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Proper tip amount at restaurants?

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What is a proper tip amount at restaurants?

  • 10%

  • 12.5%

  • 15%

  • 17.5%

  • 20%

Results are only viewable after voting.
0%

Me and around 10 of my friends routinely eat out in a group and never tip. We also demand separate bills, use coupons, and never go to the same place more than once.

j/k
 
halik said:
Err so you expect other people subsidize your shitty employer? Maybe you should have a talk with him/her... You're supposed to be making minimum wage, regardless whether it comes from the patron or the restaurant.

That's on par with asking people for "gratuities", because your employer hasn't given you a paycheck in 3 months.
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Yeah; believe it or not, that's how it works. In fact, that's how it's always worked...

Unfuckingbelieveable that people don't know this.
 
Last edited:
qliveur said:
Yeah; believe it or not, that's how it works. In fact, that's how it's always worked...

Unfuckingbelieveable that people don't know this.
Click to expand...

Ummm well maybe you should fucking do something about that? If my employer withheld part of my pay, I wouldn't put a tip jar outside of my office...
 
I could've sworn that it did NOT work that way 10-15 years ago when I waited tables. There were definitely slow periods when we did not make minimum wage and were not compensated. Looks like the law has changed over the years. Good.

I'll also add that we usually made more than minimum wage. It wouldn't have been worth my time, otherwise.
 
Last edited:
alkemyst said:
First when most think of waiters they are thinking of someone in a place like TGIF's or the high end types. For the HOURS THEY WORK, most of those will hit minimum wage. However, for higher end waiters they are not in it for minimum wage nor should they be expected to make it.

What people don't picture is that lady that doesn't look so hot that Fridays and the like won't hire. She has kids so she can't work nights as evening care is something she can't afford. Fortunately the school has their own after school programs so she can get a couple more hours in.

She ends up with about 10 hours or so. Most of the good lunch crowd asks to be sat with other 'better looking waitresses'...she mostly gets overflow.

At the end of the day she may have had 30 tables if she is lucky and many were coffee only. She walks out with $50 if she's lucky. With new laws the minimum wage for servers is the current minimum wage minus 31% (it's assumed they will make at least 31% in tips).

Even if the waitress made $6/hr at the end of her day she just netted about $11 an hour for pretty hard work.

Some days she only gets a couple tables and falls short.

I don't know any server that ended up with a bad week that went to their boss and asked them to make up the difference. I am sure if they did do this, they'd start not getting hours.

There are a lot of struggling waiters out there. All those little hole in the walls that barely survive.

I really doubt Heller makes $400 night regularly. It's like pizza guys saying they make $50/hr when it's based on 3 hours on a friday or saturday rush.
Click to expand...

If the pizza guys only work those 3 hours on a Friday or Saturday rush then they DO make $50/hr.

I have no idea of Heller's work schedule(whether he works 40hrs full time or only Friday/Saturday/Sunday nights) but he has mentioned that several times...The way he's been boasting regularly here doesn't make it seem like it was a once in a lifetime stint or once a season/holiday/weekend stint.

If he earns $400/night regularly($50/hr assuming he works 40hrs/week full time), I say good. If he earns $400/night working only 6 hours on Friday/Saturday/Sunday night rush, even better because that means he earns $66-67/hr. That's more than I make as a pharmacist.

Do a forum search or PM GodlessAstronomer and he'll be glad to supply you the direct links or quotes.
GodlessAstronomer keeps all links/quotes of Heller.
 
qliveur said:
Are you really this stupid?
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You seem to be the only one who's stupid.
If your employer is obligated to follow federal law and you decide not to follow up with that, that's your problem.

***EDIT***
It seems you've edited your post so I would also edit mine accordingly.
I had my response above typed over an hour ago and forgot to post it because I had to pick my brother up.

qliveur said:
I could've sworn that it did NOT work that way 10-15 years ago when I waited tables. There were definitely slow periods when we did not make minimum wage and were not compensated. Looks like the law has changed over the years. Good.

I'll also add that we usually made more than minimum wage. It wouldn't have been worth my time, otherwise.
Click to expand...
AFAIK, this law has always been the case and wasn't just changed recently(10-15 years ago as you suggest). But based on what you mentioned in the underlined sentence above, it's not really worth us arguing over...You still earned minimum wage whether you included tip or not.
 
Last edited:
alkemyst said:
First when most think of waiters they are thinking of someone in a place like TGIF's or the high end types. For the HOURS THEY WORK, most of those will hit minimum wage. However, for higher end waiters they are not in it for minimum wage nor should they be expected to make it.

What people don't picture is that lady that doesn't look so hot that Fridays and the like won't hire. She has kids so she can't work nights as evening care is something she can't afford. Fortunately the school has their own after school programs so she can get a couple more hours in.

