I like to expect the best in people. Which is why today I am going to talk about serving in a restaurant. I am doing this because I would rather think that people are innocently ignorant rather than just plain rude.
To start off, servers make less than minimum wage. Way less actually. At my restaurant we don’t even make $4.50 an hour. I could work 60 hours and not even get $150 dollars in my paycheck after taxes. So this whole belief that whatever you tip is ON TOP of what we get paid hourly should just be flushed down the toilet, because we get paid zilch and completely depend on the tips we receive.
I have come to realize in my time as a server that it doesn’t matter how nice or witty you are, how fast you get the food out, or how many times you check up on your customers; it all comes down to the tipper. Last night I had a teenage couple come in to eat for prom and ended with a bill of $40. After using a $5 off coupon he continued on to do some strenuous math on his receipt and then left $4 on the table. Ok, ok. This can be expected of teenagers. But what about the middle-aged couple that did the same thing a few hours later? Or the elderly couple who paid for their meal and then slipped me a 12% tip, winked and said, “This is all for you honey. Thank you for your great service.”
As cute as they were, 20% is an average tip. An easy way to find 20% without a calculator? Double the first two numbers on the bill (i.e. $25 tab, $5 tip). Again, this is average. My advice would be to tip based on the quality of the service rather than the size of your bill. And if you can’t afford a decent tip, then why are you going out to eat in the first place?
1. If you go out with your grandma and she wants to pay, agree, but say you want to leave the tip.
2. If you sit at a table chatting for 2 hours, leave more than 20%. You have just taken up your servers table that they could have been making money on. Do not tip based on the $9 salad you bought.
3. If you wouldn’t use 9 plates for a loaf of bread at home, I would suggest cutting back in a restaurant. We do dishes too.
4. At what point is it EVER cute for your child to rub noodles into the carpet?
5. A ceazar salad without dressing or croutons is just lettuce. And a Steak and Blue without steak and without blue cheese is not a Steak and Blue.
6. If you are a Christian and you make a point to bow your head and pray, you had better make a point to leave a good tip. Servers notice, and Christians are notorious for bad tipping.
Disclaimer: I do realize that there are bad servers out there, and I have witnessed quite a few myself. They complain, roll their eyes, get nervous, etc. But think about it, how much would their bad mood improve if a table decided to tip generously? How much would their confidence be boosted if you complimented something they did right? Just a thought...
(Ps: Last week of school! Wohoo!)
