tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21129017.post5748001508318746515..comments2023-06-26T07:00:01.325-07:00Comments on Horny for Food: Tipping: What You Need To KnowDavid J.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/10674549768577714570noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21129017.post-27750171570593620512007-11-21T11:03:00.000-08:002007-11-21T11:03:00.000-08:00Tipping has been 15%-20% for as long as I have bee...Tipping has been 15%-20% for as long as I have been dining. I remember "doubling tax" at Chili's when I was in high school.There's no "starting to creep up" about it. Things have crept already.<BR/><BR/>I wouldn't expect everyone to agree with me, and obviously tipping is entirely discretionary, but if one wants to function within this tipped service construct that we exist in, then know that this is what's expected overall by those who are serving you.<BR/><BR/>I always expect lower tips when I'm overworked. I just don't tip that way personally. I just want to encourage people to take note of their surroundings. Is your service WORSE or is it LESS ATTENTIVE. Less attentive (on a busy night), in my mind, deserves less of a gratuity ding than bad service.<BR/><BR/>I don't think there's some great conspiracy out there "forcing" gratuities to be higher. I think that a range of 10%-20% has always been the normal spread for gratuity for as long as I've known, and more and more people are tipping in the 15%-20% range to establish that as the expected standard.<BR/><BR/>What caused that? The long term bull market we've had since the early 1980's? Dot com big spending generosity? A general improvement in dining quality (particularly in the Bay Area) in the last decade and a half? I don't know. Just know that enough people tip 18%-20% on a regular basis to establish a degree of expectation of a tip in that range for attentive service.<BR/><BR/>I always tip my baristas. And since I feel cheap leaving coins, usually I tip a full dollar on a $2-$3 purchase.<BR/><BR/>20% forced gratuity for a party of six is pretty rare. That's usually reserved for exceptionally large parties and/or parties with unusual pre-arranged service demands. I've never heard of a restaurant adding a percent gratuity after tax. Perhaps CDLP is taking advantage of its location to exploit power lunches and corporate expense accounts.<BR/><BR/>What the main thrust of my argument was meant to be was that it's important to treat gratuity for what it is, something discretionary. So carefully calculated rote exact percentage tipping (whether it's exactly 10% or exactly 20%)removes the level of human engagement between the customer and the service staff. So round up, roughly decimate, all that good stuff.<BR/><BR/>For what it's worth, Michael Bauer tipped 20%.David J.D.https://www.blogger.com/profile/10674549768577714570noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21129017.post-28675063020001559742007-11-20T15:59:00.000-08:002007-11-20T15:59:00.000-08:00This and that:Given that nobody but restaurant cri...This and that:<BR/><BR/>Given that nobody but restaurant critics are operaring in a professional capacity when eating, you'd think amateur would be the standard. When the restaurant pays me they can expect "professional" behavior from me.<BR/><BR/>I am not sure why tipping standards are starting to creep up from 10-15% to 15-20%. Perhaps restaurants are banking on most customers not having the education to understand that percentages don't need to increase to keep pace with inflation.<BR/><BR/>Cafe de la Presse gave us a 20% forced "gratuity" on a six person party, which is lame already given the thoroughly normal service level provided, but it was 20% of the after-tax amount. Ha ha, very funny guys, a tax on the unobservant. So we pointed it out, and all the server could say was "that's how we do it." Jesus. See you on Yelp, bitches.<BR/><BR/>If a server is busy at many tables and my service is worse because of it, why shouldn't my tip reflect the service I am receiving? If he's working more tables, he's getting more tips anyhow.<BR/><BR/>I worked at the Starbucks next to Cal. Tips were shitty, worst of any Starbucks in the area. It sucked, and we of course would have liked more. In some abstract sense, forgetting that the money in question actually belongs to a person who has every right to keep it, maybe we deserved bigger tips. But we weren't entitled to them, and we were fucking ADULTS about it, which meant doing our best no matter what kind of tips we were getting. If you're not mature enough to scrape by as a Starbucks barista, well, you're in trouble even if I do feel socially pressured into giving you fat wads of my money as a reward for nothing in particular.<BR/><BR/>I double tax as a guide when lazy, and so long as I live in CA I don't see the problem with it. When I am not lazy I compute 15% by decimating, halving, and tripling. And you should be grateful to have customers dumb enough to have to do math on the bill; those are the ones too dumb to know percentages shouldn't be increasing as the years pass.<BR/><BR/>Of course, I am appreciative of adequate, good, and great service, and tip accordingly (like I goddamn feel like tipping, since it's my money, although it's 12-20% depending.Zackhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02099926117524402770noreply@blogger.com