by Chickpea on December 23rd, 2006

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Would you leave a tip even if you thought the waiter or waitress didn't seem to work for it?

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Answers. 21 helpful answers below.

by Anonymous on December 28th, 2006
Of course not.
I did work as a waitress for a long time and I appreciate that its damn hard work and not terribly well paid. But I also think you have some basic duties that you should be fulfilling if you're doing that job. You should be polite and courteous and neatly dressed, you should bring any sauces, requested drinks etc promptly, dirty plates should be cleared away in a reasonable amount of time, that kind of thing. If I thought a waiter was surly or rude, unecessarily slow or kept forgetting things I wouldn't leave a tip (and if it was really bad I'd probably complain too). When you do any job, however poorly paid, you do have a duty to do it to a reasonable standard- bad pay is no excuse for not doing something properly. To be honest, having been a waitress, and always made an effort to provide good service, I expect that the same effort should be made to serve me. If a tip is left whatever the service was like, then there's no incentive to provide good service, and waiters will feel like they can just slam the food down whenever they feel like it and still expect to get a reward. At the end of the day its still a job, and you are paid (however little)to work and you can't expect to get congratulated just for turning up.
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by timetogetserious on December 23rd, 2006
No not at all, but you need to remember tipping in Australia is not often done.
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- didn't know that, thanx.
  
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  by pertiponi on December 23rd, 2006
- Yeah I am in Australia, and I make sure I tip all the time :) I dunno why, I just do :)
  
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  by Chickpea on December 23rd, 2006
- try waiting tables for a week and see how your family gets fed.you say your in australia,ask a server next time how much they make an hour and you would be astonished!restaurant work is harder that most occupations and not given nearly the credit its deserverd
  
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  by meganc on December 23rd, 2006
- i'm in canada and its a common thing. for the youger crowd anyway.
  
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  by pertiponi on December 23rd, 2006
- If the waiter provided excellent service i would tip. For average or poor service i wouldn't.
  
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  by timetogetserious on December 23rd, 2006
- In Australia the minimum wage is not so low, your pay does not have to be supplemented by tips in order to make a living, it is a nice gesture, and people do it, but it is not expected by the industry. People get paid a decent hourly rate. Often in Aus, there is a communal tipping jar, which is divided by all staff at the end of the night.
  When i delived pizza, it was a nice treat to get a tip, and the average was the 5c left over from the $14.95 meal.
  As timetogetserious said, if excellent, yes tip, but it would have to be pretty special.
  Also, this is in reference to average outlets, i'm not sure what happens in highly expensive outlets, as i do not visit them (I imagine rich people tip more often!).
  
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  by Anonymous on December 28th, 2006
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by Jodie44 on December 24th, 2006
Of course! They work, even if it looks like they don't sometimes. I generally leave 20% minimum, and more for very good service and/or if the server's really nice. I was a bartender for a couple of years and later worked in restaurant management. Depending on the restaurant, a server may have to tip bussers, prep cooks, line cooks, and/or a bartender, out of his (the server's) tips.

Sometimes what falls under the all-purpose complaint heading of "bad service" could be something beyond the server's control. I also try to remember that, just like everyone else, a server has to go to work, even if he's having a bad day. God knows, I've had a few myself here and there. Even if the service is marginal, it's almost impossible for me to leave less than 15%.

The worst - being interested in a guy, then finding out he's a cheap tipper. Petty much plants the kiss of death on that relationship, as far as I'm concerned.
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- I tip. It's like stealing, almost if I don't. I agree with you. Everyone has bad days.
  
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  by unknown on June 10th, 2007
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by Anonymous on December 23rd, 2006
Yes I'd still feel an obligation to tip him unless he was deliberately nasty to me in some way.
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- Same here :)
  
