Pressured To Tip

[Blindref757]

I tip carhops at Sonic...usually $1.

[Cedar Park Dad]

I tip carhops at Sonic...usually $1.

As do I. $2 if multiple meals. They always seem surprised.
I gave an older waitress at Denny's a $40 tip once, just for the look of joy, but I'm weird like that.

[bauer]

As we started to check out, I added the tip to the bill and the cashier took the change and dropped it in a basket. I told to make sure that Christi got her tip and the cashier looked at me and explained that all the tips go into one location and then they are divided up at the end of the night.. HUH?

Turns out that it's the owner's policy.. that way none of the less experienced staff get lower tips.. Sheesh.

Guess I'll ask if they have to share tips from now on.

Having worked in a few restaurants over the years, here is what I came to find out.

It's a policy that is extremely prevalent. Anytime someone tips in the form of an added charge on their debit or credit card that information is put into the point of sale machine. The system pools all the tips, restaurant wide, and then divides them out at the end of the night (sometimes even the bus boys get a portion). They also have to pay income taxes on these types of tips as it is all tracked. On the other hand if you leave a cash tip on the table that information never enters the system and the waiter/waitress doesn't pay taxes on it so long as they don't enter into the machine at the end of the night.

I always tip 15-20% sometimes more as long as the service is decent. The better the service the better the tip. Most of the servers work extremely hard, I know first hand, and most of the time make very little base wage. They work for tips.

[bigbang]

I do not fault the waitstaff for food that is slow to come out or bad food, UNLESS the food is cold. If the food is cold then it is the waitstaff's fault as they were not attentive to the orders up. Other than that I assume that it is the cooks fault for slow or bad food.

So we shouldn't tip extra if the food is really good, because that's beyond the waiter's control?

[bauer]

I do not fault the waitstaff for food that is slow to come out or bad food, UNLESS the food is cold. If the food is cold then it is the waitstaff's fault as they were not attentive to the orders up. Other than that I assume that it is the cooks fault for slow or bad food.

So we shouldn't tip extra if the food is really good, because that's beyond the waiter's control?

Why would your tip depend upon how good the food tastes? If the food is that good, request to speak with the chef and give him your appreciation personally. TIpping the waiter/waitress shows the chef nothing. On the flip side i've never tipped or refused to tip based on the food itself.