Tipping at a buffet

[Stormy Kromer]

Hi All,

I'm not a cheapskate, I usually tip 20% or so to the nearest dollar when at a restaurant or club. Often more if the prices are lower, the servers work just as hard as if the prices were higher.

I took DW to a buffet the other day and they included on the tab a gratuity option of 18%. This is a run of the mill buffet where you serve yourself and staff takes away your plates. I think it ran $13 a plate for each to give you an idea. ( I know, I said I wan't a cheapskate, but it wasn't like it was her birthday or our anniversary, just a great Chinese place in a small town).

I don't know the rule of thumb, but I usually leave a couple bucks a piece for a tip at a buffet, I've never seen the 18% recommendation on the check before. I respect the workers and would rather be able to stuff some cash directly in their pocket if I could.

I don't get out much, what do you all see and consider reasonable at a buffet ?

 

[samclem]

I usually do the same--if it is a buffet and they are clearing the tables well and bringing drinks, etc, I'll leave about 10%.

If the restaurant also serves food made to order, maybe the "suggestion" on the ticket is just left over from that?

I would not choose to add 18% for a buffett, especially if the house "recommended" it. I resent those reminders.

And I favor adding the tip to the charge card bill, that way the server is more likely to pay tax on it (as is required anyway, this makes it easier for them to stay above board) and I get the small cash back from the card company.

 

[harley]

I tip 15-20% at a buffet. The servers clear plates, bring drinks, and do pretty much everything a regular server does except bring the food. When you add in the effort in keeping the buffet filled and clean I think the workers are doing at least as much work as a regular server does. Although if it's a low end buffet (I usually won't eat there) I probably would drop the tip to 10-15%. I don't pay any attention to the suggestions on the bill, so they don't bother me. Except I do dislike that they "suggest" a tip % based on having the tax added in. I tip on the meal amount, not the tax.

 

[Bamaman]

10% is adequate unless special attention was received.

 

[ghsebldr]

I'm not big on the auto gratuity after having been burned at Crab Shack. I didn't
study my check to see if the tip was already included thinking the % was a suggestion. I typically tip 30% or so for really good service and she was really good. So good in fact she forgot to mention the auto grat. and ended up with $80 on a $150 check. I now study my guest checks.


I have been reading "tales from your server" a forum on reddit for a couple of years now and after the horror stories I always overtip to make up for the stiffs.

 

[RobbieB]

The only buffet I attend is the Mongolian BBQ. I toss a buck in the cooks bin and I tell the clerk to keep the change on a $9.50 check. So a buck and a half on nine and a half.

 

[harley]

So, like I said, 15-20%.

 

[Independent]

Timely question. I was at a Chinese buffet last night with the grandsons. This was my first buffet in a number of years. I wondered about tipping. I took a guess at 10%, figuring less service than a full service restaurant.

Afterwards, I thought about all the dirty plates she cleared along the way, and the times she was back to refill drinks.

This looked like a family business. The only person working the dining room appeared to be an owner.

 

[CardsFan]

I go out for lunch 1-2 times a month with a group of retirees from MegaCorp. Usually 10-16 of us, and we ask for separate checks. We frequent the same 6-7 places, so they know the group. The only place that adds a tip is a Mongolian Buffet (I think they add 15%). I think they do it because so many people leave little to nothing at a buffet, so it is standard practice. I don't have a problem, but hope the money actually goes to the workers, and not the "house".

While the other places mostly have a standard policy of automatic tip for large groups, the servers have figured out that they do much better leaving it off.

 

[brett]

Don't assume that the staff are getting all of that 'gratuity'. It is not unusual for some restaurants to rake off part of the tips.

 

[Aerides]

I also don't like "included" tipping, but I still tip on buffets the same as ala carte.

The server still has to come to your table, take your drinks order, and bring those (even if just water). They have to clear your table usual a bunch more, and the actual leg work of back and forth is the same as ala carte.

Of course, part of that is because I waited tables in college. And I worked both styles. Buffets were just as much work, but customers were cheaper, and checks were smaller. Getting $4 from a table of 4 that sat and did all-you-can-eat for 2 hours, while refilling their water 3x and coffee twice, and getting Helen her "unseasoned" shrimp instead of the ones on the buffet (oh for no charge of course), yeah... made my night.

 

[CaptTom]

I tip 15-20% at a buffet. The servers clear plates, bring drinks, and do pretty much everything a regular server does except bring the food. When you add in the effort in keeping the buffet filled and clean I think the workers are doing at least as much work as a regular server does. Although if it's a low end buffet (I usually won't eat there) I probably would drop the tip to 10-15%. I don't pay any attention to the suggestions on the bill, so they don't bother me. Except I do dislike that they "suggest" a tip % based on having the tax added in. I tip on the meal amount, not the tax.

I guess it depends on the place.

To me, 10% at a buffet is the starting point. Without having to take orders and bring out the food, the server does about half the work and therefore gets about twice as many customers assigned. Half of 20% is 10%.

If they bring any special orders or otherwise go above and beyond, the server will get more.

It's not usually the servers who fill the buffet, and sometimes they don't even bus the tables. Kitchen staff rarely get tips, and bus staff only sometimes get a cut from the server's tips. Not saying that's good or bad, just the way the system is set up.

Every case is different. If they work harder, or have fewer customers, or the price is lower, or I don't order drinks, I'll increase the tip. If I bring up the dirty dishes myself, fill my own drinks at the buffet line, and check out at the register, maybe no tip is in order.

You not only have to watch whether they add the tip, but also how they calculate the "suggested" amounts. I tip well, and always round up, but I won't pay a tip on the tax.

