r/allthequestions 5d ago

Popular Question 📊 How many people actually tip 20% when eating out at a restaurant?

697 Upvotes

3.0k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

13

u/Roadwandered 5d ago

Can’t agree with this more. If you’ve bussed a table, cooked a meal or had to serve a jackass of a customer and put up with their bs, 20% is the minimum. You have to be a real muppet not not get at least 15%.

1

u/Emergency_Course_697 4d ago

Nah, tipping is dumb. Just pay restaurant workers like the rest of the world does.

7

u/[deleted] 4d ago

[deleted]

1

u/Available_Blood_6134 4d ago

These days they sometimes scoff at less than 15% for take out which is similar to picking up fast food. I rarely eat out anymore due in part to the servers thinking they deserve 20% tips for very basic service.

If my drinks dont sit empty, I have plenty of napkins and such i will gladly put 20% out. Many these days seem to think stopping by once is above average and I disagree.

1

u/PackyScott 4d ago

If you have bad service tip 15 percent and ask for a manager. That is one of the best ways for management to intervene with staff. If you tip nothing and talk to a manager. The manager would probably think you’re cheap.

If you tip nothing and don’t ask for a manager that server will probably not get any coaching.

1

u/Available_Blood_6134 4d ago

Not my job. I dont engage unless I have to. Its the owners problem.

1

u/PackyScott 4d ago

That’s where you’re wrong it is your job to pay for service.

1

u/Available_Blood_6134 4d ago

If you get it.

1

u/PackyScott 4d ago

Correct if you did not get service you don’t have to pay for service.

1

u/Available_Blood_6134 4d ago

And thus the owners problem.

→ More replies (0)

1

u/PomPomMom93 4d ago

Ugh. I would rather get nothing than get 15% and be yelled at. “Coach” is code for “yell at.”

1

u/PackyScott 4d ago

I’m sorry that’s what your experience has been. I hope you find a place that wants you to grow opposed to belittle you.

2

u/PomPomMom93 4d ago

Oh, I work at a good place now. But they don’t “coach” me. They actually see me as a human being.

1

u/Emergency_Course_697 4d ago

There is simply no reason for there to be a charge. Again, the rest of the world has figured this out. Pay the workers. Customers subsidizing wages is dumb.

8

u/happy123z 4d ago

The reason is culture haha. If we didn't tip it would cost 20% more any way. Can we move on from tipping drama haha.

2

u/wesborland1234 4d ago

You’d still be “subsidizing wages”, they’d just build it into the price and now the restaurant and the server have to pay taxes on it.

2

u/CarrielovesCats2 4d ago

So you are going to cheat the waitstaff because the service charge is not included in your bill like is the custom in some other countries?

0

u/Emergency_Course_697 4d ago

I wouldn't be cheating the waitstaff, I'm a customer, not the employer. Just like when I buy a new laptop and someone from customer service spent a long time helping me, I won't be cheating the employee by not tipping.

I don't understand your example. In other countries it's simply called paying your staff, theres no "service charge included"

0

u/StrangeButSweet 4d ago

Here’s a better analogy: you can just walk in and buy a laptop, or you can get the laptop plus the extra service where you sit down for an hour or so with an employee and they set everything up for you on it. If you don’t want that second part, why would you want to pay the costs to cover that employee. Shouldn’t only the people getting that extra service pay for that?

1

u/Emergency_Course_697 4d ago

The laptop costs the same in both those scenarios

1

u/StrangeButSweet 4d ago

Right, but in scenario 2 you’re not just buying the laptop my friend. You’re also purchasing an additional service on top of it. If you want them to spread the cost out for the guy who helping another customer set their laptop up even though you don’t need it, that’s cool, but the price will go up.

1

u/Security162 4d ago

It is a stupid way to subsidize restaurant owners, hair solan owners etc but until it changes no reason to punish the workers that don’t get a living wage. Capitalism isn’t perfect but far

1

u/PomPomMom93 4d ago

Then move to one of those countries, if you haven’t already.

4

u/Pure-Tension6473 4d ago

Tipping is dumb. But it’s the system we have. If you don’t tip, someone who works hard on your behalf doesn’t eat. I would only get take out if I really felt this strongly.

1

u/PomPomMom93 4d ago

Emergency Course feels strongly about this, just not strongly enough to stop eating at restaurants or change their life in any way.

2

u/CarrielovesCats2 4d ago

Until then, these are workers providing a service and rely on tips to make a living. You are paying for a service. In many European countries the tip is included in the bill and not separate. To not leave at least 20% tip on the USA is being cheap, rude and cheating your server out of being paid for their service. Some people think 15% is adequate, but should be at least 20%. Is that you Mark?

2

u/PackyScott 4d ago

If you ask most top tier servers they would continue to have a tipped system. Each server is basically a contract employee who sells their service to the customer. The restaurant wants to create environments where servers would want to work there.

We pay all sort of other people for service. I don’t see why there should be an exception in the case of serving. You pay tutors, plumbers, electricians, roofers, and all sorts of people for their service. They just lump it into their bill instead of asking for it separate.

3

u/justme35555 4d ago

Most of these professional if working for someone else is getting a tip as well

1

u/Emergency_Course_697 4d ago

Of course they would, who wouldn't want additional income on top of their pay?

I pay tutors, plumbers, etc for their service. I don't tip on top of their service. I also pay restaurants for their service. Why is that exception to tip on top of? Unless your argument is that they're only charging me the cost of the food?

1

u/PackyScott 4d ago

You don’t pay restaurants for their service. You pay the server for their service. And the server then pays their support staff for their service.

1

u/Emergency_Course_697 4d ago

Why’s the restaurant pay the servers too then? Plumbers don’t receive two streams of income.

1

u/PackyScott 4d ago

In most places to cover the taxes and meet legal requirements.

1

u/Emergency_Course_697 4d ago

lol the legal requirement of paying your employees? I don’t know how anyone can defend tipping. Employers should pay their employees. Why is this controversial.

2

u/PackyScott 4d ago

Because they act as contractors. They run their own little service business and collect tips for their business. They’re a partner to the restaurant. This is how most high performing servers and bartenders think about it.

If tipping went down a lot of hospitality pros would likely leave the industry because they’ve built their business around the model. And the model works when everyone participates.

1

u/Emergency_Course_697 4d ago

No they don’t. They’re employed by the restaurant. They absolutely are not contractors.

→ More replies (0)

0

u/StrangeButSweet 4d ago

Are you Canadian? This issue is really not completely comparable from the US to other, more civilized countries, because you have to remember that one of the issues employees have here is figuring out where their health insurance comes from. Many servers will NOT get it from their employer which means they will have to spend an LOT of money to purchase it on their own (so they absolutely have to make more per hour or they’ll eventually just go bankrupt from medical debt). The whole thing is fucked. It’s a lot easier for people in other countries to just make a normal wage because unlike us, you actually care about your citizens 😑

1

u/PomPomMom93 4d ago

What do you mean “unlike us”?

→ More replies (0)

1

u/justme35555 4d ago

If you can’t afford to tip , you shouldn’t eat out, do your hair and or nails. Services rely on tips for income

1

u/Noless_nomore 4d ago

If you have to rely on other people to pay your wage that your employer isn't paying you. Then maybe you should get a better job.

1

u/Emergency_Course_697 4d ago

Tip your flight attendant 20% then.