Guy Leaves $10 Tip In A Fancy Restaurant Instead Of The Expected $14, Doesn’t Expect Things To Escalate So Horribly
As a non-American I gotta say I really don’t get the tipping system over there in the US of A. Servers get the tip they deserve, based on quality of service, right? There is no law or obligation to tip? It all seems mighty confusing and an unnecessary source of potential confrontation at a time when people are supposed to be out enjoying themselves. Why can’t restaurants just pay their servers properly in the first place? The unspoken rules and expectations make the whole situation so…arbitrary.
Imgur user noctynight encountered such a situation while on a date recently, finding himself embarrassingly short when it came time to pay up and tip the server. Sure, it was poor planning on his behalf, but he sheepishly managed to scrape up 15% of the bill for the service received, and was all set to leave the restaurant and go home.
Except that wasn’t to be the end of it. The server had a few questions to ask about the tip, and the quality of her service. Needless to say, it didn’t end well. Scroll down to check the story out for yourself, and let us know what you think in the comments! (Cover image: Matt Chan)
“Had a wonderful dinner date, all that’s left is to pay the bill and head out”
Image credits: Chris Goldberg (Not an actual photo)
“Server comes back and asks if something bad has happened due to the size of her tip…”
“Try to explain to the server that there was nothing wrong and we just could’t afford to put in anymore”
Image credits: Kent Wang (Not an actual photo)
“Server: ‘Sir. I would actually be offended if I accepted something as small as this'”
Here’s how people reacted
I understand why the server was mad, but she has to realize. Tips are 100% voluntary people do not "need" to tip. It is highly encouraged and a common social practice but again you do not have too legally tip them, and the fact that she basically publically shamed someone for a what she thought was a small tip means that she should probably not be a server. If you something that small makes you flip out then you are in the wrong business.
Andres: Amen! Shes lucky to have a job, with her attitude.
Absolutely! She should be reprimanded if not fired for that. A tip is always optional. That's just ridiculous. I've been stuffed on large checks before, it sucks, but you CANNOT confront people!
It also depends highly on where you are in the world, iirc it's actually considered rude to tip in Japan.
If you don't like the tip work harder and give better service or better yet find a new line of work. In Washington State when wages took a huge jump so did meal prices to offset the wages yet they still expect a tip. If 10% tip isnt enough then i wont go to the restaurant and theycan clise down for all I care. Tips are an expression of appreciation for service provided not a demand like this woman made. If thats the thanks you get for spending $80 on a meal at that restaurant then its time to shame the restaurant and go else where. Restaurants come and go by the dozen doesnt sound like this one will be around much longer. What's the name of the restaurant so I can avoid it?
Waiters get paid shit. They rely on tips, they are not optional. Waiters get paid less than minimum wage BECAUSE they are expected to get tips. As a customer you should expect to give a 15-20% tip for good service. If you can't tip, stay home. The waitress flipped out because its part of her pay. You'd be upset too if you got paid less for no good reason. Before you open your big mouth understand how things work. You clearly have zero understanding of how waiters are paid in America. Your opinion is entirely worthless.
Don’t you think $10 is enough? Personally I think $10 is fine, no matter how fancy a restaurant is or how big the bill is, considering that waitresses get dozens of tips an hour. I think your standards of tipping is too high like isn’t 15% the standard? And know you get offended if you don’t get more than that
First of all, She gave lack luster service at best, and then to put them on blast for not tipping her enough is not a good. She was lucky to get a tip after that. If you get paid so shitty then you should find a different job that pays better. It is not the job of customers to make up the difference, and also if the waiter is crappy he/she should no be rewarded or expect a tip for bad service.
well, I don't understand why she was mad. 15% is the norm for good service. You can't expect 20% unless you do something truly outstanding for your customers.
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Actually tipping SHOULD be mandatory since they get like, 5 bucks an hour. They live off of tips.
Or maybe they should be paid a proper wage.
