jchiguy1

I agree with this 100%. it is polite and insures good service in the US. Additionally in this economy we can never be sure how well the bartender is being paid and/or what their situation is at home (out of work spouse etc). A dollar or two or ten in my life doesn't mean much but may mean a lot to them. Incidentally I tip for good service no matter where i am (bathroom attendant, housekeeper in hotel, maintenance man etc).

jsl42

Too bad the groovy aging hippie guy that bounces between the international and domestic clubs wasn't pouring at the bar at the time of the OP's visit.

He's super chill, tip or not!

coolbeans202

If you're sitting at the bar, then no problem with waiting until the end to tip. If you're sitting elsewhere, then you should tip after each drink. The bartender has no idea that you'll tip at the end.

I'm a bartender, you'll always get prompt and professional service from me whether or not you tip. If you don't tip, you'll get the service that you paid, but I won't go above and beyond for you. You'll get the beer closest to me, rather than the one that is much colder but stored in the cooler at the other end of the bar. You'll get a standard pour, but nothing more. And if a crowd of people all come to the bar at the same time, you are probably not going to get served first. Like it or not, that's just the way it is here.

Dunno where it is elsewhere, but in Washington, DC it's $2.72/hour.

Should employer's be required to pay their staff a decent wage? Sure. But then the cost of your drinks will increase to cover it. You'll essentially be paying the same as you are now, but instead you give all of your money to the establishment who then pays the staff, rather than give most of the money to the establishment and the remainder directly to the staff. In Europe, it's the former, here in the U.S., the latter.

All of that said, I think the UC should be an exception, given that you do not pay for drinks.

halls120

Wine is one item that hasn't been downgraded in the UCs. the house wines aren't bad, and they have some excellent premium offerings.

Jorgen

I actually don't mind tipping for drinks so much because it's easy to calculate (one buck per drink) and drinks in the US are cheap anyway.

What I really don't like is tipping waiters. Who decided that every otherwise-enjoyable meal needs to end with a mental arithmetic problem?

edit: Though I may be pulling this thread into OMNI territory, sorry...

worldwidedreamer

The international DL SC in SFO has a self-pour bar, as do the SQ and BR/NZ lounges.

HumbleBee

This thread gotta win the award for the most inconsequential complaint thread EVER

There are other threads already discussing whether it's appropriate to tip lounge bartenders, I rarely did but now will do more often.

LilAbner

Keep working at it boys!
Pretty soon someone will come up with a real good reason to stiff the UC's bartender's, but so far nobody's come close!

Several attempts --- If she's cute! They make too much money from tips! It's a private club! EVERYTHING should be free! The wine's not good, or yes it is, but there is better TOP SHELF for a price, and that's all they're getting! It's too hard to figure out how much to give em! I don't like giving tips! Too bad it wasn't someone else instead of the ol' bag! If only I were in Europe or Minnesota then it wouldn't be expected! These people make minimum wages, what else do they expect? Tipping is just plain bad/evil! I only tip certain chosen people by what culture they happen to adhere to! Hey, I don't got's ta tip the Stew, why should I got's ta tip the bartender? If only there weren't dem durn children's, then we could pour our own! Hey, she had a bad attitude, and I was as pleasant as could be! It all adds up after a while, "And a penny saved is a penny earned"! I ain't never coming through this airport again, anyway! If I sit here long enough, I'm sure that I can conjure up something to justify my reason for doing a "Walk-Out"! If I post it on FT surely the guys that are looking for something for nuthin' will have my back! I hate UA, pmUA, and especially pmCO, so I'm getting even! It's all Smisek's fault!

And last but not least --- How about this one --- Some people are just plain Cheap Skate's!

mr_edward_p

Self serve bars would be nice, but since we don't have them, we treat these like any other bar.

Truthfully, it wouldn't matter what the bartender earns, I'd make an effort to show them some consideration. It's not about this beer, it's about the next one. It's about a guy with no-tipping principles staring at an empty glass while I'm enjoying another cold one. I'm not supplementing their wages, I'm bribing them for better service.

LiviLion

Hello, OP here.

Seems to be quite a divide of opinion here. I'll be honest and admit I have never tipped in any airport lounge where the drinks are complimentary. I only drink the draft beer and usually get two as each one is pretty small takes a couple of seconds for the bar person to pour and hand it over.

Only a couple of hours earlier thought the concierege at my hotel I was collecting my bags from got them for me and disappeared before I had the chance to give him what I believe is the appropriate rate of $1 per bag so $2 in total.

He came back though and was appreciative of getting the tip and said he would load up my bags for me.

I also tipped the SuperShuttle man in advance (but that's probably cause I wanted him to turn up) but he also unloaded my bags.

So, I'm not tight and tip appropriately. I don't think employees in this case deserve a tip for providing very small quantities of pretty rubbish beer IMO.

I rushed my original post so a bit more detail.

On my first visit to the bar I had to wait for the lovely old dear to finish emtying a box of canned drinks into a fridge or something despite her knowing I was there.

2nd time was when I got them slammed down.

Didn't have time for round 3.

I was also under the impression that these employees get paid properly but can anyone confirm this 100% either way?

LilAbner

There you have it ladies and gentlemen! Although impatient to guzzle down two or three, he is at least honest, and tipping the bar-keep isn't in his repertoire, especially when the suds are free!!!

fliestoomuch310

At LAX, all of the bartenders work for Sodexo. I think this may be the case at most of the UCs.

Most of the time they are paid minimum wage, so the tipping helps.

Tipping and politeness, in my experience, brings goodwill from not only the bartender, but from the rest of the staff as well (especially when you frequent certain UCs--the staff starts to recognize you). The service becomes very warm and personal. The bartender always has my drink ready as soon as he sees me (even though it's usually a Diet Coke) and the agents really go above and beyond (especailly during IRROPS).

Interesting story: one of my friends flew out of EWR quite a bit and was friendly with the staff. He got pretty sick once, and the UC staff actually brought him a bunch of homemade food during his recovery.

Hence, I recommend tipping, even if you only get a Diet Coke.

geo979

You don't by chance happen to work at the UC lounge at SFO, do you? Or perhaps are dating the lady who works there?

will2288

Any chance you being from what sure seems like the 'tipping capital of the world' affects your opinions?

zoegksf

+1. I have known her for years. She used to work in the bar that was in the middle of the pier before they remodeled and got rid of it.