 

[cathy63]

Don't assume that the staff are getting all of that 'gratuity'. It is not unusual for some restaurants to rake off part of the tips.

That's been illegal since at least 2011 (which is not to say it doesn't happen, but the employees could file wage theft complaints if it did). There was a big brouhaha last year when the DoL tried to make it legal again, but congress overruled them and wrote the prohibition into a bill which Trump did sign.

 

[Mr._Graybeard]

I'm reminded of a "grill your own" steak place in my area -- you went to the refrigerator case, picked out your meat and had it handed to you on a plate with a pair of tongs. Beyond that point it was DiY ... except that the waitperson came over and served you some salad greens out of a big salad bowl. That seemed just weird. I could only think the restaurant was trying to find a reason for diners to leave a tip.

The place is long out of business, thankfully -- the chef was terrible!

 

[braumeister]

There is an Oriental buffet near us that is actually very good. The custom is to take your check up to the desk when you're done and pay it there.

Since the employees all do a good job and are quite attentive (as in very ready to bring me another beer when I'm ready for one), I like to leave a generous tip in cash on the table. Whoever took care of us during our visit will be the one clearing the table, so I know where the money is going.

I'm sure some people add a tip to the bill when they bring it up, but I just pay in cash and tell the cashier to keep the change.

 

[Walt34]

It's rare that we go to a buffet and I'd always thought 10% was the appropriate tip. Aerides' perspective has made me rethink that so I guess I'll go to 15% or perhaps more.

 

[harley]

It's not usually the servers who fill the buffet, and sometimes they don't even bus the tables. Kitchen staff rarely get tips, and bus staff only sometimes get a cut from the server's tips. Not saying that's good or bad, just the way the system is set up.

That's not true for the most part in a buffet type environment. Tips are shared between everybody, they don't just go to the servers. If that was the case I'd agree with the 10% concept, but it's not. Everybody works, everybody shares. And the restaurant isn't allowed to rake off a portion, although what's legal vs. what's done isn't always the same thing.

 

[marko]

The only buffet I attend is the Mongolian BBQ. I toss a buck in the cooks bin and I tell the clerk to keep the change on a $9.50 check. So a buck and a half on nine and a half.

Robbie, this is NOT "blowing that dough"!!! You're starting to slack here buddy.

Thought for sure you were going to say you tossed them a $20.
This is very disappointing.

(just ribbing you of course)

 

[JoeWras]

A new trick has emerged - and it caused a moral dilemma for me.

I took my pastor out to lunch. While paying, the cashier spins around this HUGE screen with buttons the size of toast saying "NO TIP", "10%", "15%", "18%", "20%". Anyone within 50 ft can see my choice.

At a buffet.

My pastor is watching...

 

[jollystomper]

I normally tip about 10% or $2, whichever is more. But there are a couple of buffet places where DW has gotten very friendly with the owner and staff (they are fascinated at how well she can speak Chinese and they have many conversations, I just hope they are not talking about me ). The food is great so I will tip 15%-20% or $5 (whichever is more) at those places.

 

[MichaelB]

A new trick has emerged - and it caused a moral dilemma for me.

I took my pastor out to lunch. While paying, the cashier spins around this HUGE screen with buttons the size of toast saying "NO TIP", "10%", "15%", "18%", "20%". Anyone within 50 ft can see my choice.

At a buffet.

My pastor is watching...

Definitely not new.

I think this shows a dilemma for restaurant owners. They need application SW to manage the bill and payments. If they choose an app that omits the gratuity, their employees will probably be unhappy, which is definitely bad for business.

Some restaurant employees are considered “tipped employees” and others not, and it’s not clear or easy for us as customers to distinguish and know when to tip.

 

[Aerides]

(having worked as a waitress in a former life)

A buffet can be just as taxing, if not more, than a regular ala carte dinner. Sure, you don't have to get the order in, or deal with the kitchen and timing as much, but your dining party will invariably go thru more drinks and plates, and need timely clearing. Many buffet customers will ask their server about the absence of items, or the need to replenish, or "can I get plain shrimp instead of the one up there?" etc.

The IRS still views the tab total as the basis for taxes. It's hard work.

 

[Montecfo]

A new trick has emerged - and it caused a moral dilemma for me.

I took my pastor out to lunch. While paying, the cashier spins around this HUGE screen with buttons the size of toast saying "NO TIP", "10%", "15%", "18%", "20%". Anyone within 50 ft can see my choice.

At a buffet.

My pastor is watching...

A lot of restaurants have installed systems with these suggested tips preloaded. In many cases they can be safely ignored.

Tipping is based on tradition. Bus staff and kitchen help are not tipped positions and are not providing a personalized service. They are paid the normal wage at minimum. Tipping for them doing the job they are paid to do is not necessary, though I'm sure it would be welcomed.

Waitstaff in most places are paid a reduced minimum wage, since these are tipped positions by tradition. I tip them generously.

At a buffet, I will definitely tip less depending on personal service provided.

Similarly, at a food counter I typically do not tip someone who handed me a cup of coffee or a muffin, despite what their system might suggest.

And I'm ok with my pastor knowing that, but I see the concern these systems needlessly place on the customer.

 

[38Chevy454]

..........

And I'm ok with my pastor knowing that, but I see the [-]concern[/-] guilt these systems needlessly place on the customer.

FIFY, the point is to guilt you into paying a tip.

 

[Montecfo]

FIFY, the point is to guilt you into paying a tip.

I think it is more complicated than that, but I'm sure it has that effect.

Even places that don't do table service ( and thus have no tipped employees) seem to leave the stock "suggestions" in place. I'm pretty sure they could change those to some more appropriate targets, and probably make everyone happier.