxi ride. (he wanted 5usd instead. my friend was talking and talking so i went back and asked very" friendly" if there is a problem, after i heard him complaining that he wanted 5USD i asked him what has he done to earn an extra 2 USD tip on top of the 3USD, his answer was he turned the radio on ... yes we requested that...
but well i looked at him asked him if he really want to pull this crap and he gave us the bags, but my friend who gave already 20% tip , was really annoyed.)

i mean what is that attitude anyway, being super-unfriendly the whole ride, and than demanding a 5USD tip on a 10USD ride...

i say there is something wrong with the service attitude of the US service industry.

-> this is caused through the brutal and un-human conditions workers in the US have to face, even in china you have better work conditions these days (ok not really )

even it is the NORM to tip in the US , a tip is something which has to be earned and which should not be taken for granted.


anyway my personal opinion about tipping is, that tipping more than 15% is idiotic, and you should give the money instead to charities or do other good things which are going to help people who are really in trouble.

i dont think that the usual worker in the us couldnt survive if he got only 10% of a bill in the US. (and i have met some people in the service industry and they earn 2000USD + only through tips per month (ok, girls , very hot. very good tips , lax area )

but if you sent the money to charities or other good causes you might save a persons life.

dp

Another tipping thread.

My vote on this one is: $10 was about right.

You are wont to make generalizations IMHO. Many visitors to the U.S. comment on the friendliness (even to excess) of the inhabitants and it's unfortunate your own experiences have been so different. I have also visited a number of countries having forms of government with which I profoundly disagree, but I've never thought to take it out on the citizens.

For example, on our first visit to China, a waitress in Beijing ran after me out of the restaurant and returned with a smile the tiny amount of money I had left on the table (she had been exceptionally kind). I learned a lesson from that and henceforth continued to tip guides but not restaurant servers.

I would agree that a 10% tip will get you by in most places, but it would be nice if you'd mention to the server that you're visiting from ____________ so he or she won't take it as a personal insult.

I tip based on the service I receive. That means:

1. I don't tip anything for the empty chairs at my table.

2. I don't tip based on the most expensive meal on the menu even though I ordered a sandwich.

3. I don't tip on the dessert I didn't order or the cigar and cognac I didn't order as an alternative to dessert.

If I consumed a minimum of my servers time, talent and attention, I expect him or her to devote the time saved to his/her larger tables where the tip potential is greater. And oh yeah,

4. My tip is never based on how sorry I feel for the server. But I might give her more if she's young cute and flirty. Fact of life. Accept it.

I've worked for tips. Some days you work your ... off and get nada. Some other days a bluebird lands on your shoulder and tucks a c-note in your pocket. Over time it evens out. And in the end, you're dead anyway.

Usually twenty percent. I don't like to disappoint people.

I think you did the right thing, Elke, and I'm sure it was appreciated by the server. Sometimes when in MIA shopping mall, I'll tip a cab driver $5 for a $3.50 ride (which would otherwise be a five minute deadly walk over busy lanes to get to my hotel, plus my shopping is heavy). He's lost his slot in the rank for a decent fare; I try to make up for it. Guilt? No ~ it's called mutual appreciation.

Pocketing the $4 and leaving the $10 probably makes the most sense, but I'm not sure if I would have thought of it at the time if I were in your shoes. $4 is definitely cheaping out. You were definitely generous and more than fair to the waitress considering the circumstances. And can I just add my personal mini-rant about splitting tabs with couples when you're the single one? That gets old quickly.

Ok ... what am I missing?

$4 tip for a $25 check is 16%. I thought the "recommended" number was atleast 15%, so this seems right, no?

malgudi ~ I think you're missing the context

Ok - lets get something clear:

Most people waiting tables are paid $2.13 per hour.

This is not the norm almost anywhere else in the world. Waitstaff depend on tips, and like it or not, "being nice to them" does not pay their bills. They don't make $7-15 per hour with some tips to boot.

So PLEASE use this piece of information with ANYONE who doesn't see the value in tipping any more than in the 5% range, or wants to offset their tip by being extra-nice.

<rant OFF>

And just to clarify: I am in no way advocating that tips be mandatory, or for someone to feel like they "have" to tip.

Just offering a refute to those that claim a 5-10% tip is sufficient under normal circumstances.

you would leave a $20 tip on a $25 tab???????