Food For Thought
 

What would you like us to do? Tip more than 20%? The price will go up on food if the restaurant owners pay a higher salary. You posted without giving your opinion. What was your point in posting? What are your thoughts?

Sorry, "Wrong" is simply your opinion, not fact. I stand by my posted opinion. The deleted post about Druckenmillar was deceitfully taking something off topic. If his stance had anything to do with a healthy diet, Stan Druckenmiller and his article would have been named or linked to. And yet when asked by a poster what this billionaire's name was, there was no response.

The OP of this thread is putting something up for debate. It's a legitimate thread inviting opinions.

This points out further what Redwitch said in another thread, that poor tippers frequently cause waitstaff to have to pay out of their own pocket at the end of the night, because restaurants use a percentage across the board that is not necessarily reality.

I think it's wrong, and I am of the opinion that the way this job is viewed in European countries--as a skilled job and oftentimes a career--solves the problem. Instead of leaving the tip up to the customer, it is added to the bill and nothing further is required of the customer. If a diner feels he has received poor service (which has never happened to us in 20 years of traveling overseas and even living there for 6 months), complaints can be made to the manager, and the manager can take it up with the waiter. But that rarely happens, because this is the server's livelihood on the line.

This has been discussed in a previous thread. As I understand it, FL law requires tipped employees to make a minimum of $8.05/hour. If salary and tips don't add up to this amount, the employer must make the difference. Tips that are shared are excluded from the calculation. This is my understanding of the law. If someone knows differently, by direct experience, I would like to know. I am just trying to understand the FL law.

If the food IS GOOD and the service IS GOOD, I tip generously; consequently, if the food sucks and the service sucks, I tip accordingly.

I guess my point is that since we know from others' personal experience that many places subvert the law in terms of equalling out the pay, or have ways around it, I would rather see tipping added into the check and elevate the job to livelihood status as has been done in Europe and is working so well.

I have noticed some places have amounts to be tipped on them. I believe they start at 15%.

How about a small survey to see if the waitstaff service is up to par like poor service, good service and excellent service. Maybe this will make management aware if changes, need to be made.

Everyone has to make a living. If one does not want to tip the proper amount, then one should eat at home.

Old subject with probably the same opinions expressed. Nuff said..........

I think you might have meant If one does not want to tip the proper amount...

I agree. And the survey idea is a good one. Could be on the bottom of each bill. If one server is particularly poor or excellent, it would show up.

I stand corrected but not while eating. I like to sit down. :D

Providing a living wage and/or developing a career path for people makes a lot of sense. It creates a better and more consistent product/service. On the other hand I really don't know what sort of margin a restaurant works on. It is clear that unions are pushing to unionize these workers. In my view it will only lead to deeper problems because unions will always demand higher wages and more benefits neither of which guarantee better performance or more productivity. And lastly all of those increases are transferred to the customer or in the case of public unions taxpayers. What's a restaurant owner to do?

Wait staff should be paid a live able wage. Tips should play no part in it. A gratuity is something that is freely given or withheld by the customers not something "expected almost demanded". With a proper wage, a wise staff person would do their utmost to not only please the customers and perhaps get rewarded but also respect and work to keep their good job.

So what is the proper amount? It used to be that tips reflected the service provided. The "suggested" amount was 15%. At some point, someone determined the "suggested" amount is now 18% - not sure who that person is. I am sure the "suggested" amount will soon go to 20%. In a previous post, it was suggested that tips should be built in. I am in favor of this. However, there are two issues. The first is that you have little recourse for bad service. The second is that I have belonged to a club where an 18% tip was automatically added in but they left a place on the receipt for "additional tip". Presumably you would provide an "additional tip" for very good service, which is sort of what the definition of a tip was. So then we have two levels of tips: the mandatory and the optional.

I think it should be if you get separate checks there is an 18% tip [$2 minimum].You want to leave more, do so. You don't like the service, talk to the manager.

I like your idea and if the service is substandard, I will not go back to that particular restaurant.

I like to tip 20% or more if service is good to excellent.

15% if service is poor, but that's me. I would have to check with my son what the industry standard is, at this point in time. He does work in the higher end of hotel service so possibly their rates are probably higher than most.

I have more empathy than most, for helping people who provide a service, to the general public. I seen people who are extremely generous with tipping and people who "throw nickels around like manhole covers".

There will be a certain amount of people who don't tip well and the servers income is affected. As discussed many times before, some people feel that management should pay a living wage and not have servers subject to possibly a sub-standard wage.

Again, this is a subject that will have many opinions for, and against.