No, I didn't tip...

[CheekyKid]

I was in a spanish restaurant recently, near by marylebone, which to my knowledge was supposed to be having excellent food and service.
I took 2 of my friends and we went there to check the place out. The food was indeed excellent but the service slow and "cold". Also they forgot part of our order.
We commented about the slugginess of the servers and this guy who appeared to be the "boss" there said its because its saturday night and they are too busy.
I never understood this excuse. It's not their first saturday night so its not like they were surprised nor their last so why don't they employ more people for the days they are most busy with?

Anyway....at the end of the meal none of us was pleased with the service we had received. We had a small chat about it and decided that they don't deserve any extra money.

They brought the bill which was £90 plus an extra 10% totaling £99.
I kindly requested the service charge to be removed from the bill as it was optional and to our discretion. (I couldn't be bother to justify our decision to him)
The server had the rudeness to argue about it and said that all customers who go there leave a tip and that am supposed to do the same. At that point I got a bit angry and he could tell I was about to raise my voice and that I ain't gonna have anymore of this. He conceded and went in a kinda urgent fashion to the counter to remove the service charge.

Why do restaurants add the service charge to the bill? Is it because they know that most people will be shy enough to swallow it even if they receive bad service?
There was a story on BBC which highlighted that restaurants should not! add the tip in the bill as it is optional and therefore at the discretion of the customers.

Personally I never tip waiters just because they went to the kitchen and brought my food. What is there to tip for? They are doing their job and nothing beyond and above what they are supposed to be doing.
Where does tipping end? If I go to subway and I get a sandwitch should I tip the lady just for simply "giving it to me"?

Tip is meant to be a sign of appreciation and encouragement to the person who just served you so that he continues to serve people in the same excellent way. Tipping can be bad if with it you are patronizing questionable practises.

Why shall we be expected to tip regardless of the service we have received? Why do many see tip as their "right" ?

"The real tip" is us going there and therefore keeping their business open which consequently results in more people being employed. Waiters should acknowledge and appreciate that I decided to eat at their restaurant rather than being sorry bums who demand more for simply doing their job. I do my job daily and I only get a monthly wage with no "tips" added.

The fact is that most middle class(90%) of establishments have lousy or very average service. Nothing exciting or remarkable and I think all customers deserve remarkable service and nothing less. Being friendly and kind doesn't cost!

My motto

bad service= no tip

simply doing your job "just like everyone else" = tip 5%

exceptional service,going the extra mile, unusual quality of service not easily seen= TIP 20%!!!! (encourage this attitude, thank the waiter etc.)

[Kieron]

Copied and pasted from?

[Matt_C]

I agree with you. Some friends and I recently went out to a restaurant/bar I used to work in when I was younger. I was a little let down to find the service to be fairly cold and impersonal - not what it was like 10 years previous when I was there!

The food wasn't even all that great either, and we felt rushed to finish and vacate the table even tho it was slow Tuesday night and I could see no-one waiting for tables....

Anyway, I opted to pay by plastic, and the waitress came over with the bluetooth PDQ machine, and I was almost shocked to see the service charge was "added" onto the bill. Fortunately it gave me the option to agree with or remove the service charge before keying in my PIN, which I did. We then left her a 5% tip as opposed to the 10% that had been added onto the bill (which I removed)

I sometimes get tips in my job (I fit windscreens and windows into people cars when they've been broken) and I notice most of the time, I get a tip when I have been prompt/early, and been overly helpful or done a really good job. And even if I do do all that, I don't always get a tip - it entirely depends on the customer of course.

I never encourage tips, nor do I expect them - at the end of the day, I've turned up to fit a new window into their car, which is a job I am paid to do. Of course, if someone wants to show their appreciation by giving me a couple quid then I won't say no!

And I am happy to "reward" someone for excellent service, politeness, etc etc if I have recieved it, but I don't see why I should reward someone for just doing their job - they are paid to do that!

[dunks517]

I went out with about 15 work colleagues to an Indian Restaraunt on Villiers Street near the Embankment Tube Station, they had the split the bill evenly between all 15 of us and said that it came to £38.00 each, one of us did the sums and they had added an extra £5.00 on to each person. The best bit?

They added a £60.00 'London Dining Tax' to the overall charge! We noticed it but how many people have been duped by criminals such as these!

I agree with the OP if waiters want a tip then I expect good service and hot food!

[CheekyKid]

Originally Posted by Matt_C

I agree with you. Some friends and I recently went out to a restaurant/bar I used to work in when I was younger. I was a little let down to find the service to be fairly cold and impersonal - not what it was like 10 years previous when I was there!

The food wasn't even all that great either, and we felt rushed to finish and vacate the table even tho it was slow Tuesday night and I could see no-one waiting for tables....

Anyway, I opted to pay by plastic, and the waitress came over with the bluetooth PDQ machine, and I was almost shocked to see the service charge was "added" onto the bill. Fortunately it gave me the option to agree with or remove the service charge before keying in my PIN, which I did. We then left her a 5% tip as opposed to the 10% that had been added onto the bill (which I removed)

I sometimes get tips in my job (I fit windscreens and windows into people cars when they've been broken) and I notice most of the time, I get a tip when I have been prompt/early, and been overly helpful or done a really good job. And even if I do do all that, I don't always get a tip - it entirely depends on the customer of course.

