I have a problem with tiping what should I do?

Question

Everytime I go out to eat I leave a 15% tip just a habit, but there are rare occasions when the waiter/waitress are just so dam rude, inconsiderate, or pardon the expression "so dam stupid"(don't mean to affend the waiters/waitresses out there) but my God. Some can't do anything right, and well a tip was not meritted. Do you think I'm right in not leaving a tip, because of how poor the service was or should it still be included? Not trying to sound as if I'm paying them for there service, cause they do get a pay check most of the time, but I mean a tip is a sorta thank you for all you did to make this meal pleasant, is it not? So am I right in not leaving a tip or not?

Answer 1

A tip is jsut that, a thank you. it is not manditory

Answer 2

Well, I am a frugal person so I have asked around when it comes to tips.

I learned a long time ago that most Wait staff don't get paid all that great ( at least in WI) so it is more that you tip because they work hard for very little and you appreciate that they take more time then the ppl at McDonald's. I think that the service has to be HORRIBLE not to leave a tip ( like about to leave bad).

It is proper to leave 20% which is a nice tip a GOOD tip is 25% and 15% is decent ( but not all that great). I also try to remember that the wait staff are only human they do the best they can and they have bad days just like everyone else. I often try to give them the benefit of the doubt because tipping is placing a judgment and who really has the right to judge someone based off of a meal time. Plus I think to myself my tip makes a big difference if you think about it I mean a $5 tip might just be what they need to help pay for diaper's, tuition, or rent! To some ppl a $5 tip is life saving. May God Bless

Answer 3

I think that you are justified in not leaving a tip and I would probably leave a comment card if they have one (like IHOP does) about the problem. I am a big tipper at restaurants, I go for 20 to 40 percent depending on how good the server was and I have been lucky enough to not have anyone rude, though I've had absent minded or just stressed-out waitresses who would forget something or be a bit slow with something. A good thing to wonder is - are there are a lot of people? Is she waiting more than 2 tables at a time? Is the kitchen understaffed? Is the waitstaff understaffed? Could she be stressed out? Is it really late at night and is she a student? A lot of things can impact a waiter/waitress' performance that are out of his/her control, and they might not give you the service that is standard because of it. Also, everyone has a day where they are miserable...

I'm a cashier and 9 weeks pregnant (I'm not showing) and I work SO MUCH that I haven't had the time to see a doctor yet, and my husband and I are under a ton of stress from my family, and some days I come to work steamed off. I break down and cry in the bathroom, I feel sick and vomit randomly and my mouth tastes bitter sometimes. Who knows what these people are going through. They get 3.15 an hour usually and make their money off of tips, and you can't expect perfection. If they are out of it or spaced out... its good to at least tip standard if it seems like it might be more than the waiter's personal attitude.

But flat-out rudeness for NO reason and with no provocation is uncalled for no matter what.

Answer 4

No it's not mandatory BUT some people who wait on you may be new or having a bad day as you might at work, the issue here is that most waitresses make half of min wage which is around 3.00 here in Arkansas so they depend on the tips to make up for the rest, now I agree if you get bad service then there is warrant to not wanna tip and there are times you shouldn't but just take into consideration what went wrong during your meal, could it have been the kitchens fault, was the waitress overloaded because someone didn't show up for their shift and she is covering an extra amount of tables? I say you are a good tipper! 15% when you get good service is wonderful most people don't do that, but if your service is bad but you see that it's not entirely the fault of the waitress, just leave a dollar instead of nothing at all, that may give a hint to them that they need to step it up and most places have a comment card to fill out too
Good question by the way

Answer 5

Before you decide not to leave a tip, make absolutely sure it's not the waiter's fault that the service was so poor. Is he the only waiter in the entire section of 15 tables because someone called off work? Or is he just being rude because he's an @ss? Did he screw up your order, or did the kitchen staff do it? I always tip...15% if the service is good, up to 25% if it's excellent, or a penny if the service was atrocious. That way, they can be sure I didn't just forget to tip...they saw the penny and know that the service was bad.

Answer 6

Depending on the scene I would leave a 15% tip. Some times its not the waiters fault. I used to work in the industry and I know that there is more going on in the back, that the customer isn't aware of. Things such as side duties, busboys, cooks, dishwashers, bartenders, host and managers. The waiter has to deal with all of this and the numbers of tables that are in their section. Many times a host can over sit the section; or the bartender takes forever to make the cocktails; chiefs are slow with the meal or worse the wrong item; and managers can be a pain in the butt. All theses things and the waiter is the one who has to coordinate things to please the customer.

However; there are bad servers out there that I have no problem leaving less than 15% tip. The reason for a tip is to show appreciation; its not required.

Answer 7

A tip should be earned!

The term is, "I work for tips" NOT "I show up for tips".

If the service is top notch 20%

If the service is good 15%

If the service is fair 10%

Bad service, you need to ask for the manager. If you don't wish to, but want to let the server know how up set you are... leave a penny.

By not tipping, they can write it off as you are cheap and never tip, or that you forgot. Leaving a penny, gets the message across loud and clear.

A little common sense does need to be used here.
Is the problem the server's fault, or someone else's. If they have too many tables to handle, the kitchen is slow getting the food out, the server should not be penalized.

If the server is simply rude OR busy talking to the cute customer making time, rather than bringing me my food, it's penny time.

Answer 8

I waited tables to get through college and believe me, anything less than %15 is an insult, but I was great at my job and often made more money than the female waitresses. If the service is inexcusable, don't leave a tip. But remember these people make $2 something an hour and depend on their tips for a decent paycheck.

Answer 9

If the waiter or waitress is rude and I've received bad
service I don't leave a tip. Normally I tip too,but not in
these cases.

Answer 10

Well, I think that for extremely horrible, awful, worse-ever service not leaving a tip is acceptable. Of course, leaving a quarter makes an even bigger statement about the state of the service. However, for bad service I typically will leave 10% (I normally tip 18-20%). You are not under ANY obligation to tip, other than common practice.

My aunt used to work in a diner. She would often get older couples in for breakfast or lunch. They would come in and lay 10 $1 bills down on the table. Each time she screwed up, they'd take one away. Whatever was left was her tip.

Answer 11

no it isnt right not to tip. proper etiquette is actually 20% but if service is so bad just leave the standard 15% because hey what if they were havin a bad day or an off day what if that single mom waitress had a lot on her plate with say a sick child and not enough money to take care of it. be considerate and be the bigger person and dont be so freakin rude, 2 wrongs do not make a right dude