Dining Out, What Are Your Peeves?

[Leo Lakio]

Re: Dining Out, What Are Your Peeves?

Gratuity isnt usually added unless youre at a fancy shmancy restaurant.

Check out this group; their goal is to make tipping mandatory. More here, too.

[Hellbent]

Re: Dining Out, What Are Your Peeves?

Hmm, I dunno. I guess it depends on where you work. If youre good, a 15% automatic gratuity might be worse then what you would have gotten. But then again most places I worked it was more like 10% with the occasionaly big tipper.
I dont think it should be mandatory, but I also think they should get paid more.

[hawaiidreamin]

Re: Dining Out, What Are Your Peeves?

The adding in of gratutity took place in a regular diner not a fancy place and not even a chain restaurant or anything.
This does harken back to the whole argument out of Reservoir Dogs regarding tipping, fast food people who get no tips and crappy pay versus waiters & waitresses who expect to be tipped and the fact that I get no tips in my crappy paying, everyday job no matter how late I stay, how many other people I help do their job, how great of a job I do or how much money I save the company...LOL

I do personally think food service people should be paid more and just do away with the tipping period though....give tips when they go above and beyond their job description like everywhere else. This automatic expecting of the same 15 to 20% for 1/2 hearted, no attention to detail work irks me.

[Queenolu]

Re: Dining Out, What Are Your Peeves?

My pet peeve is when they are rude and curt to you than EXPECT a huge tip. I still tip but I am not going out of my way if I had to ask 5 times for water!

OR...(this happened to me) The waitress walks up and asks for my ID so I oblige and she continues with "I seriously doubt that you are over 21..no one over that age would have pink hair so if you will excuse me I need to show my manager your ID"

The manager and I had a little confab!
people are so weird!

Ohhh my lawddddddddddddddddddd just can't believe that........ she would have to be fired right in front of me for her stupidity... she is basically calling you a liar with a fake ID.... and who the heck is she to talk about your hair color....wow... amazing....

[Queenolu]

Re: Dining Out, What Are Your Peeves?

Another pet peeve of mine is that more and more places are starting to add in gratuity automatically even to a small party of 2 or 3. Where is the incentive to provide decent service? They are quick to shove responsibility for mistakes on the order at the kitchen already..with the tip added in I find that they alot of the servers get very complacent then-you can't ever find them, have to ask about your order and how long it's going to take to get to your table and so forth...so now you have to actually make a big deal to get the tip amount removed or lowered.
I went one place where they even charged a tip on a take out order?!?!?!?!?
My reaction went along the lines of- What the????

Exactly...my reaction when I went to IHOP to pick up a take out order to find they charge tip on it.... I said they have lost their mind and to remove it immediately.... who the heck is the tip going to.... the cook or the front desk person that took the order... what a messsssss

Whenever I see tips added on I always ask that they remove it...... I refuse to be dictated to on what type of gratuity to pay.... after I get service I can determine that for myself based on the level of service I was given.... not before...

[Queenolu]

Re: Dining Out, What Are Your Peeves?

LOLOL. that's why I love HT. Y'all got jokes

ROFL>>>. too funny

[craigwatanabe]

Re: Dining Out, What Are Your Peeves?

I heard back in the old days of Irish pubs there was a box mounted or placed at the entrance of the establisment. It was called the "TIPS" box and you tipped ahead of being served.

Apparently that word "TIPS" meant To Insure Proper Service. Kinda like when I used to tip valet drivers when driving my BMW. I'd tip them a nice $20 upfront to put my car in a good sheltered and highly watchable location rather than in the basement parking lot.

When I would come out of the restaurant the valet would recognize me and get my car ahead of other waiting patrons. Then I'd tip him again another $20 for his excellent service. As you can tell, I hate waiting in lines.

As for restaurant tipping my rule has always been 50 under 50. Meaning 50% under $50. Over $50 (which is way too common these days) I use the standard 20% at fine establishments or 10% at diners. At the really 5-star eats such as La Mer, I always tip 50%. At La Mer at the Halekulani you get almost exclusive service because they know the value of a tip and what it takes to earn that 50% pocket change. There you can easily spend over $400 on a dinner tab for two so you can imagine the tip.

