Join Early Retirement Today
Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 11-14-2009, 09:38 AM   #21
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
73ss454's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2004
Location: LaLa Land
Posts: 4,698
Quote:
Originally Posted by Moemg View Post
I look at the waitress and if she's a student,someone who looks down on her luck or an older woman I leave more . I feel this is my way to give back . Otherwise $1 to $2 a person.
That's funny, you can look at people and know if they need money. I would guess that anyone doing that job would need the money, but that's just me. I try to tip based on the service but always leave a good tip.
73ss454 is offline   Reply With Quote
Join the #1 Early Retirement and Financial Independence Forum Today - It's Totally Free!

Are you planning to be financially independent as early as possible so you can live life on your own terms? Discuss successful investing strategies, asset allocation models, tax strategies and other related topics in our online forum community. Our members range from young folks just starting their journey to financial independence, military retirees and even multimillionaires. No matter where you fit in you'll find that Early-Retirement.org is a great community to join. Best of all it's totally FREE!

You are currently viewing our boards as a guest so you have limited access to our community. Please take the time to register and you will gain a lot of great new features including; the ability to participate in discussions, network with our members, see fewer ads, upload photographs, create a retirement blog, send private messages and so much, much more!

Old 11-14-2009, 11:16 AM   #22
Full time employment: Posting here.
 
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: New York
Posts: 898
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kronk View Post
How about tipping for pizza delivery? How much do you tip there?

For deliveries (not pizza, but whatever) I give $5, regardless of the size of the bill.


For the buffet I'd also do 10%.
__________________
Money's just something you need in case you don't die tomorrow.
Maurice is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-14-2009, 03:55 PM   #23
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
 
Join Date: Apr 2007
Posts: 1,305
We leave 10% for buffets. We have noticed that there are many people that don't leave anything.
__________________
Life is GREAT!
megacorp-firee is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-14-2009, 04:38 PM   #24
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Pittsburgh, PA suburbs
Posts: 1,796
If I couldn't afford to leave a couple of bucks for some minimum wage worker at a buffet, I would stay at home and eat cheese and crackers.
WhoDaresWins is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-14-2009, 08:39 PM   #25
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso)
Give me a forum ...
samclem's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: SW Ohio
Posts: 14,404
Quote:
Originally Posted by WhoDaresWins View Post
If I couldn't afford to leave a couple of bucks for some minimum wage worker at a buffet, I would stay at home and eat cheese and crackers.
If everyone stays home, wouldn't these workers be out of a job?

But, I understand your point.
samclem is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-14-2009, 09:12 PM   #26
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
thefed's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Posts: 2,203
10% is about right at a buffet...i wonder tho if they make only 2.15/hr or min wage or get a lot of tables or what? if its just 2 of us i leave 3 bucks at the golden corral if we go.....18 bucks for 2 people


i left a huge tip today at a burger joint ive been craving for months....wife thought i was nuts....just because i was so happy to eat my 10oz burger with 6 strips of bacon, dripping with cheese and grease....mmmmm

its like an instituition...fri and sat night youre gonna wait an hour or 2...good thing they have a bar. maybe only 20 tables? food is overpriced, but soooo good. cash only. want fries? costs extra. ranch to dip wings? extra. pop? comes in a can so no refills.... i was kinda put off the first time i was there but fell in love after i suffered arm fatigue from holding that burger to my face for 20 minutes....


but i must say....i'm paying for all that grease right now....
thefed is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-15-2009, 02:48 PM   #27
Full time employment: Posting here.
 
Join Date: Feb 2008
Posts: 920
I think a lower tip is okay at buffets, they usually have a lot more tables thus volume per person. Figure if each table left $3 and they handled six tables per hour you've got $18/hour in tips right there, although I've got no clue whether they really keep it or into a pot with the workers in the kitchen etc.
tuixiu is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-19-2009, 09:50 AM   #28
Full time employment: Posting here.
citrine's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 984
I always over tip if the service is good and tip the usual when the service is not so good, but I let the server know why. I work for tips now and it amazes me how some people leave $5 for an hour massage!
citrine is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-19-2009, 10:06 AM   #29
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso)
Give me a forum ...
 
