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US Tipping Etiquette

US Tipping Etiquette

Old Jul 29, 2015, 10:57 pm
  #16  
 
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Originally Posted by Clint Bint
Why Americans allow themselves to be treated like crap by ignorant wait staff and then meekly pay them for the privilege is beyond me.
I don't think that they do.
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Old Jul 30, 2015, 5:08 am
  #17  
 
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Originally Posted by Clint Bint
You miss the point.Tips are a gratuity not a right.The level at what you tip should be commensurate with the standard of service you receive not your attempt to remedy the social injustices of this world.
A server who is rude or unhelpful to me ? They get zilch.
But someone who is good at their job and makes for a pleasurable dining experience ? Top dollar.
Why Americans allow themselves to be treated like crap by ignorant wait staff and then meekly pay them for the privilege is beyond me.
No, you miss the point. First, that people (in a country such as the US) should earn a living wage for their work.
And as mentioned, customers very often take out their frustrations and penalize the server for restaurant conditions beyond that server's. control. When was the last time you talked to someone who actually does this job about this reality of it?
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Old Jul 30, 2015, 6:35 am
  #18  
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Originally Posted by VidaNaPraia
No, you miss the point. First, that people (in a country such as the US) should earn a living wage for their work.
And as mentioned, customers very often take out their frustrations and penalize the server for restaurant conditions beyond that server's. control. When was the last time you talked to someone who actually does this job about this reality of it?
I've owned two restaurants and employed dozens of servers.Good servers earned a very good living,bad servers were shown the door very quickly.A restaurant cannot afford to carry poor servers just in it for tips they expect by right.
Generally I find US wait staff pretty efficient and will tip accordingly but if I get someone with a bad attitude I let them and their manager know why they're getting nothing from me except what's on the check.
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Old Aug 3, 2015, 11:16 pm
  #19  
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Originally Posted by JohnRain
Disclaimer: I'm European so some of you might roll their eyes when reading this.

I'm currently at a five star resort in Orange County and I'd like to find out more about when/how much to tip in specific situations.
For example, the Valet is 40$ per day, which I find really steep compared to some similar hotels in the US I've been to. I would usually give the valet five bucks but in this case I just can't justify the additional expense. Am I correct here?
It would be customary to tip the valet anywhere between $2 and $5. However, you can tip as you please. If you can't justify the additional expense, then don't.

Originally Posted by JohnRain
My (Virtuoso) package includes Full American Breakfast and there is no buffet, which means that everything is la carte. For two people that amounts to $150, with 11$ tax. When applying the classic double tax rule, I would have to tip 22 bucks. Would you do that? I mean in Europe or anywhere else in the world for that matter, if breakfast is included I rarely get presented with a check, which means no tip. What is the rule here?

Thanks for your advice.
The rule for meals with table service is 15-18% of the bill, and a bit less for buffets. Again, it's up to you.

I have a feeling that, like many Europeans, you are overthinking this. Tip what you feel appropriate, and move on. No one is going to chase you with a sledgehammer if you break some social norm.

One thing to remember is that California requires all staff to be paid the same minimum wage, without deductions for tips. Therefore, tipped employees in California make much more than their counterparts in other states. It's still expected to tip, but it's not as essential as in other states where tips literally make up the worker's livelihood.
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Old Aug 4, 2015, 1:18 pm
  #20  
 
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OP, keep in mind that this can be something everyone claims to be generous with, but server mysteriously gets less. There're also the outliers who love to go on any tipping thread and assert their viewpoint.

Originally Posted by cbn42
It would be customary to tip the valet anywhere between $2 and $5. However, you can tip as you please. If you can't justify the additional expense, then don't.
Like the above, don't be afraid to go under if the service received isn't up to par. Example: If the guy makes no effort, was rude, and you had to wait a half hour for your car, no tip would be very justified.

Originally Posted by cbn42
The rule for meals with table service is 15-18% of the bill, and a bit less for buffets. Again, it's up to you.

I have a feeling that, like many Europeans, you are overthinking this. Tip what you feel appropriate, and move on. No one is going to chase you with a sledgehammer if you break some social norm.

One thing to remember is that California requires all staff to be paid the same minimum wage, without deductions for tips. Therefore, tipped employees in California make much more than their counterparts in other states. It's still expected to tip, but it's not as essential as in other states where tips literally make up the worker's livelihood.
I've had the front desk ask if I was sure I wanted to tip what I did. It wasn't that generous by some standards here, but the question itself is revealing.

One could also write on the check the reasons for not leaving any/little tip. Bad service, rude, offensive, being ignored - these all could do it.
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Old Aug 5, 2015, 10:56 am
  #21  
 
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Originally Posted by cbn42
One thing to remember is that California requires all staff to be paid the same minimum wage, without deductions for tips. Therefore, tipped employees in California make much more than their counterparts in other states. It's still expected to tip, but it's not as essential as in other states where tips literally make up the worker's livelihood.
The minimum is $9.00 in California, and $9.47 in Washington state.

http://www.dol.gov/whd/state/tipped.htm



It's $11 in Seattle (and will be $15 in a few years).
It's $15 in SeaTac (a town located south of Seattle).

http://www.forbes.com/sites/timworst...-minimum-wage/
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Old Aug 5, 2015, 4:22 pm
  #22  
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Originally Posted by pWei


Like the above, don't be afraid to go under if the service received isn't up to par. Example: If the guy makes no effort, was rude, and you had to wait a half hour for your car, no tip would be very justified.
I agree.
I find the suggestion by several people on here that servers should be rewarded not matter how poor their service is simply bizarre.
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Old Aug 5, 2015, 8:26 pm
  #23  
 
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I find the encouragement here for people to work themselves up to becoming disgruntled, to look for faults in a meal and its presentation in order to justify not tipping a server, to focus on the punitive, is simply bizarre.
And rather a sad commentary on character.

