The economy sucks right now. (Understatement of the year?)
Everyone knows it sucks, but for the most part, everyone's still going out and doing things. Me for example -- I went to Target yesterday and bought half the store. Granted, about half of what I did buy was stuff I truly needed (deodorant, shampoo, whatever), the other half was stuff that was on sale. Yay for sales. Now I'm broke.
I'm off topic.
At Wendy's last week, I order two 5 piece chicken nuggets and my total was $2.71. Granted, that's not at all expensive, but it's also not at all much to eat. I did a quick scan of the menu when I was leaving. Nuggets, which were previously $.99 for five have now gone up to $1.59 for five. Considering the economy, it's no wonder, but it's still a hard pill to swallow.
Realizing the increase in cost of the nuggets made me start thinking about what else has gone up. Sticking to the food industry, I can't imagine entree costs haven't increased at restaurants like Carrabba's, Red Lobster, Ruby Tuesday, etc.
Now I think about how the wait-staff suffers. There's no doubt in my mind that the average tip percentage has dropped.
The thing is, people still want to go out, drink and dine, and have a great time. But after all that, do they have the respect to properly tip the waiter that put up with their rowdy antics the entire night rather than move 3 or 4 or 5 tables of people through their section? Most likely not.
Suddenly their pockets get tight.
So not only do they skimp on the tips, but they keep the waiter's table clogged up all night. That then rules out any possibility of the waiter making up for one shitty table's worth of diners by getting a table's worth of pleasant and understanding people after they go.
Bottom line: Tip well, tip accordingly. It's common decency to tip incredibly gratuitously if you've occupied the table for an extended period of time -- and that's because you've just hogged their section and they can't make any more money with you sitting there.
Here are some tips:
Helpful hint 1: When you're looking at the menu, factor tip into the price before you order so you know whether you have the greenbacks to afford such a meal. (don't forget to factor drink)
Helpful hint 2: If you're just out for dinner or lunch, order a water to drink. Sometimes what you don't pay for the beverage could add up to a decent tip for the waiter.
Helpful hint 3: If your service was good quality and your experience was nice, round up not down.
Helpful hint 4: Remember, your waiter doesn't even make minimum wage. He or she is counting on tips. Try to put yourself in those shoes.
Everyone knows it sucks, but for the most part, everyone's still going out and doing things. Me for example -- I went to Target yesterday and bought half the store. Granted, about half of what I did buy was stuff I truly needed (deodorant, shampoo, whatever), the other half was stuff that was on sale. Yay for sales. Now I'm broke.
I'm off topic.
At Wendy's last week, I order two 5 piece chicken nuggets and my total was $2.71. Granted, that's not at all expensive, but it's also not at all much to eat. I did a quick scan of the menu when I was leaving. Nuggets, which were previously $.99 for five have now gone up to $1.59 for five. Considering the economy, it's no wonder, but it's still a hard pill to swallow.
Realizing the increase in cost of the nuggets made me start thinking about what else has gone up. Sticking to the food industry, I can't imagine entree costs haven't increased at restaurants like Carrabba's, Red Lobster, Ruby Tuesday, etc.
Now I think about how the wait-staff suffers. There's no doubt in my mind that the average tip percentage has dropped.
The thing is, people still want to go out, drink and dine, and have a great time. But after all that, do they have the respect to properly tip the waiter that put up with their rowdy antics the entire night rather than move 3 or 4 or 5 tables of people through their section? Most likely not.
Suddenly their pockets get tight.
So not only do they skimp on the tips, but they keep the waiter's table clogged up all night. That then rules out any possibility of the waiter making up for one shitty table's worth of diners by getting a table's worth of pleasant and understanding people after they go.
Bottom line: Tip well, tip accordingly. It's common decency to tip incredibly gratuitously if you've occupied the table for an extended period of time -- and that's because you've just hogged their section and they can't make any more money with you sitting there.
Here are some tips:
Helpful hint 1: When you're looking at the menu, factor tip into the price before you order so you know whether you have the greenbacks to afford such a meal. (don't forget to factor drink)
Helpful hint 2: If you're just out for dinner or lunch, order a water to drink. Sometimes what you don't pay for the beverage could add up to a decent tip for the waiter.
Helpful hint 3: If your service was good quality and your experience was nice, round up not down.
Helpful hint 4: Remember, your waiter doesn't even make minimum wage. He or she is counting on tips. Try to put yourself in those shoes.
Comments
i worked for tips in a coffee shop through college, i totally understand and appreciate good tip karma.
my helpful hint is to tip bartenders $1, PLUS $1 for every drink served per trip to the bar. i mostly frequent dives, but this seems to work well and usually works out to 25 percent or so.
you if you keep a tab, the 20 percent rule stands.