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urbanriot
Premium Member
join:2004-10-18
Canada

urbanriot to Nitra

Premium Member

to Nitra

Re: Vancouver Island restaurant ban on gratuities sparks debate

said by Nitra:

it bothers me sometimes that we get complete shit for service and there's an expectation of a 15% tip.

Never in my life have I encountered a scenario where I felt this expectation existed. I tip based on my experience and if the experience is lacking, the tip will also be lacking.

I have previously experienced service that was bad to the point of no tip and I've equally experienced great service that resulted in $20+ a tip on an $80 meal. I tip appropriately based on the experience.

Styvas
Who are we? Forge FC!
Premium Member
join:2004-09-15
Hamilton, ON

Styvas

Premium Member

The expectation certainly exists, but one needn't feel pressured by it. My experience is much like yours.

Jackorama
I Am Woman
Premium Member
join:2008-05-23
Kingston, ON

Jackorama

Premium Member

I have encountered a scenario where the expected 15% added on to the bill. It was while I was in college (late 80's), we were in Ottawa for special tour of the Parliament buildings and meeting some King from some country. We were having dinner at some restaurant, the service was just plain rude and lacking. We were all pissed about the 15% being added on. We were expected not to cause a commotion and tarnish the college's reputation.

What get's me today is if you pay with your card, you have different amounts of percentage that you can pick for the tip on the machine and it will calculate everything with a final total. The problem I have found is they will calculate the tip on the total bill with tax. I don't tip the government.

I always do other amount and work it out before taxes. It's easier now (then doing it in my head) that I have an app that does the before tax tips, etc. EZ Tip Calculator »play.google.com/store/ap ··· or&hl=en
vintagewino
join:2003-07-22
Grimsby, ON

vintagewino to analog andy

Member

to analog andy
said by analog andy:

said by TigerLord:

said by analog andy:

If you want to have automatic 18% gratuity then raise your prices of the food or state in big bold letters on the menu and in the restaurant that service is mandatory and there a 18% charge for any service rendered by a server.

That's how the EU and Australia operates, but as it was said above, it's generally disadvantageous to both the customer (the waiter isn't motivated) and the staff as well (My standard tip is 20% on total before taxes, if they charge me 15% automatically, they're losing out)


So what if other countries do it. If the server is doing a shitty job for the job they are paid to do its up to the employer to fix that.


My friend's son worked in a restaurant as a waiter in a tourist area in the Costa Brava area of Spain last summer. Interesting things:

- he was paid minimum wage, and worked HARD for it.
- "tips" or "gratuities" were often the small change left at the end of the bill (the change left over from a 38+ euro bill, and 40 euros was laid down. Mind you, the correct change was required to be returned to the client, FIRST!!
- if there is a problem with the service staff, the client goes directly to the staff supervisor with a complaint. If it's bad, the one who has had the complaint lodged against them has their employment TERMINATED IMMEDIATELY. My friend's son DID have a complaint lodged against him by a grumpy German patron who seriously felt the son's German wasn't "up to par". The owner took him to the side and told him of the incident; they both had a laugh, and and all was well.
- the price on the menu includes the 21% VAT.
- "tips" or "gratuities" are ONLY given by a patron who feels the service is outstanding.

I have been hit by the forced, non-negotiable 15% gratuity on a larger party, but at least I knew about it beforehand. And yes, the staff were MOST attentive, so no complaint.
PX Eliezer1
Premium Member
join:2013-03-10
Zubrowka USA

PX Eliezer1

Premium Member

said by vintagewino:


My friend's son worked in a restaurant as a waiter in a tourist area in the Costa Brava area of Spain last summer....

My friend's son DID have a complaint lodged against him by a grumpy German patron who seriously felt the son's German wasn't "up to par". The owner took him to the side and told him of the incident; they both had a laugh, and and all was well....

I have been hit by the forced, non-negotiable 15% gratuity on a larger party, but at least I knew about it beforehand. And yes, the staff were MOST attentive, so no complaint.

Curious: Working in a restaurant in Spain, is a waiter expected to know German?? Why didn't the grumpy German patron know Spanish?

The grumpy German sounds like a damn American.