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  by Chickpea on December 23rd, 2006
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by pertiponi on December 23rd, 2006
yeah but smaller than usual. i've learned from those who are waiters or waiteresses that tips are essencial.
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by unknown on June 10th, 2007
Yes, I do. People who wait on tables work for tips most of the time and I feel like they should be paid for working. I may tip less if the service is bad; but, I still tip. Like Jodie said, the waiter may not be the reason for the service being bad.
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by wnypatriot on December 24th, 2006
The general sentiment seems to be clear. Just because they don't have manners doesn't mean you shouldn't have any either. Lead by example!
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by Firebrand on December 24th, 2006
Yes I always tip but the kind of service I receive will definately have a very large bearing on the percentage that I leave as a gratuity. I worked as a waitress when I was at school and yes it is very hard work , but it does not matter what the job you should do it to the best of your ability . Your best will earn you bigger rewards
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by anonymous on December 24th, 2006
I'm grateful if they don't chuck the food down me, so yes, I always tip
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by jangobean on December 24th, 2006
I always feel like I have to leave a tip, even if the service didn't deserve one. They'd get a tip, but not a very big one.
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by meganc on December 23rd, 2006
like i have said, serving is one of the hardest profecions,has anyone here actually waited tables? i think that if you tried to do it you would have a whole new respect for servers! most servers i know make between 2-3$ an hour in wage and are dependent on tips to feed their families and pay rent.its a-lot harder than sitting behind a corporate desk being a yes man. i challenge anyone to get a job waiting tables and see if that changes your mind.everyone is entitled to a bad day
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by Mirage V2.0 AWOL on December 23rd, 2006
ALWAYS TIP.
Poor service, small tip.
Good food and service, great tip.

IF I AM having a bad meal experience in a nice restuarant, I ask to be moved to another section or to speak with the Maitre d', this usually assure attentive service.

WHICH is the purpose of the event, good food and pleasant service.
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by meganc on December 23rd, 2006
its a hard question b/c i have always worked in restaurants.there are somany things to take into consideration,the kitchen of course being first.sometimes we have a bad day where nothing seems to come together,maybe a really tough customer.i always remember that waiters only make about 2-3$ an hour and have kids to support too!i have been there many a times. if i dont get good service i write them a note, maybe that will help them step up their game for the next table.
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by haggis on June 10th, 2007
i always tip even if it's less because the waiter is always working. i have worked a long time in the service industry and know what its like to have to serve on people even if you are having a bad day.
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by bigkado69 on December 23rd, 2006
I Tip for the ones who will be there abd always be cool 2 u .Now if im there and 2 or 3 people somehow get there food before mine,ill bitch.I will always leave atleast 3-5 tip ,but thats depending if they do well.
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by kitty loves you on December 23rd, 2006
Yes unless the service was exceptionally bad. The pay for this job isn,t anything to write home about as far as I know, they perhaps rely on tips.
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by fatbag on November 23rd, 2008
Yes ... unless they were actally rude or very lazy. I waitressed for a long time when I was a student and the Americans were far and away the BEST tippers! Italians Germans and French were the worst.
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by jas on November 23rd, 2008
Yes, I always leave a tip. I may leave a bit less if the service wasn't very good. In some cases, you can tell the person is new or very busy so I would still leave the max.
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by celeste on March 5th, 2009
I would tip a little less for the poor service.
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by Nikka Yuko on November 23rd, 2008
No. I've had times when the only time I ever saw my waitress without me having to wait 15 minutes before flagging someone else down and that someone else called my waiter/waitress was when they took my order. After going through that routine at least 3 or 4 times in my whole meal, I didn't tip.

There are some cultures that don't tip, mostly asian countries as far as I know. Basically, the waiters/waitress has their salary and if you tip, that's basically an insult because they should give their best service all the time, not just for tips. There will be some restaurants that will ask you "didn't you like the food?" or "what was wrong with the service?" if you left a tip, even if you didn't know that they didn't tip.
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by Glenn Blaylock on December 23rd, 2006
If the service is poor, then I will leave a tip of 1 penny. If you don't leave any tip then the waiter thinks that you are just thoughtless. The tiny tip is to tell the waiter that I did remember the tip, but I did not like the service that I got.
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- that is just rude! i would prefer nothing at all.
  
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  by haggis on June 10th, 2007
- Misshell, the service would have to be really poor before I would leave such a tip. Basically, the waiter would have had to be pretty rude to me before I would something like that. So, what we have here would be a situation where what goes around comes around. Personally, I have never had a situation where I have had to do this. However, the purpose of the small tip is to tell the waiter that his service needs to improve. If you leave nothing then he may not realize that you are commenting on his service.
  
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  by Glenn Blaylock on June 10th, 2007
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Would you leave a tip even if you thought the waiter or waitress didn't seem to work for it?

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