So...I had dinner next to Jessica Alba last night...

[JS80]

Originally posted by: Mill
Again, you made ANOTHER brag thread about eating out. Then, when you tip extremely cheap, you expect no one to say anything. Perhaps if you want to brag about the fact dinner check then you shouldn't look like a couple of 16 year kids out for their first big meal, or a couple in their 70's that barely believe in tipping. You know the system, you said you had fantastic service, and then you pretty much stiff them.

15% might be slightly acceptable at Applebee's, but not at Wolfgang Puck's. You just look like a cheap ass or an immature kid when you get an expensive meal and don't take care of your server. If you cannot afford to tip then do NOT go.

Whatever, at least I don't go posting whiny YAGTs or bvtching about how horrible my life is (not saying you do that), or race-bait trolling. I am not trying to brag, I just thought I would share my awesome experience eating next to a celeb that many ATOTers admire. Next time I will not forget to leave out how much tip we paid.

 

[Falloutboy]

I don't get how thats a weak tip. the waitress prolly had 3-4 other tables at any 1 time (I would assume double that but i'm going for the lowend). average 2 hours per table and average of 50 dollar tip shed would easily clear 300 a night. and thats based on 4 hours or so (5-8) x 5 thats 1500 a week which is about 60k a year for waiting tables? even in a fancy place thats alot I would think.

 

[BigJ]

Originally posted by: Falloutboy
I don't get how thats a weak tip. the waitress prolly had 3-4 other tables at any 1 time (I would assume double that but i'm going for the lowend). average 2 hours per table and average of 50 dollar tip shed would easily clear 300 a night. and thats based on 4 hours or so (5-8) x 5 thats 1500 a week which is about 60k a year for waiting tables? even in a fancy place thats alot I would think.

At a place like that I can guarantee you that she doesn't keep all of it. Gotta tip the bartenders, busboys, hostess, and possibly even give a cut to the kitchen.

 

[thereds]

If a waiter at Applebees provided great service and had brought in the same amount of food and drinks (assuming it is available) at Applebees, the OP's 15% tip would be considered sufficient.

The waiter at Wolfgang's and Applebees did the same amout of service but the pricing of items skews the comparison.

I really don't see why 15% at Wolfgang's is something to frown about.

Sh|t, not everyone is frickin' loaded.

You did fine, OP.

 

[krunchykrome]

Originally posted by: thereds
If a waiter at Applebees provided great service and had brought in the same amount of food and drinks (assuming it is available) at Applebees, the OP's 15% tip would be considered sufficient.

The waiter at Wolfgang's and Applebees did the same amout of service but the pricing of items skews the comparison.

I really don't see why 15% at Wolfgang's is something to frown about.

Sh|t, not everyone is frickin' loaded.

You did fine, OP.

If you can't afford to tip appropriately, stay at home and get carry out. If a waiter does a bad job, I can understand tipping poorly. But if you go out to a decent restuarunt and spend some money, and the waitress/waiter does an "excellent" job, taking care of the waiter should not be such a financial burden for you.

 

[PepePeru]

OMG you were that close to Alba and you didnt ask for a lock of her hair???!!!

whats wrong with you!?

 

[slsmnaz]

Originally posted by: thereds
If a waiter at Applebees provided great service and had brought in the same amount of food and drinks (assuming it is available) at Applebees, the OP's 15% tip would be considered sufficient.

The waiter at Wolfgang's and Applebees did the same amout of service but the pricing of items skews the comparison.

I really don't see why 15% at Wolfgang's is something to frown about.

Sh|t, not everyone is frickin' loaded.

You did fine, OP.

There is a huge difference and a reason why someone works at Applebees vs. Wolfgangs.

 

[thereds]

Originally posted by: slsmnaz

Originally posted by: thereds
If a waiter at Applebees provided great service and had brought in the same amount of food and drinks (assuming it is available) at Applebees, the OP's 15% tip would be considered sufficient.

The waiter at Wolfgang's and Applebees did the same amout of service but the pricing of items skews the comparison.

I really don't see why 15% at Wolfgang's is something to frown about.

Sh|t, not everyone is frickin' loaded.

You did fine, OP.

There is a huge difference and a reason why someone works at Applebees vs. Wolfgangs.

Isn't 15% standard for good service?

What should he have tipped? 25%?

 

[BigJ]

Originally posted by: krunchykrome

Originally posted by: thereds
If a waiter at Applebees provided great service and had brought in the same amount of food and drinks (assuming it is available) at Applebees, the OP's 15% tip would be considered sufficient.

The waiter at Wolfgang's and Applebees did the same amout of service but the pricing of items skews the comparison.

I really don't see why 15% at Wolfgang's is something to frown about.

Sh|t, not everyone is frickin' loaded.