I never encourage tips, nor do I expect them - at the end of the day, I've turned up to fit a new window into their car, which is a job I am paid to do. Of course, if someone wants to show their appreciation by giving me a couple quid then I won't say no!

And I am happy to "reward" someone for excellent service, politeness, etc etc if I have recieved it, but I don't see why I should reward someone for just doing their job - they are paid to do that!

I should also add that the food price is dependent upon the expenses of the business. These expenses include the number of staff. They get paid low wages? Tough. Why should I be expected to bail them out?

[Abbeygoo]

Couldn't you have paid them extra with the million quid in your bank account?

[SimonH]

Why on earth are you guys feeding the troll, will you never learn ?

This guy must be laughing so hard...

He lives in a make believe world, he has not:

Found a million pounds in his bank account
He has not found the wallet on the street
He has not decided on which Matise to purchase..

It's not real..

Just leave the guy to talk to himself.

[JagoPlasma]

if the service is poor or ok they get no tip
if im pleasantly surprised by the service i will give then some pocket shrapnel (normally 2 or 3 quid. a tip in % terms makes me balk, they can bring me a big mac or caviar and toast. i pay tips on how it was served not what was served )
if they expect a tip the tip i give them is the same as for bad service. a stare that could kill and a reminder that if they want me to be a repeat customer then they had better not ask again and improve their service.

this isnt a country where people depend on tips, we have a minimum wage for a reason!

[bosque]

Can't resist quoting Joe Cabot from Reservoir Dogs, "Whaddaya mean you don't tip ? Come on, cough up a buck for the waiter, you cheap ******* !!! "

[CheekyKid]

Originally Posted by SimonH

Why on earth are you guys feeding the troll, will you never learn ?

This guy must be laughing so hard...

He lives in a make believe world, he has not:

Found a million pounds in his bank account
He has not found the wallet on the street
He has not decided on which Matise to purchase..

It's not real..

Just leave the guy to talk to himself.

Originally Posted by Abbeygoo

Couldn't you have paid them extra with the million quid in your bank account?

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^


What these posts have to do with the topic of the thread? Stop cluttering up my threads with your opinion about previous posts. Rubbish. Where are the mods to intervene?

[wormvortex]

"I don't tip because society says I gotta. I tip when somebody deserves a tip. When somebody really puts forth an effort, they deserve a little something extra. But this tipping automatically, that ****'s for the birds. As far as I'm concerned, they're just doin' their job.... The words 'too busy' shouldn't be in a waitress's vocabulary."

[CheekyKid]

Originally Posted by wormvortex

"I don't tip because society says I gotta. I tip when somebody deserves a tip. When somebody really puts forth an effort, they deserve a little something extra. But this tipping automatically, that ****'s for the birds. As far as I'm concerned, they're just doin' their job.... The words 'too busy' shouldn't be in a waitress's vocabulary."

Excellent post

[Naaktgeboren]

This is a matter which made me feel real bad last month on my wife's birthday. Her family flew over from Holland and there were 8 of us in total.

We arrived at the restaurant and was impressed, walked through the doors and was still impressed, the service was fantastic and the food was brilliant.

The young waitress pulled out every stop without being annoying, wishing my wife a happy birthday and making sure my young son was happy, it was as the dutch say 'gezzelig' now this word has no direct english translation, its more of a feeling for example, sitting at home in your favorite chair, drinking your favorite drink, feeling 110% with your best friends.

We finished 3 courses and time for the bill, my father in law always insists on settling the bill on my wifes birthday events so he went about paying. He then proceeded to tip the waitress......... £2....... yes 2 pounds after spending near £400 on a meal.

I felt ashamed and could barely look at the waitress as we left the restaurant, both I and my wife wished we had our wallets with us

Out of interest, how much would you guys of tipped in such a situation?

[Dony]

Originally Posted by CloggyNL

Out of interest, how much would you guys of tipped in such a situation?

Personally speaking, if someone collects the bill, I think their other guests should leave the tip.

If the other 7 had thrown in £5 each that would have covered the service tip.
I can't imagine going out for a meal (even if someone else is paying) without my wallet. Sorry Cloggy, probably not the answer you wanted.

I should add that I always keep the bill and tip separate. Bill goes on my card, tip's are left in cash so that hopefully it goes to the right person.


Hasn't this subject been done a few times before though?

[Naaktgeboren]

Originally Posted by Dony

Personally speaking, if someone collects the bill, I think their other guests should leave the tip.

If the other 7 had thrown in £5 each that would have covered the service tip.
I can't imagine going out for a meal (even if someone else is paying) without my wallet. Sorry Cloggy, probably not the answer you wanted.


Hasn't this subject been done a few times before though?

I guess this is part of the problem. Different rules for different nationalities.

I have to say this is one of the most baffling things I find when traveling around, especially when dining with English companions. I will remember that, thanks Dony.