Serve me
So I was thinking about this yesterday: does it really make sense to tip by percentage? Now, I'm sure I'm not the only person to ever think of this because its pretty obvious, but when someone serves you a meal at one restaurant that costs $12 and someone serves you a meal at another restaurant that costs $30, is it really fair that at the standard 15-20% tip the first person gets $2.40 and the second person gets $6? That second wait staffer just got paid an additional $4 for performing the same service. Are you really paying that person for being more attentive to your needs or just paying them more because they happened to bring you a more expensive plate of food? If its the latter, give me a call, I have some stuff I'd like to sell you at a high price and you can tip me well for delivering it to your door.
Now I can maybe understand the situation where the waiter/waitress has to serve a group of 10 people instead of the usual party of 2-4. Obviously tipping by percentage guarantees them getting a higher tip for a party of 10 than a party of 2-4. However, wouldn't it just make sense to tip based on how well the person serves you? And if you can establish a good baseline for that service of one or two, then multiply that amount to establish a deserving tip for large parties? and carry that across the board regardless of how pricy the restaurant's menu is? Then high end restaurants would have to pay their wait staff much more than your standard Applebee's or Shenannigan's. Which, as a matter of fact, I'm aware that most DO! So, here's my suggestion, and actually my practice: I usually tip in the neighboorhood of $5 if I pick up the tab for myself or me and someone else. If the service is crap, I might go down to $3. I find that most places this means I am leaving somewhere between a 30-50% tip, which the waitperson should be happy with. And if I happen to wander in to a place with a little more flair, I'll be sitting at the standard 15%.
What do you think?
Now I can maybe understand the situation where the waiter/waitress has to serve a group of 10 people instead of the usual party of 2-4. Obviously tipping by percentage guarantees them getting a higher tip for a party of 10 than a party of 2-4. However, wouldn't it just make sense to tip based on how well the person serves you? And if you can establish a good baseline for that service of one or two, then multiply that amount to establish a deserving tip for large parties? and carry that across the board regardless of how pricy the restaurant's menu is? Then high end restaurants would have to pay their wait staff much more than your standard Applebee's or Shenannigan's. Which, as a matter of fact, I'm aware that most DO! So, here's my suggestion, and actually my practice: I usually tip in the neighboorhood of $5 if I pick up the tab for myself or me and someone else. If the service is crap, I might go down to $3. I find that most places this means I am leaving somewhere between a 30-50% tip, which the waitperson should be happy with. And if I happen to wander in to a place with a little more flair, I'll be sitting at the standard 15%.
What do you think?