Join Date: Nov 2007
Posts: 7,746
Quote:
Originally Posted by citrine View Post
I work for tips now and it amazes me how some people leave $5 for an hour massage!
Is that amount low for a massage? That is almost minimum wage (the tip alone). I wouldn't think it was low, never having paid for a massage before. I mean if you are paying $40-60/hr for a massage, at least a substantial part of that is going straight to the masseuse I would assume.

But again, tipping is weird, strange, bizarre. I'd rather just know the price up front, and if something isn't worth the price, I'd complain and never do business there again, or negotiate a price I'm willing to pay if the list price is close to the value I receive.
__________________
Retired in 2013 at age 33. Keeping busy reading, blogging, relaxing, gaming, and enjoying the outdoors with my wife and 3 kids (8, 13, and 15).
FUEGO is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-19-2009, 10:56 AM   #30
Full time employment: Posting here.
citrine's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2007
Posts: 984
Well depends on where you are practicing....some clinics give the therapist 15-18 dollars per hour massage and the rest is via tip. Spas usually give 35% but you have to be a cleaning slave during the hours you are not working. Private therapists don't require a tip since they keep the entire amount and charge anywhere from $65-$95 an hour.
citrine is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-20-2009, 04:35 AM   #31
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
Rambler's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2007
Posts: 2,487
Here in JP the waiter would chase you down with the money you left on the table for him. In some countries in Europe you don't tip, and do in others. It is next to impossible to remember all of the cultural differences, so if I see a gratuity on the bill, I will never leave a tip. If not, I think about it, and leave something (or not) depending on the service. One place recently included a gratuity on the bill (18%) and then had a line on the bill where you could add additional gratuity ( I didn't, the service was mediocre). All I could think was..."what nerve, to bill an 18% gratuity and then ask for more"...

As for buffets in the states, I have rarely left anything more than a buck a plate, unless the service was really good, and with a smile.

R
__________________
Find Joy in the Journey...
Rambler is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-20-2009, 09:18 AM   #32
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso)
Give me a forum ...
 
Join Date: Jul 2006
Posts: 11,401
The last time I visited a restaurant they brought the electronic register to the table and the screen offered options for tipping including 15%, a dollar amount, or a wildcard. I chose 15%, which turned out to be marginally more than what I would have estimated. (Normally I tend to choose an approximation that rounds it out to an even dollar number).

There are now quite a few restaurants whose gimmick is that you choose to pay what you believe the meal is worth. Apparently initial results suggest that customers pay more than the restaurant would have put on the menu.
Meadbh is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-20-2009, 09:59 AM   #33
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
DangerMouse's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Silicon Valley
Posts: 1,812
I would tip the usual 15% even at a buffet. They often give better service than at regular service as they are not all over you asking how your meal is in the hope that you will give a fatter tip.

Pizza, I will always give a couple of dollars on the infrequent occasion that we get delivery. However, if my pizza was $15 I would probably give $20 and tell them to keep the change.
__________________

I be a girl, he's a boy. Think I maybe FIRED since July 08. Mid 40s, no kidlets. Actually am totally clueless as to what is going on with DH.
DangerMouse is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-20-2009, 11:12 AM   #34
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso)
Give me a forum ...
 
Join Date: May 2008
Posts: 5,214
Quote:
But again, tipping is weird, strange, bizarre. I'd rather just know the price up front, and if something isn't worth the price, I'd complain and never do business there again, or negotiate a price I'm willing to pay if the list price is close to the value I receive.

