Anybody here work in a restaurant?

[pub crawler]

How much do you tip the server/waiter/waitress at a restaurant?

I've been tipping 20% for the last couple of years. I used to tip a 15-18%.


If you pick up a "to go" order from a sit-down restaurant, do you leave a tip? If so, how much?

At work, we sometimes order and pick up from a sushi bar. We don't tip them. I feel kind of guilty about it 'cause the sushi chef still has to prepare the food. On the other hand, we don't get any table service. Same thing at a Chinese food place I pick up from.

But then there's one staff meeting I attend where we pick up lunch from a sit-down restaurant. We leave them a 10% tip.

How should I handle tipping when picking up a "to go" order from a sit-down restaurant?

 

[bonosloveslave]

Blah

I waitressed for 6 years, I always leave 20% minimum of the complete total (even w/ drinks, tax, etc), often more. I was always more insulted by people leaving just some change or a $1 on the table. At least if I got stiffed, I could rationalize that maybe they just forgot, but with a super crappy tip like that I would have rather chased them out to the parking lot and tell them to keep it. I have never not left a tip, even with crappy service. The other thing that annoyed me was when people would pay with a credit card and sit there for 10 minutes trying to do the math with the tip to get the final # to come out even, ie bill comes to $22.66 and they decide to make it $25 and it takes them awhile to realize that's a $2.34 tip, barely 10%

I don't regularly tip on carryouts, kitchen staff gets regular pay, not the crappy $3/hour like servers. If they are nice and are careful to get me everything I ordered and check that it's all there, I'll give them a few bucks. We tip 15% on food deliveries.


Soooo glad I'm out the restaurant biz....

 

[KhanadaRhodes]

only once have i left a shitty tip. it was me rounding up to the next dollar. believe me, it wasn't because i didn't have the money.

my husband and i were at my most favourite restaurant, pf chang's. i always have great service there. since it was summertime, we were sitting outside. the waiter only came by three times. one of those was to bring us our food! so, he brings us the check. i put like $40 in cuz i don't have enough to give exact change. so we wait a good 10 minutes for this guy to come back. as these 10 minutes pass, my husband and i are getting more and more pissed off at this guy.

while we were eating, we saw him and another waiter standing at the edge of the outside area, both with bottles of beer in hand! i don't care if they're both 30 and old enough to drink, you don't drink while you're working, especially not in front of your customers! so, after 10 minutes, he still hasn't come back to collect the check and money. i'm livid. what if i had a credit card? i usually pay with one, so he'd need to come get that. so, i just leave him what i've got, which is enough to pay the check and a tip to round it up. (it was like $24.37 and i had two twenties and a five.)

i was so angry. but i won't let that one instance prevent me from going back, because i've had excellent service before and after that incident, even though i didn't tell a manager.

 

[pub crawler]

Cool, that makes sense, bonosloveslave. Thanks.

I think I'll continue not to tip on carryouts. I just hope they don't spit in my sushi. (Seriously, I never complain before or during a meal 'cause I don't want them to sabotage my food. In fact, I never really complain at all, even when my meal sucks -- and I'll still tip 'em 15%, they just won't get the 20%).

 

[daisybean]

I remember once a bunch of us were at a bar and got crappy service (I mean she came around only once to check on us. We think she was busy with a group of businessmen ), so we only left 12%

She practically chased us out of the bar to ask why we left so low a tip, because she "works her ass off." We told her that her service was worthy of less than 15-20%, and she said "Well it's busy, I can't be everywhere." Then my sister (who is a waitress) said, "if you were worth 20% you would have been everywhere, instead of with those guys with the suits."

 

[zonelistener]

I used to work at Buca (before it went national). I still tip 18-20% and always will. I never tip for to-go food.

 

[U2SavesTheWorld]

asugo9aslkfa'

I never tip less than 20%.