Wat? I said nothing of the manner. I said I tip less when a delivery fee is included and made a quip concerning Papa John being a terrible company. In situations where a delivery fee is included, the amount I will tip will be less, as that fee is going to the deliverer. If no such fee is present, I am likely to give the poor chap a few extra dollars for his troubles.
How you've come to the idea that has anything to do with setting a flat rate I am willing to pay is beyond my comprehension.
A tip is supposed to be compensation for service above and beyond what is originally purchased. What service do they add when you do all the work to drive over there and pickup a bag of food and then leave?
Restaurants or bars
If you get awful service, talk to the manager. The manager cannot correct the situation if he doesn't know about it. Skipping the tip will not accomplish anything, and the next poor customer who gets that server will get the same service you did.
If you are buying the meal and someone offers to get the tip, tell them they can buy next time, and you pay the whole thing. This prevents any uneasiness about them seeing the amount of the bill or worrying that they will be stingy on the tip.
Restaurants report a percentage (around 12%) of the gross sales for food and beverage to the IRS for their staff. This means that if you have a $200 food bill and $200 wine bill, the restaurant will report 12% of $400 or $48 as income to the server. In other words, the server has to pay tax on it whether you tip it or not. If the restaurants do not report it accurately, the restaurant and the wait staff get audited by the IRS.
Please don't get hung up on the 12%. It is just a reasonable example. I recommend tipping 10-15% on the alcohol and 15-20% on the food. 10% on the wine is perfectly acceptable. Whether to tip 10 or 15 percent would depend in large part on how helpful the server was in choosing the wine and serving it.
Food server - 15-20%.
Self-service restaurant or buffet - Nothing unless there is some service. Tip 10% if the server delivers all or part of your meal or keeps your drinks refilled.
Takeout - If you get good service, in other words, the waiter gets and packages the food, then at your choice you can tip $1-2 or up to 10%. Nothing is really necessary.
Drive through - Nothing.
When breakfast is included in the price of the hotel room - Estimate the value of the meal by looking at a menu. If there is no breakfast menu, consider the quality of the hotel and the price of an evening meal, then make your best estimate. Your tip is 15-20% of your estimate.
Teppanyaki chef - 15-20% of the total bill. The gratuity will be split among the wait staff and the chef.
Counter service - 15-20%.
Cocktail server - 15-20%. For free drinks in Vegas, tip $1-2 per round.
Bartender - 15-20% or $1 per drink. If at the bar before a meal, settle up with the bartender before you go to your table.
Wine steward or sommelier - 15% of wine bill.
If a bar has a cover charge, you do not tip on it.
Busboys - Nothing, unless he did something extra special like cleaning up a huge mess. Then give him $1-2.
Maitre d' - Nothing, unless he gets you a special table or the restaurant is full and you had no reservation. Then give $5-10 or more.
Coat check - $1
Restroom attendant - $1
Separate checks - If you want separate checks, ask the server to go ahead and add 18% gratuity to each check.
Musician that visits table - $2-3 if you make a special request. Optional if he just stops by and plays.
Musician in lounge - $1-5
A tip is not about above and beyond in the food industry, it's expected for servers. If the counter-staff is making above wait-staff wages then optional.
Well, that's pretty much what I meant.
To me the basic price of eating at a restaurant is the price for the dish. But taking up real estate for several hours in their restaurant while being served and pampered is above and beyond the basic price of the service. So it warrants a tip.
A tip is not about above and beyond in the food industry, it's expected for servers. If the counter-staff is making above wait-staff wages then optional.
http://www.findalink.net/tippingetiquette.php
A tip is supposed to be compensation for service above and beyond what is originally purchased. What service do they add when you do all the work to drive over there and pickup a bag of food and then leave?
That statement about 12% being reported to the IRS is bogus.
So glad we don't have tipping here / its not expected. Whenever I am in the states I find it super annoying but mainly because I am not used to it and I always end up spending over budget because I don't take it into account or tipping to much because I don't want to risk under tipping and looking like a cock.
http://rrgconsulting.com/tip_reporting_article.htm
Please let us know what your thoughts are.
It's generally 8-12% of the sales they report.
It is usually closet to 8%, they also have an option to keep a log book of actual tip amounts, but this isn't done because the 8% on average is way lower than the actual tips.
It's almost impossible to keep an accurate log book with cash tips.
I am not sure why you are arguing this. Some restaurants report high, some lower. Last thing a restaurant wants is an audit if the IRS thinks the employees are massively under reporting wages/tips.
The fact is a restaurant reports a base amount, the IRS knows that amount and the SSN's of the employees on tips. It's the same way they catch people claiming an independent as a dependent or two parents claiming one child.
I am arguing because the idea that wait staff pay tax on tips they never received is wrong. Overall they almost always under report tips.
Also they can spit in your food next time
So you tip as payment to have them not spit in your food?