Tipping

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....
 
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.
 
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 said:
I work for tips now and it amazes me how some people leave $5 for an hour massage!
Click to expand...

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.
 
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.
 
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
 
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.
 
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.
 
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.
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Fuego,

I can totally relate to your sentiment.
 
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...
 
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.
 
citrine said:
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!
Click to expand...

I may over tip for exceptional service, but if the service is poor, the tip is poor.

Jim
 
mickeyd said:
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...
Click to expand...

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
 
My family had Thanksgiving at a Supper Club buffet. There was a disagreement among family members as to what to leave for a tip, if anything. My mother insisted we leave $20 since there were 20 of us. Some people felt a tip was unnecessary at a buffet while others just thought $20 was excessive. It came out to just under 10% but we were only there for 1 hour and the person got $20 just from us. I think she had about 10 tables she was responsible for. She must've made $100+/hr.
 
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