Last edited by VidaNaPraia; Aug 5, 2015 at 8:38 pm
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Old Aug 5, 2015, 8:49 pm
  #24  
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Originally Posted by muji
The minimum is $9.00 in California, and $9.47 in Washington state.

http://www.dol.gov/whd/state/tipped.htm



It's $11 in Seattle (and will be $15 in a few years).
It's $15 in SeaTac (a town located south of Seattle).

http://www.forbes.com/sites/timworst...-minimum-wage/
Yup, Washington is one of the few states with a minimum wage even higher than California. Most of the states that do not allow tip credits are on the west coast.

Here is the minimum wage for tipped and untipped employees in each state. http://www.dol.gov/whd/state/tipped.htm

Originally Posted by VidaNaPraia
I find the encouragement here for people to work themselves up to becoming disgruntled, to look for faults in a meal and its presentation in order to justify not tipping a server, to focus on the punitive, is simply bizarre.
And rather a sad commentary on character.
I would hope that no one is encouraging people to look for faults in a meal. I personally tip 15% by default, and only reduce it if service was significantly subpar, which happens perhaps 10% of the time.
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Old Aug 6, 2015, 1:08 am
  #25  
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Originally Posted by cbn42
Yup, Washington is one of the few states with a minimum wage even higher than California. Most of the states that do not allow tip credits are on the west coast.

Here is the minimum wage for tipped and untipped employees in each state. http://www.dol.gov/whd/state/tipped.htm



I would hope that no one is encouraging people to look for faults in a meal. I personally tip 15% by default, and only reduce it if service was significantly subpar, which happens perhaps 10% of the time.
Yup,about on a par with my tipping standards.
I dropped a 25% tip on a meal last week because it was so good, the waiter performed superbly despite the restaurant being understaffed and I had most of the second bottle of red.😁
But I see no point in,lemming-like,handing my hard-earned moolah over to someone who patently isn't working hard enough.
Maybe some people have lower expectations or are simply too timid to speak their mind when confronted with crap service.
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Old Aug 6, 2015, 6:07 am
  #26  
 
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Is the 15 - 20% tip,. before or after tax?
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Old Aug 6, 2015, 7:08 am
  #27  
 
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Originally Posted by Clint Bint
I see no point in,lemming-like,handing my hard-earned moolah over to someone who patently isn't working hard enough.
All too often, though, people take out all their dissatisfactions about a restaurant experience, not simply what the server is directly responsible for, on the server, by withholding a tip in situations where base server wage is low and other employees are salaried.


Originally Posted by Clint Bint
Maybe some people have lower expectations or are simply too timid to speak their mind when confronted with crap service.
And the responsibility rests squarely on the shoulders of the owner/manager who has done inadequate training, does not understand how to keep up the morale of his team, or is perhaps keeping around under-performing servers as a free cleaning service (called "side work"). Don't tip the manager.


Btw, just saw an article saying most workers in regular 8 hour/day jobs get about 3 hours of work done/day. But servers are expected to perform at 110% for their whole work period.

Last edited by VidaNaPraia; Aug 6, 2015 at 7:14 am
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Old Aug 6, 2015, 9:06 am
  #28  
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Originally Posted by VidaNaPraia
All too often, though, people take out all their dissatisfactions about a restaurant experience, not simply what the server is directly responsible for, on the server, by withholding a tip in situations where base server wage is low and other employees are salaried.
Nonsense.
A restaurant " experience " consists of three things - a server taking your order, a cook cooking it and the server bringing it to your table.
It ain't rocket science and if a person can't recognise when a server is bad and not the cook then they must have the brains of a rocking horse.
Bad server = bad tip.
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Old Aug 6, 2015, 7:40 pm
  #29  
 
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While I too wish tipping would just go away here in the US but since it's not I basically break tips into three ranges for servers.

15% - the server does what you'd expect.
20+% - The server goes above what I'd consider average service namely when it comes to clearing empty dishes and refilling drinks without having to flag them down. The better the service the better the tip.

If the service is sub-par I'll usually tip a flat 10%. If it's really, really bad they get nothing and I speak with the manager on duty before leaving. Thankfully I've only ever had to do this twice that I can remember.


Originally Posted by themrock
Is the 15 - 20% tip,. before or after tax?
I always tip based off the pre-tax subtotal.
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Old Aug 6, 2015, 9:05 pm
  #30  
 
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Originally Posted by VidaNaPraia
Which still doesn't change the facts. It is what it is; the USA, not Europe. A tip is a large part of how the valet gets paid. (While you're at it about "policy", good or bad, can you lobby for 6 weeks paid vacation for all workers in the US, just like the Germans get?)
Which Germans get 6 weeks vacation? It's something between 22 and 30 days.. hence max 4 weeks. Get your facts straight .
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