Fuego,

I can totally relate to your sentiment.
tmm99 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-20-2009, 02:44 PM   #35
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso)
Give me a forum ...
mickeyd's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: South Texas~29N/98W Just West of Woman Hollering Creek
Posts: 6,673
I'm just back from spending a while in what Mexico call Riviera Maya and every time I turned around someone in our group was tipping somebody for something. For example, we went to Coba ruins and hired an English speaking guide for about $30. He gave great info and was a nice Mayan host. One in our group also gave him an extra 100 pesos ($7.50) after the 1 hour tour. I asked why since $30 is a lot of cash to these folks. The response ~ "He seems like a nice guy". I had no problem with this, I'm just sayin...
__________________
Part-Owner of Texas

Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read. Groucho Marx

In dire need of: faster horses, younger woman, older whiskey, more money.
mickeyd is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2009, 05:49 PM   #36
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
thefed's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Posts: 2,203
think twice about not tipping:

Couple arrested for not tipping waitress | WOAI.COM: San Antonio News
thefed is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2009, 06:02 PM   #37
Moderator Emeritus
CuppaJoe's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: At The Cafe
Posts: 6,873
Quote:
Originally Posted by thefed View Post
The restaurant could call it a fee for a large group rather than gratuity.
CuppaJoe is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2009, 06:16 PM   #38
Administrator
Alan's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: N. Yorkshire
Posts: 34,122
For pizza delivery I used to give a minimum of 15%, usually more (can't remember the last time I had a pizza delivered).

Out of country I try to research what is expected. For example when I went to India for 2 weeks on business the travel guide said to tip every one including the laundry walla - it also said to bear in mind that a dollar was a lot of money to a typical Indian in the service industry so don't get obsessed with percentages.

In Europe, even though gratuity is usually included, I will give a tip if the service is particularly good.
__________________
Retired in Jan, 2010 at 55, moved to England in May 2016
Enough private pension and SS income to cover all needs
Alan is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2009, 07:13 PM   #39
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
 
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Indialantic FL
Posts: 1,330
Quote:
Originally Posted by citrine View Post
I always over tip if the service is good and tip the usual when the service is not so good, but I let the server know why. I work for tips now and it amazes me how some people leave $5 for an hour massage!
I may over tip for exceptional service, but if the service is poor, the tip is poor.

Jim
__________________
JimnJana
"The four most dangerous words in investing are 'This time it's different.'" - Sir John Templeton
jimnjana is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2009, 07:20 PM   #40
Thinks s/he gets paid by the post
 
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Indialantic FL
Posts: 1,330
Quote:
Originally Posted by mickeyd View Post
I'm just back from spending a while in what Mexico call Riviera Maya and every time I turned around someone in our group was tipping somebody for something. For example, we went to Coba ruins and hired an English speaking guide for about $30. He gave great info and was a nice Mayan host. One in our group also gave him an extra 100 pesos ($7.50) after the 1 hour tour. I asked why since $30 is a lot of cash to these folks. The response ~ "He seems like a nice guy". I had no problem with this, I'm just sayin...
We just got back from a resort in Mexico, we had the "all-inclusive" option at the resort. We were told that tipping was "included" and not expected. We found that we didn't get decent service, the wait staff hovered around the folks that were peso paying customers first.

Tipping guides etc on tours is generally expected and appreciated. Unless you toured with a self employed guide, he/her did not pocket the $30. I read an article that the minimum wage in Mexico is 52 pesos per DAY.

Jim
__________________
JimnJana
"The four most dangerous words in investing are 'This time it's different.'" - Sir John Templeton
jimnjana is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Tipping Sweetlip Other topics 74 05-11-2008 06:21 PM
Tipping Question mickeyd Other topics 30 11-14-2007 08:23 PM
Tipping TromboneAl Other topics 30 11-21-2005 06:15 AM
The tipping point: When to get out Traveler Other topics 29 05-05-2004 05:22 PM

» Quick Links

 
All times are GMT -6. The time now is 05:08 AM.
 
Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.