Faith Stroup Nom tipping shouldn't be mandatory! The staff should be paid correctly!! No one should be living off tips, tip should be a bonus for a good service, like in a lot of European countries it is!!!
If it becomes mandatory then it should also count as a payment in regards to taxes and accounting since it no longer is "something extra". As Cassie says, it's better if they get a livable wage and then have the tips as an actual extra in all regards.
Imho, from my point of view, if I must pay the difference due to a too low wage, I must have the right to choose the waiter or bartender. But it's up to the owner.
US labor laws are pretty much medieval compared to most first-world nations, and if you're wondering why US businessmen are so rich it's because they pay their employees horribly and provide less benefits than most any other G7 nation. The United States is the only developed country in the world without a single legally required paid vacation day or holiday. By law, every country in the European Union has at least four work weeks of paid vacation. The US is also among the only nations on Earth that provide no financial support for mothers at the federal level, and they have among the shortest legally required maternity leave. There's a reason why income disparity in the US is so high. That doesn't excuse the waitress's poor behaviour, but it's something to consider if you think America is the land of opportunity.
You hit the nail right on the head but we seem to be too preoccupied with racial and philosophical ideas in this country to ever address any of the issues you site.
Carole Reid - as if discussing issues regarding race (read: RACISM) is pointless. Please.
In Norway we have the illusion of a paid vacation. We are entitled to four weeks of vacation. But the pay is actually our own money, that the employer has saved for us. Every month a part of our pay is set aside. Then in June of the year after earning it, we get the vacation money and no pay (if we have a regular job, we usually get paid for the hours that we are hired to work in the month when we are getting paid, and then we get only vacation money in June, and full payment in the month when we take out our vacation. If we have an irregular job, or have worked extra, we always get paid what we earned the last month, and then we get more than the vacation money in June).
Same in Denmark, how else would you give everybody paid vacation? If companies/employers had that extra expense, they would lose a lot of profit, and thus pay less wages anyway. The point of the law is to ensure that everyone get to have some time off for vacation every year, without it affecting their financial situation. The vacation is mandatory and one of the results of workers unions' fight for better conditions for the working class.
I live in the UK, I get a salary and 6 weeks of paid holiday + national holidays. None of that comes out of my money, we don't have anything put in savings by our employer to cover it or anything like that.
New Zealand has 4 weeks paid annual leave. Nothing is 'put aside' to pay for it. Paid parental leave is going up to 22 weeks shortly (just after our Prime Minister is due to give birth so she/her partner misses out on the increase). Only one parent is eligible.
The waitresse's anger is understandable, but it should be focused on government and employer, not the customer.
Her anger is not understandable. A tip was originally a thank you for someone who has done their job well. It should never be expected. She may have a low pay job but her salary is between her and her employer. This type of attitude is wrong on so many levels. I tip well if I get good service but honestly if I get poor service or the server doesn't do anything but throw my food on the table (which is happening more often these days) then they really don't deserve a tip. Why should tips be calculated into a person's wages, they are not guaranteed?
For four bucks, it's understandable? She knew the pay when she took the job and no one in government told her she had to work there. It would be interesting to get to watch her when it's time for her to tip. I'll bet she's pretty stingy.
LOL if the US is so bad then why do we have hundreds of thousands of people from all over the world trying to sneak into the country. we must be doing something good
You are clearly nuts. What she gets paid by her employer is irrelevant. Getting tips is a "commission" of sorts, so if you do not provide good service, it is on you.
That may be how it works noitall man, but why does it pretty much only apply to waiters and waitresses? Why not to nurses, accountants, delivery people, retail workers? They'll all providing a service. It should be up to an employer to know if their staff are any good or not and reward them (or otherwise) accordingly. Tipping is not done in New Zealand and most other places in the world and it works just fine. Minimum wage here is $16.50/hr (US$11.41).
why don't restaurants add a % to the meal costs knowing that a certain amount will go to the chef and a certain amount to the waitress/waiter, a % going to the person cleaning the tables/dishes/room and the rest goes to the owner... I'm all for tips, but unless it states you MUST tip, surely they should get what the person can afford or feels they want to leave?