She ends up with about 10 hours or so. Most of the good lunch crowd asks to be sat with other 'better looking waitresses'...she mostly gets overflow.

At the end of the day she may have had 30 tables if she is lucky and many were coffee only. She walks out with $50 if she's lucky. With new laws the minimum wage for servers is the current minimum wage minus 31% (it's assumed they will make at least 31% in tips).

Even if the waitress made $6/hr at the end of her day she just netted about $11 an hour for pretty hard work.

Some days she only gets a couple tables and falls short.

I don't know any server that ended up with a bad week that went to their boss and asked them to make up the difference. I am sure if they did do this, they'd start not getting hours.

There are a lot of struggling waiters out there. All those little hole in the walls that barely survive.

I really doubt Heller makes $400 night regularly. It's like pizza guys saying they make $50/hr when it's based on 3 hours on a friday or saturday rush.
Click to expand...

on Saturday nights its common, but during the week im lucky if i walk home with $200.
 
lothar said:
You seem to be the only one who's stupid.
If your employer is obligated to follow federal law and you decide not to follow up with that, that's your problem.

***EDIT***
It seems you've edited your post so I would also edit mine accordingly.
I had my response above typed over an hour ago and forgot to post it because I had to pick my brother up.


AFAIK, this law has always been the case and wasn't just changed recently(10-15 years ago as you suggest). But based on what you mentioned in the underlined sentence above, it's not really worth us arguing over...You still earned minimum wage whether you included tip or not.
Click to expand...
What can I say? It was a long time ago and I was doing a LOT of drugs back then...

Derp.
 
so what your saying is all the shitty waiting gigs i had starting out when i would walk home with less then 7 bux an hour i could of asked me employer for reimbursement?

what the fuck? i must of slept during that class.
 
I can't believe people still think servers don't make minimum wage. Servers make minimum wage in EVERY STATE, no matter what. If the tips they get don't amount to enough for minimum wage (which they always do no matter what), the establishment they work at needs to cover the minimum.

I'm sorry but a menial labor job like servers doesn't constitute getting paid more than engineers do. I've been a busboy and a server and I find it sad that people won't work unless they are tipped. If you need extra pay to do your basic job, get another job. Earn your damn pay no matter what you do.
 
zerocool84 said:
I can't believe people still think servers don't make minimum wage. Servers make minimum wage in EVERY STATE, no matter what. If the tips they get don't amount to enough for minimum wage (which they always do no matter what), the establishment they work at needs to cover the minimum.

I'm sorry but a menial labor job like servers doesn't constitute getting paid more than engineers do. I've been a busboy and a server and I find it sad that people won't work unless they are tipped. If you need extra pay to do your basic job, get another job. Earn your damn pay no matter what you do.
Click to expand...

so what your saying is us servers should be happy with the 4.35 we make an hour?fuck you.
 
Heller said:
so what your saying is all the shitty waiting gigs i had starting out when i would walk home with less then 7 bux an hour i could of asked me employer for reimbursement?

what the fuck? i must of slept during that class.
Click to expand...
Well, at least I'm not alone. 😛

Come to think of it, minimum wage was next to nothing back then, and it was most likely averaged out for the entire week... Damned pot.

Aw, it's my first ATOT fuckup. Don't do drugs, kids.

Derp, derp.
zerocool84 said:
I can't believe people still think servers don't make minimum wage. Servers make minimum wage in EVERY STATE, no matter what. If the tips they get don't amount to enough for minimum wage (which they always do no matter what), the establishment they work at needs to cover the minimum.

I'm sorry but a menial labor job like servers doesn't constitute getting paid more than engineers do. I've been a busboy and a server and I find it sad that people won't work unless they are tipped. If you need extra pay to do your basic job, get another job. Earn your damn pay no matter what you do.
Click to expand...
Considering the amount of shit that most servers have to put up with and how hard they have to work, they deserve to make more than minimum wage IF they're any good at what they do.
 
SolMiester said:
Thankfully, Im in a country who's employers pay people the proper amount so tipping is complementary, not expected!
Click to expand...

I see your from NZ, are you a sheep fucker like GA is? Is that something customary with your country? or is he just weird?
 
qliveur said:
Considering the amount of shit that most servers have to put up with and how hard they have to work, they deserve to make more than minimum wage if they're any good at what they do.
Click to expand...

That's no different than ANY other menial service job. All customer service you have to put up with tons of crap.
 
I always just take the amount, divide by ten, double the amount and then round up to the nearest whole dollar.

For example:

12.75 / 10 = 1.2 * 2 = 2.4 round up to 3

125 / 10 = 12.5 * 2 = 25

I just make sure to give at least 20% and more if I stay longer/more service.
 
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