You did fine, OP.

If you can't afford to tip appropriately, stay at home and get carry out. If a waiter does a bad job, I can understand tipping poorly. But if you go out to a decent restuarunt and spend some money, and the waitress/waiter does an "excellent" job, taking care of the waiter should not be such a financial burden for you.

To add to this:

Quotes from OP:

That restaurant is a ridiculous place. Every female waitress/hostess was borderline supermodel (and made you feel like you're the shvt).

As for the food...cheese bread was amazing, appetizer was awesome (maple glazed pork belly), but the steak was a bit dry (20 oz ribeye). The service was absolutely amazing. The server/customer ratio must have been 1:2

I don't know about you, but if Applebees can give me that kind of service, I'd gladly tip them 25%+. Applebees typically does not generate this level of service, which is why a 15% tip would've been fine even if the dollar amount generated was still the same or the quantity of items was still the same. You tip based on the level of service. If the service is worse at Applebees, you'd tip worse at Applebees. Not that hard of a concept to grasp.

On top of that, the type of server you have at Applebees is going to be far different than Wolfgangs. Because of the higher ticket price per check, it's very competitive to get a job like that. You will have the best servers applying for the jobs because it is so lucrative, and you will also have the highest demands placed on the employees. If you don't work hard, not only are you bringing in less cash, but management is going to notice and fire your ass. Anybody can wait at Applebees and keep their job.

 

[slsmnaz]

Originally posted by: thereds

Originally posted by: slsmnaz

Originally posted by: thereds
If a waiter at Applebees provided great service and had brought in the same amount of food and drinks (assuming it is available) at Applebees, the OP's 15% tip would be considered sufficient.

The waiter at Wolfgang's and Applebees did the same amout of service but the pricing of items skews the comparison.

I really don't see why 15% at Wolfgang's is something to frown about.

Sh|t, not everyone is frickin' loaded.

You did fine, OP.

There is a huge difference and a reason why someone works at Applebees vs. Wolfgangs.

Isn't 15% standard for good service?

What should he have tipped? 25%?

At a place like that, 20-25% would not be unreasonable.

 

[krunchykrome]

Originally posted by: slsmnaz

Originally posted by: thereds

Originally posted by: slsmnaz

Originally posted by: thereds
If a waiter at Applebees provided great service and had brought in the same amount of food and drinks (assuming it is available) at Applebees, the OP's 15% tip would be considered sufficient.

The waiter at Wolfgang's and Applebees did the same amout of service but the pricing of items skews the comparison.

I really don't see why 15% at Wolfgang's is something to frown about.

Sh|t, not everyone is frickin' loaded.

You did fine, OP.

There is a huge difference and a reason why someone works at Applebees vs. Wolfgangs.

Isn't 15% standard for good service?

What should he have tipped? 25%?

At a place like that, 20-25% would not be unreasonable.

It's not. I was at a wolfgang puck resturaunt in Vegas about two weeks ago and the service was absolutely great. The food was great. There were no long waits for drinks or food. I tipped about 30%. Im not rich, but the service was excellent and the waitress deserved an an appropriate tip. Now consider this: you go out to a nice resturaunt, and the food overall is good. But the service is slow, you have to wait forever to get your drinks, and eventually you just get frustrated. This is going to ruin your dining experience. That is why I tip well when the service is fantastic, because good service can make a hell of a difference.

 

[exdeath]

Who is Jessica Alba?





(no I don't watch TV or pay attention to media celebs or any such people, I could care less)

 

[Xyclone]

Originally posted by: exdeath
Who is Jessica Alba?

QFB

 

[Mill]

Originally posted by: krunchykrome

Originally posted by: slsmnaz

Originally posted by: thereds

Originally posted by: slsmnaz

Originally posted by: thereds
If a waiter at Applebees provided great service and had brought in the same amount of food and drinks (assuming it is available) at Applebees, the OP's 15% tip would be considered sufficient.

The waiter at Wolfgang's and Applebees did the same amout of service but the pricing of items skews the comparison.

I really don't see why 15% at Wolfgang's is something to frown about.

Sh|t, not everyone is frickin' loaded.

You did fine, OP.

There is a huge difference and a reason why someone works at Applebees vs. Wolfgangs.

Isn't 15% standard for good service?

What should he have tipped? 25%?

At a place like that, 20-25% would not be unreasonable.

It's not. I was at a wolfgang puck resturaunt in Vegas about two weeks ago and the service was absolutely great. The food was great. There were no long waits for drinks or food. I tipped about 30%. Im not rich, but the service was excellent and the waitress deserved an an appropriate tip. Now consider this: you go out to a nice resturaunt, and the food overall is good. But the service is slow, you have to wait forever to get your drinks, and eventually you just get frustrated. This is going to ruin your dining experience. That is why I tip well when the service is fantastic, because good service can make a hell of a difference.