It's a great idea Matt. Restaurants won't do it though because it will count as extra income that they will incur tax on. The staff won't like it either because the % payments will have to go on their official pay and therefore they will be taxed on it too. That's why tips work for both restaurants and staff in some ways. Just maybe not for customers.
A tip is still an income, this rather seems like a very sloppy excuse by the industry to avoid further taxations on a very little additional income. It's working in many countries in Europe, can't see why this shouldn't also work in the US. Instead of blaming a customer, maybe the employees can try to fight more for their rights and a raise for the job they all do.
I never thought of the tax part. Good point.
in some ways you'd think it better to be open about what costs what and where it goes, but then Mr Taxman always makes thinks complicated...
Waiters ARE taxed on tips. But unlike their paychecks they take that money home the same day. But they have to report the tips as income to the IRS.
Tips are still taxed as income.
I'd be all for adding a set % for tips, it would get rid of the guess work. Here they would also have to change the labour laws thought, presently owners are allowed to take the staffs tips (its uncommon but does happen). When we go to a new restaurant we tend to ask the person serving us if they get to keep their tips, if they aren't we don't leave a tip and do not eat there again.
@BusLady: We thought of that but if they were caught leaving their employ with it it would be theft.
Good for you. I would secretly slip some $ in the servers hand. ;-)
mbergen: TY for your answer. That's too bad.
The waiters are the only ones who aren't paid minimum. I was a hostess and I made minimum wage.
If they're going to have mandatory tipping amounts they should just be honest and put their menu prices up.
In the US, in the high end restaurant's, the management adds on an automatic tip to the bill. Usually 15-20%. This insures that the servers receive a fair tip. But in most restaurant's, it is up to the customer to tip. $70 for 2 meals is about average for a nice restaurant. It doesn't sound like they were eating at IHOP. But not at a high end place either.
Surely a fair tip depends on the service you receive, why should you give same tip for shoddy poor service from a moody waiter/ess as you do for great service from a pleasant friendly waiter/ess?
Joanna: I agree. The high end places will not tolerate bad behaviour in the wait staff. These are privileged positions that are hard to come by. The pay is much better, obviously, with guaranteed tips. They want to keep those jobs. They provide excellent service. A lot of other restaurant's are always short of servers and hire the first person who walks in the door. So you can have bad service because they are poorly trained, overworked or just plain don't care.
They do this in my town at a lot of restaurants. The problem with this is that if the service is bad, there's no way to really reflect that unless you leave a strongly worded note or something. This leaves more room for bad service and error if there's no real consequence and believe me you can see it in the workers.
Restaurants are dumb to take tips away and only offer minimum wage. As a server I used to make over $20 an hour, sometimes more than $30 an hour. Restaurants can’t afford that so they’ll have a harder time finding good servers. It’ll always be people who aren’t trained well or aren’t able to do well or who just don’t care.
except waitresses are paid lower than minimum wage (not sure if this applies everywhere) because they get tips--so not paying someone because they forget or it's what they feel like giving really hurts the wait staff.
Which is wrong. They should be paid at the very least the minimum wage. Tipping was meant to be about giving extra because you felt you got extra out of the meal or experience. It is wrong for restaurant owners to include tips as part of the wage.
That's exactly the point! Customers don't hire waiters, restaurants do. they must provide the full payments to their employees, and customers should pay for the services they receive in the meal. Do american's not practice accoutning at all. all about costs and overheads, and cost centres and salaries, and margin and stuff. Add that shet to the prices and handle your own employees. Or else let customers walk in with their own servers from home
Well then that needs to be fixed, surely the point of a minimum wage is that the law states that no one should be paid lest than that amount?
This is why you must claim 100% of your tips. It comes back to you in your tax return. The government knows you don't make minimum wage. Also why servers don't always claim 100%, so they may receive a bigger paycheck...(but that is not exactly legal...)
or else add the tip as a requirement and call it something else. That way the planning custmer like in the above can properly plan.
