Tip Offs: The Art Of Restaurant Tipping

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By Mia Bolaris-Forget

When it comes to Friday nights most of us look forward to a little bit of R & R. And, for many of us that may mean going out with the spouse or family. And, while we may each have different views about what fun or good food is, we probably can all agree on the importance of ambiance and good service. In fact, there’s nothing more disappointing than being “disappointed” in your possibly, one and only night out. And, that’s precisely what tips are for. They reflect your appreciation and happiness with the atmosphere wait staff attitude, service and the meal.

Standard tips are calculated at between 15 and 20% of the bill or doubling the tip and possibly adding a little extra for an exceptional night out. And, most of us know this. But, when it comes to unsatisfactory food or service many of us are stumped about how to leave or withhold.

According to experts the key question here is “whose to blame”. After all you wouldn’t want to penalize the wait staff for a poor job on the chef or matire’d’s part. Instead, they suggest evaluating your server’s disposition and efficiency. If his or her performance was, at best, adequate, then consider tipping closer to the recommended 15 percent (of the bill). Remember most restaurant employees generally make less than minimum wage and rely heavily on tips to make a living. If however, you get a server or wait-staff person, who is blatantly rude, gets your order wrong, repeatedly passes you by or ignores your motions or requests, you may want to reconsider tipping at all. Some may leave a small tip out of “courtesy”, followed by a “complaint” to management while others may get the point across by confronting management but letting the wait person know about his or her poor performance by not leaving any tip at all. On the other hand, if service and attitude are exemplary, consider tipping a bit higher, closer to the 20 percent mark and again you may want to let both the employee and the manager know.

Long Island Home & Lifestyle Articles > Tip Offs: The Art Of Restaurant Tipping