Souper Salad: to tip or not?

[HumblePie]

Okay, I just got back from lunch and eating a "healthy" salad from the Souper Salad resturaunt.

I usually HATE going there, not because I don't like vegetables, but because I hate paying $6.15 for a SALAD + drink. Since I'm paying so much for a frikking salad, I always get water. Now, just incase anyone hasn't been to souper salad, it's a SELF SERVE buffet. You pay for your meal, grab a tray and plate, and load up. It's not exactly an upscale place to eat at.

Then you find your own seat, no one leads you to an available one. At lunch time when it's busy like it was today, it can be a hassle if the place is big enough.

Once you find a seat, eventually a "server" makes their way over to you. they read your receipt for your drink and bring it to you. That's ALL THEY DO. Is grab a drink. Why do they make the food self served, the seating self served, but bring you a drink? To force a frikking tip out of you.

Sorry, I can't see myself leaving a tip at a place I sit down to much down some green leaves I over-payed for and got a water with. Usually I finish my food before I finish my drink so it's not like they have to refill it.

So why bring this question up? cause I remember being there once before and asking if they are minimal wage. They are not, they are tip waged at Souper Salad. Least the one I went to. So now I feel obligated to tip someone for handing me a frikking glass of tap water. A tip of a $6 meal of something that grows in a backyard. The worst part, IF I did tip, I'd feel inclined to tip at least a dollar cause change tips suck unless it's overage on a dollar amount already. 10% tip wage at a crappy "resturaunt" on $6 isn't much and certainly less then a dollar.


So.. should I tip people at this place for handing me one glass of water?

 

[akubi]

let your wallet do the talking. eat elsewhere.

 

[SagaLore]

I never tip at buffet restaurants.

 

[Mrvile]

We don't have Souper Salads here in suburban Cleveland.

 

[HumblePie]

Originally posted by: akubi
let your wallet do the talking. eat elsewhere.

I would, but people from work wanted to eat there... and I hate eating alone at resturants worse then I hate tipping at a buffet place.

 

[Bv3]

So don't eat there.

 

[bockchow]

they are busboys there to clean up. getting the drink is just to give the impression of customer service. i'd say no tip needed. if they are tip waged then it's just the owners being cheap bastards and doing a major disservice to the employees and i'd eat elsewhere.

 

[SeminoleMarine]

Originally posted by: SagaLore
I never tip at buffet restaurants.

 

[TheShiz]

this practice is utterly bogus. if the place is paying waitress wages (2.50 + tips or whatever) just to bring people drinks they are obviously taking advantage of their employees and customers.

 

[Phoenix86]

No, it's a buffet. Why don't they just let you serve your own drinks?

Anyways, if they are paying their "servers" tip wages it's the server's own dumb fault for taking a job where you *really* shouldn't expect a tip.

 

[UglyCasanova]

If it's a buffet style place I wouldn't leave much unless you want to (which is always nice), but NEVER go to a real restraunt and just order a salad or something and say "O since this was such a cheap meal I'm only going to leave 10%. I hate that. Don't come into my restraunt and hassle me around (I am a real server, I do more than just bring you a glass of water) and only leave me $1. I have bills to pay, school to pay for, and there is nothing worse than having a cheap bastard sit at your tables and me wait on them and them only leave $1. I make $2.13 an hour, if you can't tip then don't even bother eating out. It's not hard, it's either tip or raise the prices of the food dramatically. Either way I need to be paid more than $2.13 an hour. And yeah you will get good service regardless on whether you order a lobster or a salad, but don't be a cheapass. That is the only thing I hate more than goths and terrorists is someone who won't tip.

 

[mugs]

Stop going there.

 

[kranky]

Do you get refills on the drinks?

Actually, I guess it doesn't really matter. You already know they aren't making minimum wage. I would tip a buck. That buck is probably a lot more important to them than it is to me, considering many people aren't tipping them at all.

 

[Vic]

Originally posted by: mugs
Stop going there.

Agreed. Management is cheating the system. By doing the drink service, they are making it so they can pay their employees tip-wages when it is not actually that type of job/service. I would not do business at such a place.
Luckily, my state does not allow tip-wages. Minimum wage is minimum wage period.

 

[Triforceofcourage]

Originally posted by: UglyCasanova
If it's a buffet style place I wouldn't leave much unless you want to (which is always nice), but NEVER go to a real restraunt and just order a salad or something and say "O since this was such a cheap meal I'm only going to leave 10%. I hate that. Don't come into my restraunt and hassle me around (I am a real server, I do more than just bring you a glass of water) and only leave me $1. I have bills to pay, school to pay for, and there is nothing worse than having a cheap bastard sit at your tables and me wait on them and them only leave $1. I make $2.13 an hour, if you can't tip then don't even bother eating out. It's not hard, it's either tip or raise the prices of the food dramatically. Either way I need to be paid more than $2.13 an hour. And yeah you will get good service regardless on whether you order a lobster or a salad, but don't be a cheapass. That is the only thing I hate more than goths and terrorists is someone who won't tip.