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Tipping is paying someone for their work. It’s not extra money and it’s not optional. There’s no other job where they do work and you don’t pay in full. That is theft. It’s not based on what you can afford, it’s based on the price of food and quality of service.
It actually is optional. if it weren't, it would be figured into the bill. It's shitty not to tip, but you won't be charged with theft if you don't.
If you don't make enough tips at the end of the year, it comes back to you in your tax return. You ARE paid. This is why you must claim 100% of your tips.
They managed to pay the 15℅ though and legally you dont have to tip. The waitress was complaining because she expected more, 15℅ is the average for tipping
I understand why the server was mad, but she has to realize. Tips are 100% voluntary people do not "need" to tip. It is highly encouraged and a common social practice but again you do not have too legally tip them, and the fact that she basically publically shamed someone for a what she thought was a small tip means that she should probably not be a server. If you something that small makes you flip out then you are in the wrong business.
Andres: Amen! Shes lucky to have a job, with her attitude.
Absolutely! She should be reprimanded if not fired for that. A tip is always optional. That's just ridiculous. I've been stuffed on large checks before, it sucks, but you CANNOT confront people!
It also depends highly on where you are in the world, iirc it's actually considered rude to tip in Japan.
If you don't like the tip work harder and give better service or better yet find a new line of work. In Washington State when wages took a huge jump so did meal prices to offset the wages yet they still expect a tip. If 10% tip isnt enough then i wont go to the restaurant and theycan clise down for all I care. Tips are an expression of appreciation for service provided not a demand like this woman made. If thats the thanks you get for spending $80 on a meal at that restaurant then its time to shame the restaurant and go else where. Restaurants come and go by the dozen doesnt sound like this one will be around much longer. What's the name of the restaurant so I can avoid it?
Waiters get paid shit. They rely on tips, they are not optional. Waiters get paid less than minimum wage BECAUSE they are expected to get tips. As a customer you should expect to give a 15-20% tip for good service. If you can't tip, stay home. The waitress flipped out because its part of her pay. You'd be upset too if you got paid less for no good reason. Before you open your big mouth understand how things work. You clearly have zero understanding of how waiters are paid in America. Your opinion is entirely worthless.
Don’t you think $10 is enough? Personally I think $10 is fine, no matter how fancy a restaurant is or how big the bill is, considering that waitresses get dozens of tips an hour. I think your standards of tipping is too high like isn’t 15% the standard? And know you get offended if you don’t get more than that
First of all, She gave lack luster service at best, and then to put them on blast for not tipping her enough is not a good. She was lucky to get a tip after that. If you get paid so shitty then you should find a different job that pays better. It is not the job of customers to make up the difference, and also if the waiter is crappy he/she should no be rewarded or expect a tip for bad service.
well, I don't understand why she was mad. 15% is the norm for good service. You can't expect 20% unless you do something truly outstanding for your customers.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Actually tipping SHOULD be mandatory since they get like, 5 bucks an hour. They live off of tips.
Or maybe they should be paid a proper wage.
Faith Stroup Nom tipping shouldn't be mandatory! The staff should be paid correctly!! No one should be living off tips, tip should be a bonus for a good service, like in a lot of European countries it is!!!
If it becomes mandatory then it should also count as a payment in regards to taxes and accounting since it no longer is "something extra". As Cassie says, it's better if they get a livable wage and then have the tips as an actual extra in all regards.
Imho, from my point of view, if I must pay the difference due to a too low wage, I must have the right to choose the waiter or bartender. But it's up to the owner.
US labor laws are pretty much medieval compared to most first-world nations, and if you're wondering why US businessmen are so rich it's because they pay their employees horribly and provide less benefits than most any other G7 nation. The United States is the only developed country in the world without a single legally required paid vacation day or holiday. By law, every country in the European Union has at least four work weeks of paid vacation. The US is also among the only nations on Earth that provide no financial support for mothers at the federal level, and they have among the shortest legally required maternity leave. There's a reason why income disparity in the US is so high. That doesn't excuse the waitress's poor behaviour, but it's something to consider if you think America is the land of opportunity.