-----

Many US restaurants now add on 18 percent for larger groups (such as 6 people or more). That would actually save me money, as I usually tip 20-25 percent. (This evening for a really good waiter I tipped 32 percent.)

eweazel
join:2008-12-09
Etobicoke, ON

eweazel to Jackorama

Member

to Jackorama
Years ago I went to a restaurant with a billiard and bar attached to it. I went with a group of 4. We ate our meals paid our bill and moved on to the bar to play pool and drink the rest of the night. I tipped the guy 10 dollars on our 90+ bill since we were planning on staying the night he was gonna keep getting tipped as he served us. He was so insulted by our 10 % tip that gets started following me and demanding more, keep in mind we are still in the bar and he is still serving us drinks. He threw the money change wallet that had the tip on our poll table. His manager came out to see the commotion and he told the server that we were staying and to be nice. He wouldn't after a few more time if being yelled at, I told them I was done, took the tip and we walked out the door.
PX Eliezer1
Premium Member
join:2013-03-10
Zubrowka USA

PX Eliezer1

Premium Member

I understand and might have done the same thing.

OTOH, aren't the tip for the original restaurant bill, and the tips for the ongoing drinks, separate issues for separate services?

As well, you may have been planning to stay all night, but was he? Maybe he was going home in another hour.

Just trying to see things from his POV....

eweazel
join:2008-12-09
Etobicoke, ON

eweazel

Member

He could have said that, but either way a 10% tip for seving us once during the meal was enough, and we had to tell them if we were playing pool. We had the option of transferring our dinner bill to the bar to pay at once but we decided to settle it before hand. Either way yelling at me while following me in a crowded place does not garnish sypmathy.

tip
@131.137.245.x

tip

Anon

When I know I'll be staying at a bar/restaurant for a while I always make sure to make my first tip the biggest one. It offsets over the night but it ensures I get exceptional service throughout the night.
zod5000
join:2003-10-21
Victoria, BC

zod5000 to jaberi

Member

to jaberi
I've never been a big fan of tipping. Most likely because I've never had a job that received tips. I've worked plenty of low paying jobs with no tips.

I won't lie. It's always bugged me that the waiter/waitress relies on tips for income. This excuse is used far to often. I thought it was kind of cool that they were trying to do away with it and include the cost of labour in their meal prices. I like seeing what stuff costs all-in.

I usually tip 15%. Maybe 10% if the service is weaker or 20% if the service is pretty good, but I would say I average 15.

It's a bit of a bummer it didn't work out, but maybe 18% was too much. I still don't like tipping. I've had plenty of low paying jobs (especially in my youth) where the work was hard and grueling, but I didn't get tipped. If I wanted more money I had to choose a different career path. I'm still not entirely sure how the culture of tipping became so prevalent here (when it's not in other places).
pauldenton
join:2003-12-20
London

pauldenton to PX Eliezer1

Member

to PX Eliezer1
hmm - in a tourist area like the Costa Brava a waiter is probably expected to know a little - even if only the oxymoronic "Tut mir leid, Ich spreche kein Deutsch"......

there's a lot of German tourists there - they are the #1 takers of foreign holidays in the world (lots of annual leave to use up.... and the money to do it with), and Spain is their #1 destination with about 10m Germans holidaying there each year!

most of them won't know much Spanish because it's not a commonly taught foreign language in Germany (English/French dominate, with a smattering of Polish in Brandenburg....)
jaberi
join:2010-08-13

jaberi to zod5000

Member

to zod5000
said by zod5000:

I've never been a big fan of tipping. Most likely because I've never had a job that received tips. I've worked plenty of low paying jobs with no tips.

I won't lie. It's always bugged me that the waiter/waitress relies on tips for income. This excuse is used far to often. I thought it was kind of cool that they were trying to do away with it and include the cost of labour in their meal prices. I like seeing what stuff costs all-in.

I usually tip 15%. Maybe 10% if the service is weaker or 20% if the service is pretty good, but I would say I average 15.

It's a bit of a bummer it didn't work out, but maybe 18% was too much. I still don't like tipping. I've had plenty of low paying jobs (especially in my youth) where the work was hard and grueling, but I didn't get tipped. If I wanted more money I had to choose a different career path. I'm still not entirely sure how the culture of tipping became so prevalent here (when it's not in other places).

because there is a demand, and the owners can get away with it....why pay a livable wage to their employees when the patrons will cover that.
analog andy
join:2005-01-03
Surrey, BC

analog andy

Member

said by jaberi See Profile
because there is a demand, and the owners can get away with it....why pay a livable wage to their employees when the patrons will cover that.
[/bquote :

Which is ridiculous.. If your business can't survive by paying your workers fair wages then the business model is broken. Why the hell should the customers be the welfare cheque...