Ahhhh!!! The service industry. Yes, easily one of the oldest professions in history, yet its blue collar image has caused many to frown down upon this honorable position. Let’s face it. It’s one of those jobs that have to be done. Now, not to be confused with the fast food industry; waiting tables can be a very lucrative job. Often held by students and young adults, because of the flexible schedules and fast cash options, waiting tables is seen as a stepping stone or transition into another field. Everybody in their life time has dined at a restaurant; some better then others. But what often keeps a customer patronizing that particular restaurant has to do as much with food quality as it does service. So why is it that good service does not beget good tipping practices?
Upscale and fine dining establishments such as H20 in Washington, D.C, Dolce in Los Angeles, Justin’s in New York, or even the chain of Ruth’s Chris restaurants located all over the United States, have tipping practices that have gratuity already added into the customer’s bill. Many after hours cafes and diners also use this method as late night patrons may not be inclined to leave a significant amount for a tip. Well, before we analyze these practices, first a little education. For it is education on the idea of gratuity where I think we fail to completely understand each other. Previously, waiters and waitresses have had the luxury of having a job where the IRS cannot accurately determine how much money they make in tips. A new occurence to deter this has been the implementation of declaring tips. This concept is universal and takes place in many restaurants. Servers are given the option of claiming the amount of tips that they may have received in a shift, so that can be properly credited on their pay stub. Many restaurants have it where servers cannot claim anything less then what they have made in charge tips, everything else is based on the honor code. This honor code, many are not apt to hold up. Reason being, that majority of waiters and waitresses make a whopping total of $2.13 cent an hour. Half of minimum wage. The IRS has also added a portion into tax forms specifically for those that make majority of their wages in tips. So, if you don’t claim it they can’t track it. But that too also has its reprecussions and consequences.
Ok, back to the matter at hand. $2.13 an hour. Slave wages. With inflation and the economy doing all that it can to make sure the improverished stay that way, this cannot be an ample means to sustain most people’s lifestyles. Some restaurants go above and beyond to help guide the guest to what a suitable tip should be. Some Bonefish Grill restaurants, a subsidiary of the Outback Corporation, include a suggested gratuity of 18% percent that is printed by the total price of the meal. So let’s give you a few rules to follow the next time you decide to eat out.
Rule #1
If you are on an Executive Account (meaning you get reimbursed for your meal), or you have a Corporate Card, and the service is great. You should automatically tip 20%. It’s not your money and you can write it off.
Rule #2
Do not blur the line between a servers mistake and the Kitchen cook’s mistakes. Your waitress did not undercook your steak, so please don’t take it out on them.
Rule #3
10% gratuity is for bad service and bad service only. It is never ok to tip that low amount. 15% - 18% for decent service.
Rule #4
Always treat your server with the same respect that you would want to be treated. No yelling, no snapping fingers to get their attention, and definitely no grabbing.
Rule #5
If the restaurant closes at 11pm, then you need to leave no later then 11:30pm. Servers want to go home at the end of the night too. So please don’t walk into a restaurant at 10:58pm and expect for everybody to be happy.
It would be my wish that everybody on this Earth should have to wait tables at least one weekend to really get the experience that I am speaking about. As a former waiter I would never not leave a decent tip, because I know what they have to go through. So just keep that in mind.
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ReplyDelete"Your waitress did not undercook your steak, so please don’t take it out on them."
ReplyDeleteONLY if the waitress printed the ticket incorrectly would it be the fault of the server. What I am saying is, there is a *POSSIBILITY* that the waitress can be at fault. Like if I say medium well, but you printed the ticket medium rare, who's fault is it? IT'S YOURS in that case. I will say 99.9% of the time, it's the cook's fault for a steak being undercooked, but in this case, it would be YOUR FAULT 100%. Also, let's say I order the steak well done and you bring it out with it RARE, which you can plainly see it doesn't look black and it has some blood showing on it, come on now, it's YOUR FAULT in that situation that you brought it out wrong even if the cook undercooked it, because you could tell the cook IN THE KITCHEN that the steak isn't cooked well done. When it's one extreme to another, YES, if you were to bring out a rare steak instead of a well done steak, it's YOUR FAULT 100% for bringing it to me wrong. Bringing out the wrong food that is OBVIOUSLY wrong is a mistake within itself. In that case, you'd be able to SEE that the steak wasn't black and that it had some red to it.
"It is never ok to tip that low amount."
I DISAGREE COMPLETELY. Sometimes the service sucks so badly, I've stiffed at times. I've had a server make 7 mistakes in one dining experience for just my husband and I. I'm sorry, but 7 mistakes doesn't deserve a DAMN THING. She wasn't even TRYING. She even was rude and interrupted me ordering to kiss her boyfriend bye. That made our drink orders get screwed up. I TOTALLY disagree with leaving less than 10%. If you make my evening so miserable because you aren't trying to get anything right, you ain't getting ANYTHING from me. What ever happened to EFFORT?
In response to this, all I can say is that you have no idea what it's like unless you've been a server/bartender etc. You're not tipping for the food, it's for the experience. Now mind you there are times where a server may not deserve a tip, but that's how some people make a living. Have you ever made a mistake at your job? How would you feel if your boss refused to pay you because of said mistake? Wouldn't feel good would it? If you just wanted food and nothing else, go to McDonalds. I've had several experiences where I go to a restaurant and I can see a handful of things that I could/would have done better or right due to my experience. I still tip because I know how it is to live that life. Being a server is just like being a stripper. You have to perform, be at the beck and call of others, with no guarantee that you time was worth it. Now if a server brought you a rare steak and you wanted well done....well....there just an idiot. But idiots gotta eat too. But let's take into consideration the "bitchy guest" (you know what I'm talkin bout NURA. [Don't get me started on the n*99@z!!]) No matter what you do, there's always a problem, they even find problems where there are none. There is a culture of people who will go to restaurants and complain simply because they know they can get there meal gratis or get something taken off the ticket. Now I've had moments where I knew I could've done better service and my tip reflected such, but it was still a tip. ON THE OTHER HAND, I've receive shitty or no tips at all for great service. I'd love to see someone fuck up their check. Bottom line, anyone who "stiffs" is a bastard. Point-blank. If the service is bad, get your meal for free, it doesn't really affect anyone. They throw it away at the end of the night. Humans aren't as disposable.
ReplyDelete