You hit the nail right on the head but we seem to be too preoccupied with racial and philosophical ideas in this country to ever address any of the issues you site.
Carole Reid - as if discussing issues regarding race (read: RACISM) is pointless. Please.
In Norway we have the illusion of a paid vacation. We are entitled to four weeks of vacation. But the pay is actually our own money, that the employer has saved for us. Every month a part of our pay is set aside. Then in June of the year after earning it, we get the vacation money and no pay (if we have a regular job, we usually get paid for the hours that we are hired to work in the month when we are getting paid, and then we get only vacation money in June, and full payment in the month when we take out our vacation. If we have an irregular job, or have worked extra, we always get paid what we earned the last month, and then we get more than the vacation money in June).
Same in Denmark, how else would you give everybody paid vacation? If companies/employers had that extra expense, they would lose a lot of profit, and thus pay less wages anyway. The point of the law is to ensure that everyone get to have some time off for vacation every year, without it affecting their financial situation. The vacation is mandatory and one of the results of workers unions' fight for better conditions for the working class.
I live in the UK, I get a salary and 6 weeks of paid holiday + national holidays. None of that comes out of my money, we don't have anything put in savings by our employer to cover it or anything like that.
New Zealand has 4 weeks paid annual leave. Nothing is 'put aside' to pay for it. Paid parental leave is going up to 22 weeks shortly (just after our Prime Minister is due to give birth so she/her partner misses out on the increase). Only one parent is eligible.
The waitresse's anger is understandable, but it should be focused on government and employer, not the customer.
Her anger is not understandable. A tip was originally a thank you for someone who has done their job well. It should never be expected. She may have a low pay job but her salary is between her and her employer. This type of attitude is wrong on so many levels. I tip well if I get good service but honestly if I get poor service or the server doesn't do anything but throw my food on the table (which is happening more often these days) then they really don't deserve a tip. Why should tips be calculated into a person's wages, they are not guaranteed?
For four bucks, it's understandable? She knew the pay when she took the job and no one in government told her she had to work there. It would be interesting to get to watch her when it's time for her to tip. I'll bet she's pretty stingy.
LOL if the US is so bad then why do we have hundreds of thousands of people from all over the world trying to sneak into the country. we must be doing something good
You are clearly nuts. What she gets paid by her employer is irrelevant. Getting tips is a "commission" of sorts, so if you do not provide good service, it is on you.
That may be how it works noitall man, but why does it pretty much only apply to waiters and waitresses? Why not to nurses, accountants, delivery people, retail workers? They'll all providing a service. It should be up to an employer to know if their staff are any good or not and reward them (or otherwise) accordingly. Tipping is not done in New Zealand and most other places in the world and it works just fine. Minimum wage here is $16.50/hr (US$11.41).
why don't restaurants add a % to the meal costs knowing that a certain amount will go to the chef and a certain amount to the waitress/waiter, a % going to the person cleaning the tables/dishes/room and the rest goes to the owner... I'm all for tips, but unless it states you MUST tip, surely they should get what the person can afford or feels they want to leave?
It's a great idea Matt. Restaurants won't do it though because it will count as extra income that they will incur tax on. The staff won't like it either because the % payments will have to go on their official pay and therefore they will be taxed on it too. That's why tips work for both restaurants and staff in some ways. Just maybe not for customers.
A tip is still an income, this rather seems like a very sloppy excuse by the industry to avoid further taxations on a very little additional income. It's working in many countries in Europe, can't see why this shouldn't also work in the US. Instead of blaming a customer, maybe the employees can try to fight more for their rights and a raise for the job they all do.
I never thought of the tax part. Good point.
in some ways you'd think it better to be open about what costs what and where it goes, but then Mr Taxman always makes thinks complicated...
