Why do I feel guilty that I didn't tip when the service was crap?
I hate when I go out to eat and the service was terrible and I still feel the need to tip. I kind of get embarrassed when the waiter/waitress is staring at the same screen you are when you pass back the debit/credit device. I shouldn't be embarrassed but I am. I can't help it. I usually over tip because I feel for them.
I use to be a waitress for several years and I have to say I kind of expected a tip. I only ever got $8/ hour plus tip so I really relied on those tips to get some money.
I felt that serving wasn't worth the money although some nights I brought home $230 a night plus my wage. Everything about being a server was difficult.
I certainly respect them.. usually I respect them that is, until tonight. I don't know why I got so offended when this waitress was rude to me. She wasn't helpful at all. Apparently she is on thin ice and soon to be fired as she excepts phone calls in the bathroom when she is waiting on tables.
I got the bill and I knew from that point that I had no intentions of giving her a tip. She never asked if we wanted a refill or even cleaned up our plates. One of the waitresses that I use to work with came over and kindly took our plates away and asked if we needed a desert menu.
Should I feel guilty that I didn't tip her anything?
It also makes me mad that some places include the gratuity into the bill. What is with that? What if I hate the service, would I have to pay anyway?
How do you feel about tips?
I made an official response on my blog at http://my.opera.com/Sting/blog/re-to-tip-or-not-to-tip
ReplyDeleteThanks!
IaN
I would like to comment on the grammar on this website. Someone might describe it to be stupendous. Yet others? Atrocious. Some might even think that it is the work of someone who has the alphabet taped on her desk.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure where I stand. I would, however, like to suggest some simple things.. like capitalizing the first letter of a sentence, and making use of conjunctions like the "and" and prepositions like "this" and "that".
Holy Crap!
ReplyDeleteI just got a phone call from the REAL Leslie Star!
She called me an asshole for what I wrote on this blog!
For those that have always wondered just what Leslie Star sounds like, it's a cross between a rabbit and a rooster.
I agree with most of what was said here, but keep in mind that nearly every restaurant server has to pay a tip out percentage on the amount of total sales every day worked(usually at least 5% if not 10%+)..
ReplyDeleteIn other words, if you don't tip at all, they actually take a loss for serving you and end up paying out of their own pocket for you to eat. Also many restaurants force the servers to pay out a % of their tips to other staff such as the cooks, hosts etc.. So by stiffing the server, you are basically saying the food was garbage was well.
Skipping the tip should only be done if service was EXTREMELY poor and you have 0 plans to return to that particular restaurant EVER. If you decide to go back, be prepared to have a fresh pube salad, with a side of Jizz. I know a ton of servers, they have a hard life, it's a hard job to deal with with extremely rude customers all day.. and if they get stiffed.. They never forget.
In the end, some days servers can make a killing, but 95% of the time they end up making minimum wage +$20-40 bucks.. Really crap for the shit they put up with.
I would agree with:
-0% tip atrocious food/service, never plan to come back.
-15% minimum tip, poor service, dislike server but plan to come back.
-20-25%+ Really enjoyed the service/food plan to return.
Good article overall.
Thanks for your comments guys!
ReplyDelete