Today I was thinking while getting ready. When do you tip? I mean really. Sit down restaurants where you have a server fetch and carry for you? Heck yes. Cab drivers? Sure, but not at the same rate. Hair stylists? OK but because I go to a nice salon, also you kind of should, shouldn't you? Movers and furniture deliverymen? Yes, but only because I was told you should, and I try to give them water and pop if it is hot and coffee if it is cold. Pizza and food delivery guys? Yes, but it depends on the delivery fee for me. If they have an exorbitant delivery fee, then the delivery guy gets a smaller tip (even though I know it is not his fault), so somewhere between a buck or two and five bucks. Baristas? Mostly no. Maybe a quarter, but mostly no. Not quite fast food places that kind of are fast food but like nicer quality fast food? Not if I stand in a line and am herded cattle like quickly through my choices (Yes, I am looking at you Chipotle) and maybe if it is a little mom and pop shop that remembers my name and my favorites (Hi there Hueys Hot Dogs in A-Ville).
And then I wondered, am I wrong? I mean I try to give a good tip to servers and bartenders, but in both cases their effort and diligence and skill complete my dining experience. I want my hairstylist not to aaccidentally shave my head. But is a barista at your local Starbucks the same as a bartender? Should they get tips? And where is the line? Because in part servers get tips because it is assumed to be part of their wage which is why they aren't paid a ton hourly. And it behooves both the restaurant and the server to angle for things that will return big tips--good service, big ticket items, more drinks. It is mutally beneficial and rewards success and good behavior (well it should). But Chipotle? Starbucks? I don't know. What do you guys think? And what would cause you to not tip or under tip in a situation where you normally would? How crazy would that cabby have to be? How bad a haircut? What constitutes tip docking worthy poor restaurant service?
For me, if they come get my order reasonably well, if the food comes out in a usual amount of time, and if I get drinks they get a regular tip (if there was some wait or some delay but not a crazy amount then they maybe get 15% instead of 20%). They basically can only go up. If they give me a good reccomendation, they get some more dough. Same if they are attentive or bring me something extra. If I have crazy requests and they do them they get at least 20% no matter how awful they may otherwise behave. If they do all of this and pretend it was easy they can find themselves at 25% and up. Also, if I have a little tab, I always way over tip. Like if it is summer and I get like a few tacos and some water for lunch or a sandwich and water (because of dehydration, let's face it probably it would be alcohol but in case of not), and my bill comes to like $6-8. I might drop only $10 for the $6 tab and maybe add a buck or two extra, but I am going to drop $15 for the $8. I mean with a tiny tab, the fact that they would treat me just the same as that table having appetizers and guac and entrees and dessert and lots of alcoholic drinks when clearly they are going to get a way smaller return on their investment, they deserve at least a 50% tip and probably closer to a 100%. If you can't afford to tip on what you eat, go to McDonalds.
6 comments:
If I have to stand in a line, then carry my own food away, I'm not tipping. Exceptions can be made at our local coffeeshop, because we go there often. But not Starbucks or Chipotle.
And I don't think 20% is standard. About 15 is.
15 is my standard, meaning I got food, I got ordered, I got refills, and I never felt like I had to find someone to do that but I maybe came close to wondering what the heck was going on and where they are. Anything more than that gets rewarded somewhere between 16 and 20% (often dependent on the bill so I round to like 20 instead of 19 or somehting like that). It gets closer to 20% the more effortless and on it they are.
That sounds to me like a quite sensible approach to tipping. I, too, have issues with tipping barristas. Even though I always feel judged when I don't do it. (Which is most of the time.)
Oh. And now that I have read the comments, I wanted to point out that 10%-15% is the American breakfast/lunch standard, while %20is closer to what's expected for a dinner tip.
i like that you accomplish a lot in the bathroom. i've always felt that the bathroom was a sacred space. but it's also because i fully believe that it was the best invention ever.
that said--i always tip 20%--unless the service warranted something else. i'm not sure why--i just feel like that extra 5% won't hurt me--but it could mean a big difference to the staff there.
however--i have left a 25 cent tip with a note attached saying "here's a quarter--call for help" before. it made a lot more sense when people still had to use a quarter for the payphones...
oh. and i don't tip baristas much of anything--just throw whatever change i got back into the jar--unless they were really engaging.
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