This idiot is about to start another moronic tipping thread.

 

[JoeKing]

how many servers are there say on a busy day like today? Excluding the cashiers.

 

[MetalMat]

Originally posted by: Vic

Originally posted by: mugs
Stop going there.

Agreed. Management is cheating the system. By doing the drink service, they are making it so they can pay their employees tip-wages when it is not actually that type of job/service. I would not do business at such a place.
Luckily, my state does not allow tip-wages. Minimum wage is minimum wage period.

I agree, I think tip-wages are such a sham. In the end it hurts the customers because they *have* to tip.

 

[Vic]

Originally posted by: UglyCasanova
If it's a buffet style place I wouldn't leave much unless you want to (which is always nice), but NEVER go to a real restraunt and just order a salad or something and say "O since this was such a cheap meal I'm only going to leave 10%. I hate that. Don't come into my restraunt and hassle me around (I am a real server, I do more than just bring you a glass of water) and only leave me $1. I have bills to pay, school to pay for, and there is nothing worse than having a cheap bastard sit at your tables and me wait on them and them only leave $1. I make $2.13 an hour, if you can't tip then don't even bother eating out. It's not hard, it's either tip or raise the prices of the food dramatically. Either way I need to be paid more than $2.13 an hour. And yeah you will get good service regardless on whether you order a lobster or a salad, but don't be a cheapass. That is the only thing I hate more than goths and terrorists is someone who won't tip.

Get off your high horse. You ruin a customer's meal with that sh!tty attitude, then you deserve to be stiffed. Drop the attitude and do your job right, and you should have no trouble clearing tips and will barely care about the rare cheapasses who never tip.

 

[Thegonagle]

You don't need to (because so many people don't tip, their expectations are low), but a buck per person is good at a buffet, IMO. (They still bring your drinks and clean up after you.)

At a real restaurant, tip 20%. That's just part of the deal if you eat at a real restaurant--if you don't want to tip, there's a multitude of fine fast food eateries in almost every town in the USA.

 

[Thegonagle]

Originally posted by: bockchow
they are busboys there to clean up. getting the drink is just to give the impression of customer service. i'd say no tip needed. if they are tip waged then it's just the owners being cheap bastards and doing a major disservice to the employees and i'd eat elsewhere.

And who do you think tips the bussers? (It's the servers!)

 

[Mermaidman]

Nik?

 

[UglyCasanova]

Originally posted by: Vic

Originally posted by: UglyCasanova
If it's a buffet style place I wouldn't leave much unless you want to (which is always nice), but NEVER go to a real restraunt and just order a salad or something and say "O since this was such a cheap meal I'm only going to leave 10%. I hate that. Don't come into my restraunt and hassle me around (I am a real server, I do more than just bring you a glass of water) and only leave me $1. I have bills to pay, school to pay for, and there is nothing worse than having a cheap bastard sit at your tables and me wait on them and them only leave $1. I make $2.13 an hour, if you can't tip then don't even bother eating out. It's not hard, it's either tip or raise the prices of the food dramatically. Either way I need to be paid more than $2.13 an hour. And yeah you will get good service regardless on whether you order a lobster or a salad, but don't be a cheapass. That is the only thing I hate more than goths and terrorists is someone who won't tip.

Get off your high horse. You ruin a customer's meal with that sh!tty attitude, then you deserve to be stiffed. Drop the attitude and do your job right, and you should have no trouble clearing tips and will barely care about the rare cheapasses who never tip.

My customers get great service every time, regardless of whether they are black or white or poor or sexy or what, if they sit at my table I'm going to treat them right. That doesn't change the fact that a lot of people who come to eat are cheap and won't tip. Or they leave $5 on a $130 ticket. The worst is when they tell me what a great job I did as they are leaving and everything was wonderful, I go to the table and whoopy! $2. All I can say is be a waiter for a while. We have servers from other restraunts come in and they ALWAYS leave great tips, way more than is expected. In turn we do the same. Wait on an 8 top who runs your ass off, have them tell you how great it was, then walk up to the table and see that they didn't leave anything. Nothing pisses me off more.

 

[Mermaidman]

Unless
the service is atrocious, I usually leave a reasonable tip. Really--a buck or two ain't gonna break the bank. We're fortunate; they're not. Then again, I have a soft spot for homeless people and such.

 

[Thegonagle]

Originally posted by: MetalMat

I agree, I think tip-wages are such a sham. In the end it hurts the customers because they *have* to tip.

You're right--tip wages are a sham, but that's how the system has evolved. Deal with the custom of tipping, or move to France. Your meal would be 15-20% more expensive on the menu if there were no tips, because nobody would become a server for fast food wages. (And if a place did try to get away with paying servers fast food wages, the servers wouldn't really give a crap whether you had a good experience or not. Nor would they speak Engilsh.)

 

[Anonemous]

what happens if the tips are already included in the price like at most restraunts will include 15% in the total with parties of 6 or more? Do you still tip?