At La Mer they know how to read the diner's non-verbal signs of service and respond before you can finish that certain wave of the hand, tilt of the face or even the more obvious closing of the menu as an indication of being ready to order if you haven't placed your order ahead of time. Truly a dining experience.

[blueyecicle]

Re: Dining Out, What Are Your Peeves?

I heard back in the old days of Irish pubs there was a box mounted or placed at the entrance of the establisment. It was called the "TIPS" box and you tipped ahead of being served.

Apparently that word "TIPS" meant To Insure Proper Service. Kinda like when I used to tip valet drivers when driving my BMW. I'd tip them a nice $20 upfront to put my car in a good sheltered and highly watchable location rather than in the basement parking lot.

There is a local Irish Pub here that does have that. It is run by a funny/nasty older gentlemen...Ok maybe not gentleman...but a man anyways.

He has the "TIPS" Box at the door.

He's the fella that makes fun of ya if you order anything but beer! and lays his back pack on the floor so he can look up our skirts! ....I now wear pants to Irish Pubs! Fun place though!

[1stwahine]

Re: Dining Out, What Are Your Peeves?

True Story.

Two weeks ago my daughter and her friend visiting from Seattle goes to lunch at a "well known" place. Waitress comes to take their order. Looks at Kiana in her carriage.

"My what a beautiful baby you are babysitting!"

My daughter didn't know what to say but just SMILED! She not like me when come to things lil dat. Her friend told me and MAMA when they got home. I immediately wanted to call the business and talk to management. However, my daughter said not to make a big thing out of it.

Wat would you have done?

Da Nerve!!!!

I can imagine wat people tink wen dey see Antonio and Kiana with me den? I'm their Nanny!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

Auntie Lynn

[Adri]

Re: Dining Out, What Are Your Peeves?

Usually when a bunch of friends and I go out and the bill is paid for in cash and we need change for the tip and the server brings back big bills (like two twenties instead enough change where we could leave a reasonable tip without trying to figure out who among us can make change so we can leave the tip).

[craigwatanabe]

Re: Dining Out, What Are Your Peeves?

Usually when a bunch of friends and I go out and the bill is paid for in cash and we need change for the tip and the server brings back big bills (like two twenties instead enough change where we could leave a reasonable tip without trying to figure out who among us can make change so we can leave the tip).

When I'm in that situation with friends, I collect all the money (including what they consider adequate tip) and pay the tab on my credit card. If the service was proper then I take some of the cash collected from my friends and deposit it on the table as the tip. If the service was less than stellar, then I tip on the credit tab.

Why the difference? Because when you tip on your credit card the tip is factored in on their wages and they are taxed on it. But if it's cash, that's money right in their pocket because as we all know, most service workers rely on tips more than their minimum wage earnings.

[Hellbent]

Re: Dining Out, What Are Your Peeves?

At the really 5-star eats such as La Mer, I always tip 50%. At La Mer at the Halekulani you get almost exclusive service because they know the value of a tip and what it takes to earn that 50% pocket change. There you can easily spend over $400 on a dinner tab for two so you can imagine the tip.

Wow, I wish I had more customers like you when I was a waiter/bartender. Sometimes when a big bill drops, they actually tip less.

Two weeks ago my daughter and her friend visiting from Seattle goes to lunch at a "well known" place. Waitress comes to take their order. Looks at Kiana in her carriage.

"My what a beautiful baby you are babysitting!"

I dont understand, wouldnt it be worse if she said "arent you a bit young to have a baby"? I dont know who Kiana is or how old your daughter is, I'm just saying she erred on the side of caution. But then again she could have dropped the 'you are babysitting' part.

Exactly...my reaction when I went to IHOP to pick up a take out order to find they charge tip on it....

Thats ridiculous.

[jdub]

Re: Dining Out, What Are Your Peeves?

As for restaurant tipping my rule has always been 50 under 50. Meaning 50% under $50.

i wasn't aware of it, but i go with that rule always...unless a bartender or cocktail waitress is clearly inept...otherwise, i'm a great tipper...

[Keanu]

Re: Dining Out, What Are Your Peeves?

Other patrons who treat their servers like crap.

[damontucker]

Re: Dining Out, What Are Your Peeves?

spots on the silverware