tipping

searching for a window to leave the tip so that the bartender knows it was /you/ who left the tip is stressful too

― noted schloar (dyao), Sunday, February 28, 2010 9:06 PM (28 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

i was going to say that this thread was like if people lived inside actual seinfeld episodes & then dyao posts this, which is a whole major subplot in the episode where george starts eating lunch every day w/ steinbrenner -- george goes to the same cazzoli place everyday & one day the cashier turns around when george puts a buck in the tip jar & george gets all nervous that the guy is gonna think he doesn't tip, so he decides to reach in & grab his dollar so he can "re-tip" and of course the guy turns around & sees george & accuses him of stealing from the tip jar & bans him from the cazzoli joint

aka yall over thinking this imo

u learn what lots of people lose and are annoying when drunk iirc

so, lots of overlap with waiting tables

like, my feeling is that if you go to a place often enough that it's pertinent that the bartender/cashier knows that you tipped they a. appreciate your constant business more than a tip & b. already know what your tipping practices are -- if it's just some random ass place then i don't think it really matters if some bartender you're never gonna see again knows if you left him one dollar

I got worried after reading that some people here tip 2 dollars on the first drink and keep on tipping in the hopes of getting a free round down the line

At busy bars I generally keep cash tips I leave within eyesight until the bartender picks it up, but that's because I'm paranoid about another patron picking it up rather than the bartender thinking I didn't tip.

^^ this too

Good god. Leave the dollar on the bar or put it in the jar. Your attitude (friendly/polite) matters way more than being seen dropping that dollar in their pocket - in the scheme of things, on a night when they'll pull down $100-250, a bartender doesn't care all that much about your individual tip.

I run a tab most places. Solves many headaches.

At the shady club I've helped out for (ugh) almost two years now, we had to chain the tip jars to the bar, people kept stealing them.

I got worried after reading that some people here tip 2 dollars on the first drink and keep on tipping in the hopes of getting a free round down the line

― noted schloar (dyao), Monday, March 1, 2010 1:05 AM (7 hours ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

i usually tip $2 on the first drink just cuz thats how i was "taught" to tip, not cause i expect a free round! tho i guess i figure it cant hurt. but if the bar is so busy that the bartender really wont be able to tell that the dollar bill that you left on the bar right where you just ordered a drink is from you, then its too busy for a free drink

lol at relying on a job to teach you how to be a nice and charming person

haha this is sort of what happened with my brother at his first service job. him: "i've invented a MASK. i smile and act polite no matter WHAT i'm really feeling and people only see the FAKE IMAGE i produce. it's so deceptive." me: "yeah, it's called manners, great skill to develop." him: "but...it's...COMPLETELY INSINCERE!" me: "you think anyone cares how you actually feel?"

heh my brother's just turned 30 and hasn't quite grasped that the awful HYPOCRISY of it all is actually what most people consider 'growing up, dealing'

Best is when you order two $4 drinks, give the bartender a $10, and then just silently walk away while their back is turned.

>>“Do you need change?”

>>Funny you should ask, because I just gave you a $10 bill, and my latte and raspberry scone came to $5.75.

that is a little ridiculous, I don't think I have ever had a server ask that in such a situation.

I think this is just a habitual question that servers ask, not wanting to be presumptuous one way or the other. Not worth getting worked up over, IMO.

better phrase: I'll be right back with your change. This gives them the opportunity to stop you and say keep it, without being presumptuous.

No, if someone orders coffee and a scone, you give them their change. No stupid funny games. If they were going to give you a $4.25 tip, I'm sure they would do it even if you handed them change back.

Also, My everyday calculations are pretty simple: 20% for dinner, $1 per drink, $2-3-4 for food delivery (depending on size and some weird perceived difficulty of deliver), 15-20% or whatever I have for cabs.
You probably have this down better than most Americans! I am constantly having to explain to people that 15% for food is kind of a slap in the face these days.

disagree

i dont think anyone has ever actually asked if he wanted change after he bought a scone with a ten

It just occurred to me that I always tip on the total (incl tax) at restaurants...do other people just tip on the food+drink total? Normally the amounts involved mean that it doesn't make much difference either way, but...just wondering.

some of the biggest arguments I've had with my wife involve me tipping on food and drink and her tipping on the total incl tax

how much of a dollar difference does that usually make?

If you tip on the total including tax, you're more likely to err on the side of generosity. If you have great service, do it J's way and if the service is mediocre or just dinery, do it your way. This seems like a good married-folks' compromise (but may not fool J).

like $1 on 50 xp

haha i mean, id say, "why are you arguing about it if its only a dollar," but i am in a relationship, and i know the answer

the argument I get in w/ my gf is tipping on really small totals...I think there should be a minimum tip and she thinks it should always be a %

you are right fwiw

I know!

I'm right in all our arguments actually

What do you guys do on pre-tax totals between $5 and $10? It seems sort of petty to calculate an exact percentage, especially if you're paying in cash. So do you just always round up to $2?

$2-3

This may be insane, but I think the extra dollar I give the Waffle House waitress on my $7.59 ($3) breakfast makes almost no difference to me but probably brightens her day because at least one person was marginally nicer than usual?

tipping very attractive waitstaff more than your usual% - classic or sad?

Sad, but apparently we do this subconsciously as well.

worked with a super-cute girl who was a dance major, she always took off her butt towel when she had a table of men, claimed that she didn't realize she did so.

xp yeah milo i've always kind of thought that--like it everyone rounded up on their tips that waitress would see a big benefit compared to all our small losses?

Yes, precisely. Why do I suspect that this has deeper implications regarding one's political affiliation?

butt towel? what kinda restaurant was this

i am confused about the connection between butt towel and being a dance major

dancing makes your butt sweaty I guess

butt towel - folded napkin waiters carry on the back of their apron to clean up spills, wipe hands, etc.

dance major - she had a rockin' booty

got it

^^^see, I understood completely what was going on here.

I have a pretty fast and hard 1$ per 5$ rule for meals (inc drinks) and $1 per drink for drinks alone. My wife, if I would let her, would likely tip 100% all of the time because she briefly worked as a waitress. I have actually used the good vs bad service rule to decide when I tipped pre- or post-tax; I have also used the "woah she is cute" rule.

xp: kinda confused as to how ppl were confused by milo's story? unless it was comedy naivety

i was genuinely confused, let's not dwell on how dumb i am

not everyone is familiar with the term "butt towel"

comedy naivety on ilx?

i sort of figured out butt towel from context clues but i didn't know dance major was code for nice butt! then i was like, was it a restaurant/dance studio? what is the significance of the dancing?

lots of xps - Chicago has a 10% sales tax, incl. on food/drinks at restaurants, so it can make a significant difference when calculating the tip. I basically will calculate tip based on the pre-tax bill if I didn't like the service, and calculate tip based on the bill w/ tax if I did like the service.

Jeff and I went out to dinner with a causal acquaintance and her husband one night (they were buying us dinner for some reason) and the husband made a big production about how it is improper to tip on alcohol sales at a restaurant, and that you should only calculate the tip based on the food bill, minus booze, which he then proceeded to do despite our pleas to let us leave the tip, as he had been so generous with the bill. I have no idea where he got that crazy idea, but we were mortified. And if anybody had pulled that bullshit on me during my server days, I would have been really, really grumpy about it.

brb, opening a potato restaurant/dance studio covered in Jennifer Beals iconography

it will be called Mashdance

xp: I used to do that but then realized it was bullshit

I just thought the term 'butt towel' was funny, that's all

sorry that you disagree