Big Tipping

[Flemmy Stardust]

i make sure i always tip 20%. i dont mind going as high as 25-30% but i only do that for people that i know or people that hooked me up in some way.

there used to be this hot bartender that me and my friends would tip up to 100%, but she was giving us at least 50% off on our tab.

 

[Bukowski82]

i make sure i always tip 20%. i dont mind going as high as 25-30% but i only do that for people that i know or people that hooked me up in some way.

there used to be this hot bartender that me and my friends would tip up to 100%, but she was giving us at least 50% off on our tab.

This is also the only unfairness that happens with me as well. Doesn't matter how good a job a guy does... I level off with about a 30% tip for excellent service, 20% for bad or mediocre.

But a really attractive female bartender who hooked me up? That's starting at 50%.

 

[CC's left foot]

I'm a fairly big tipper and I'm wondering if there are any other big tippers here. I tend to tip my waiters about 30%. Now I'm not necessarily tipping big just because I'm a nice guy or anything, but here is my experience just in case any low pay or no pay tippers are unaware. When I go to restaraunts, they are usually restaurants with bars. When you sit in the bar area and you frequent it pretty regularly, you tend to see the same few waiters. They work there so they get discounts on food if not free food. They get to keep all their tip money usually. So when they recognize a frequent customer and a big tipper, they very often, and I've seen this occur for me at various restaraunts, will start hooking you up. There is one restaurant that I go to that I get my food completely free nearly every time and the times I don't they will charge me only for like a single soft drink. I'll go with my wife and we will order maybe 60 dollars worth of food. We get that for free, but we still tip 30% on 60 dollars so we give the waiter 18 bucks. So in total we only pay 18 bucks for our food.

Do other people have similar experiences? Are there any servers here that intentionally hook up big tippers?

This is the server stealing from the restaurant owner. They should be fired, and would be if anyone found out.

gotta love mayberry tipping threads. they come up like clockwork.

 

[MusclesMarinara]

I even tip bad servers. I usually see bad service as either inexperience or apathy. If it's inexperience, I know they are trying their best. If it's apathy, I know they hate their job and quite frankly I hate them and their apathy, but it isn't to me about rewarding or punishing them, it is about making them and because servers inform other servers about good tippers, making the other staff aware that I will tip big. Again, not because I'm some high roller as I'm not. But because I've found fairly consistently, if you gain a reputation as a big tipper, you actually end up spending less in the long run as the staff will start hooking you up. It must be a little bit how rich people feel when everyone wants to give them stuff for free.

If you frequent the same place I can see your strategy working. However I feel today's workforce is filled with apathetic workers. I can't justify rewarding that kind of behavior. Ultimately I've seen very little payback from tipping. Also I'm not a regular of any place.

One note where I've seen tipping pay off. That's with the bartender. They seem to be a different breed than the waitstaff. You can inevitably get the fourth round free.

 

[Shawn91111]

I used to work room service in hotels for a while in my 20's. My co worker brought up an order to a McDonalds Exec who was staying in the hotel and the exec who was in his 60's said " how much tip do you want" to my co worker, and my co worker said "tipping is optional, whatever you think I deserve", Exec said "how about 9 inches worth", and then tried to put $10 into my coworkers back pants pocket as he tried to leave the room.


That said, I normally tip above the normal 20%

 

[IIIIIIII]

I used to work room service in hotels for a while in my 20's. My co worker brought up an order to a McDonalds Exec who was staying in the hotel and the exec who was in his 60's said " how much tip do you want" to my co worker, and my co worker said "tipping is optional, whatever you think I deserve", Exec said "how about 9 inches worth", and then tried to put $10 into my coworkers back pants pocket as he tried to leave the room.


That said, I normally tip above the normal 20%

 

[Oblivian]

I get takeout from this pizza joint where I always tip even though it's takeout. I do this because I always say I have this discount card for a buy one get one free 12" pizza. I had that discount card years ago, but I haven't had it since. They never ask me for the card anymore, so I'm essentially saving a few bucks every time after tip. I'm sure if I didn't tip, they'd probably ask for it.

 

[odog]

These days I would never go to the same place often enough to get special treatment, although being a good tipper has paid off in the past.

There was a bar in Australia years ago where, because of my job, I would get VIP treatment. I didn't have to tip as it's not the custom there but I always did. One night the bartenders told a group of 5 hot Swedish girls that I was the owner of the bar and gave them a bunch of free drinks "on me". Since I had an empty house at the time at the end of the night the 3 bartenders and the Swedish girls came back to my place. Everyone got laid that night.

But anyways, as someone already mentioned, in TS's case it sounds like the staff is ripping off the establishment. You get free food, they get a good tip. But what does the owner get?

 

[NHB7]

To the Servers ripping off the poor owner. Yes I agree, they essentially are. The place I go to however is a large chain and the owner is certainly a super millionaire so while it is technically unethical, I don't struggle to sleep at night.