Waiters ARE taxed on tips. But unlike their paychecks they take that money home the same day. But they have to report the tips as income to the IRS.
Tips are still taxed as income.
I'd be all for adding a set % for tips, it would get rid of the guess work. Here they would also have to change the labour laws thought, presently owners are allowed to take the staffs tips (its uncommon but does happen). When we go to a new restaurant we tend to ask the person serving us if they get to keep their tips, if they aren't we don't leave a tip and do not eat there again.
@BusLady: We thought of that but if they were caught leaving their employ with it it would be theft.
Good for you. I would secretly slip some $ in the servers hand. ;-)
mbergen: TY for your answer. That's too bad.
The waiters are the only ones who aren't paid minimum. I was a hostess and I made minimum wage.
If they're going to have mandatory tipping amounts they should just be honest and put their menu prices up.
In the US, in the high end restaurant's, the management adds on an automatic tip to the bill. Usually 15-20%. This insures that the servers receive a fair tip. But in most restaurant's, it is up to the customer to tip. $70 for 2 meals is about average for a nice restaurant. It doesn't sound like they were eating at IHOP. But not at a high end place either.
Surely a fair tip depends on the service you receive, why should you give same tip for shoddy poor service from a moody waiter/ess as you do for great service from a pleasant friendly waiter/ess?
Joanna: I agree. The high end places will not tolerate bad behaviour in the wait staff. These are privileged positions that are hard to come by. The pay is much better, obviously, with guaranteed tips. They want to keep those jobs. They provide excellent service. A lot of other restaurant's are always short of servers and hire the first person who walks in the door. So you can have bad service because they are poorly trained, overworked or just plain don't care.
They do this in my town at a lot of restaurants. The problem with this is that if the service is bad, there's no way to really reflect that unless you leave a strongly worded note or something. This leaves more room for bad service and error if there's no real consequence and believe me you can see it in the workers.
Restaurants are dumb to take tips away and only offer minimum wage. As a server I used to make over $20 an hour, sometimes more than $30 an hour. Restaurants can’t afford that so they’ll have a harder time finding good servers. It’ll always be people who aren’t trained well or aren’t able to do well or who just don’t care.
except waitresses are paid lower than minimum wage (not sure if this applies everywhere) because they get tips--so not paying someone because they forget or it's what they feel like giving really hurts the wait staff.
Which is wrong. They should be paid at the very least the minimum wage. Tipping was meant to be about giving extra because you felt you got extra out of the meal or experience. It is wrong for restaurant owners to include tips as part of the wage.
That's exactly the point! Customers don't hire waiters, restaurants do. they must provide the full payments to their employees, and customers should pay for the services they receive in the meal. Do american's not practice accoutning at all. all about costs and overheads, and cost centres and salaries, and margin and stuff. Add that shet to the prices and handle your own employees. Or else let customers walk in with their own servers from home
Well then that needs to be fixed, surely the point of a minimum wage is that the law states that no one should be paid lest than that amount?
This is why you must claim 100% of your tips. It comes back to you in your tax return. The government knows you don't make minimum wage. Also why servers don't always claim 100%, so they may receive a bigger paycheck...(but that is not exactly legal...)
or else add the tip as a requirement and call it something else. That way the planning custmer like in the above can properly plan.
This comment is hidden. Click here to view.
Tipping is paying someone for their work. It’s not extra money and it’s not optional. There’s no other job where they do work and you don’t pay in full. That is theft. It’s not based on what you can afford, it’s based on the price of food and quality of service.
It actually is optional. if it weren't, it would be figured into the bill. It's shitty not to tip, but you won't be charged with theft if you don't.
If you don't make enough tips at the end of the year, it comes back to you in your tax return. You ARE paid. This is why you must claim 100% of your tips.
They managed to pay the 15℅ though and legally you dont have to tip. The waitress was complaining because she expected more, 15℅ is the average for tipping