Exactly. Perhaps it is karma, but I cannot even remember the last time I received bad service.

 

[FreshCrabLegs]

Awesome story JS. Thanks for sharing.

Not only did you have a great meal, but you did have a noteworthy experience.

Just wondering, how was the steak tartare? I've never had raw beef before, so that's something I'd like to try. Your party ordered three of them so I'm going to assume that they were appetizers. Was the portion small, say about 4oz?

 

[deerslayer]

$100+ for a meal? No thanks, I'll grill at home. I don't need the "experience".

 

[ArJuN]

So...with all this talk, how hard do you think it'd be to get a job waitering there?

 

[amoeba]

The waitstaff at Wolfgang's is better taken care of because the meals are expensive enough that 15% of a huge bill is more than sufficient tip.

Always had a problem with a percentage based tip system. If a meal costs me $500 a person because I wanted white truffles, is an $80 tip insufficient? they aren't doing any additional work. what if I go in a restaurant and only order $1000 bottle of wine for myself, is a $150 tip for a waiter who uncorks it for me insufficient?

What better service the Wolfgang waiters give compared to Applebee service is already covered by the tip amount being substantially more. Example : meal at applebee costs $20, I tip $3. Meal at Wolfgang's cost $100, I tip $15. The service at Wolfgang's is better and thats why they get 5x more money than the applebee servers. But to say that they deserve a higher percentage is ludicrous.

 

[Suspicious-Teach8788]

Originally posted by: JS80

Originally posted by: theprodigalrebel
pics or ban

Seriously, would you have busted out a camera and taken a picture with her while she was having dinner at one of the finest restaurants in LA?

Um wasn't she in the Yay Area to watch the Warriors game?

 

[Mill]

Originally posted by: amoeba
The waitstaff at Wolfgang's is better taken care of because the meals are expensive enough that 15% of a huge bill is more than sufficient tip.

Always had a problem with a percentage based tip system. If a meal costs me $500 a person because I wanted white truffles, is an $80 tip insufficient? they aren't doing any additional work. what if I go in a restaurant and only order $1000 bottle of wine for myself, is a $150 tip for a waiter who uncorks it for me insufficient?

What better service the Wolfgang waiters give compared to Applebee service is already covered by the tip amount being substantially more. Example : meal at applebee costs $20, I tip $3. Meal at Wolfgang's cost $100, I tip $15. The service at Wolfgang's is better and thats why they get 5x more money than the applebee servers. But to say that they deserve a higher percentage is ludicrous.

It isn't just quality of service. It is also the amount of work and skill that it requires. More formal and expensive restaurants require a greater knowledge of food, wine (Wolfgang's might have a sommelier, but still knowledge is required), presentation, service, etc. It is lot different setting an exquisite table, bringing out several courses, explaining the menu, and knowing the food than it is to wipe off a table and plop down an entree like they do at Applebee's.

If a place like Wolfgang's didn't require a higher skillset then you'd have a point.

 

[dennilfloss]

So that's what she means in her blog today when she mentions uberdorks at that restaurant.

 

[flexy]

Originally posted by: oogabooga

Originally posted by: flexy

Originally posted by: Zekial
$500+ for 4 ppl is stupid! (imho) ...thats just nutz!

no.its decent. I first thought he is talking about ONE person.
But $500 for 4 eating STEAKS is good...considering it was some fancy schmanzy place.

heh good job qualifying the statement with "considering it was some fancy schmanzy place", otherwise I would seriously wonder if you knew what Steak at a normal restaurant cost

there are places in the suburbs where there are NO 2:1 waiters and JEssica Albas hanging out...and you still pay A LOT for a steak. Considering he was at WP and some celebrity hangout its 'reasonable'..they probably also had drinks and stuff

 

[Aikouka]

I always tip based on how much to get to a nice even dollar amount. The other day at Olive Garden, the bill came to like.. 33.50 or something like that so I tipped 6.50 to get it up to $40. It's near 20% but it took awhile to get my food, but I don't care.

 

[ShadoWing]

if you've got enough money for a dinner at wolfgang puck's, you've got enough money for a camera phone

 

[JS80]

Originally posted by: PCMarcelino
Awesome story JS. Thanks for sharing.

Not only did you have a great meal, but you did have a noteworthy experience.

Just wondering, how was the steak tartare? I've never had raw beef before, so that's something I'd like to try. Your party ordered three of them so I'm going to assume that they were appetizers. Was the portion small, say about 4oz?

I actually had the pork belly, but I did try some of it...best steak tartare evar. They were small portion, came with a side of raw quail egg. 4oz sounds about right.