 

[KnockoutsGalore]

I always tip big. Wife and I went to a hibachi place today, tipped 15 on a 21 dollar bill.... Pay it forward friends...

 

[44nutman]

I was a bartender for 9 years so I over tip when provided good service. I have a regular bar I frequent about once every 2 weeks. The girls behind the bar get 30 to 40% pretty regular.
If I get shit service then I tip 10%. Shit service is when someone is not busy and basically don't care. IF you are busy and forget stuff or mess up, well things happen. If you act like I owe you a tip, well then 10%
If I am at a restaurant I don't know it is 20 to 30% depending on how good the service.

 

[jmadtx]

daaammmmnnn, TS is a balla.

 

[weed]

One note where I've seen tipping pay off. That's with the bartender. They seem to be a different breed than the waitstaff. You can inevitably get the fourth round free.

hyup

 

[DoctorTaco]

I'm a fairly big tipper and I'm wondering if there are any other big tippers here. I tend to tip my waiters about 30%. Now I'm not necessarily tipping big just because I'm a nice guy or anything, but here is my experience just in case any low pay or no pay tippers are unaware. When I go to restaraunts, they are usually restaurants with bars. When you sit in the bar area and you frequent it pretty regularly, you tend to see the same few waiters. They work there so they get discounts on food if not free food. They get to keep all their tip money usually. So when they recognize a frequent customer and a big tipper, they very often, and I've seen this occur for me at various restaraunts, will start hooking you up. There is one restaurant that I go to that I get my food completely free nearly every time and the times I don't they will charge me only for like a single soft drink. I'll go with my wife and we will order maybe 60 dollars worth of food. We get that for free, but we still tip 30% on 60 dollars so we give the waiter 18 bucks. So in total we only pay 18 bucks for our food.

Do other people have similar experiences? Are there any servers here that intentionally hook up big tippers?

All servers do it, though most aren't so generous, usually just a drink or appetizer. It's called a "buy back" and is a great way to get fired once management catches on.

 

[DoctorTaco]

All servers do it, though most aren't so generous, usually just a drink or appetizer. It's called a "buy back" and is a great way to get fired once management catches on.

Fyi I tip 20-25% because I'm a service industry kid too

 

[irc]

I think what people are calling apathy is actually just ignorance. Some people are professional servers. You'll find them in the better places. They are very good at what they do and should be tipped for having a craft. It is what they do, professionally, and are not looking for another job. The 99% of other servers don't know an elbow from an asshole and are merely looking for a better job or getting through school. They only need to be tipped the base rate 15 to 20% under almost any circumstance. They don't know shit and anyone could do the job at the level they are doing it. Just ask them a question or two about anything on a menu and they'll essentially just guess, or say they need to find out from the kitchen. Its ridiculous. You'll also find that these are, as a group, the people in the service industry that consider themselves martyrs when it comes to tipping.

I used to work at a place where before each service the managers would gather the servers and grill the fuck out of them on both the menu and the wine list. The menu would change all the time, so they were constantly going through this.

 

[Tycho- Taylor's Version]

15-20%

I guess that makes me an average tipper. You've got to be a douche to get less than that, and I'm too poor to give you more than that even if you're awesome.

Sums it up for me.

As an occasional server I'll definitely put more effort into the service if I know the tip is going to be good, but that's a far cry from "hooking anyone up".

Maybe when I'm richer I'll try this out at a few regular spots.

 

[Tycho- Taylor's Version]

I think what people are calling apathy is actually just ignorance. Some people are professional servers. You'll find them in the better places. They are very good at what they do and should be tipped for having a craft. It is what they do, professionally, and are not looking for another job. The 99% of other servers don't know an elbow from an asshole and are merely looking for a better job or getting through school. They only need to be tipped the base rate 15 to 20% under almost any circumstance. They don't know shit and anyone could do the job at the level they are doing it. Just ask them a question or two about anything on a menu and they'll essentially just guess, or say they need to find out from the kitchen. Its ridiculous. You'll also find that these are, as a group, the people in the service industry that consider themselves martyrs when it comes to tipping.

I used to work at a place where before each service the managers would gather the servers and grill the fuck out of them on both the menu and the wine list. The menu would change all the time, so they were constantly going through this.

That's a pretty interesting distinction you're making there. I haven't worked in the service industry for long but at least in my workplace it's less clear-cut. The lifers are good at what they do because they've been doing it forever -- but the skills aren't anything special. The university students are more than often just as capable.

I doubt there are many places where serving food is so professionalized that anyone moderately intelligent couldn't master it in a short time.

 

[Poser Caust]

I usually tip according to the hotness level of my waitress and how well she responds to my inappropriate sexual comments.

 

[CC's left foot]

To the Servers ripping off the poor owner. Yes I agree, they essentially are. The place I go to however is a large chain and the owner is certainly a super millionaire so while it is technically unethical, I don't struggle to sleep at night.

So it's OK to steal as long as the victim is richer than you?

Likewise, I guess it's OK for bums or hood rats to steal anything they want from you as long as they think you are richer than them?