What determines the tip you leave a waitress/waiter?

Question

For us they will always get the standard 15% unless they ignore us or is extremely beyond rude. If they are decent and keep our drinks fill they get 20% - which for us is usually the standard.

I knew someone who would only leave a tip to a waitress (no matter how good they were) unless they coo'd and goo'd and his baby daughter.

Answer 1

Unless the service was terrible I generally leave 15%-20%.

It drives me nuts when people don't tip well because their food took too long or they didn't like it. The server just SERVES. The cooks do all the other work. But the difference is that cooks make $10+ hourly regardless of if the food is bad and servers only make $4.60 hourly plus tips (in new york state) even if their service is great.

Answer 2

depends if they get order right...food is good...drinks are refilled and they are friendly

Answer 3

I take the tax and give em 4x that.

Answer 4

I always leave only 10% unless my service was exceptional

Answer 5

Its all about the service.... if you keep the drinks full have a smile on your face and maybe even possibly try to make small talk just to make the customer feel comfortable. usually i tip about 15% or sometimes higher. i usually tip really well if my group of people i am with hang out for a while and keep the table tied up for a long time causing the waitress to lose that table. but service is what i tip on.

Answer 6

It's all about the attitude.  I know you might be busy or having a tough day. I've been there and understand. A warm smile and checking in at least once during the meal gets you a minimum of 15%, and usually more.

I often end up eating by myself and I'm allergic to alcohol.

If I get a female server who doesn't even make eye contact and acts like I'm an assumed dead loss from the beginning then I'm not inclined to be generous.

For the one that offers ideas, a smile, and even a laugh I tip 30% and sometimes more.  Good service means a lot to me, just in making my day a little nicer.  I do my best to be pleasant, even if the order comes wrong.  The one thing that does make me crazy is when the server disappears after giving me the bill and I wait forever to pay it.

One server went from 30% to 15% because I was left for 20 minutes waiting to pay. I had to track her down and she acted really put out. The restaurant was half full and she was ranting to another server about men being idiots.

I'm still annoyed with myself for leaving the 15%.

Answer 7

depends if you  eat there a lot or not. if you do I would recommend the 15 or 20% (unless if you want the not on the menu special every time you go) other than that depends on if the service is good and you are taken care of. and if you don't go there you could do it based on the food, service, attitude, and speed of you waiter and or how often they check up on you.

Answer 8

yes 15 percent is the right amount and if they are stupid and mean or don't do nothing thenleave them nothing.

Answer 9

I've worked in multiple restaurants, so i always leave a good tip. The only thing that will prevent me from leaving a tip is blatant rudeness. You know, the "why did you even come in here" attitude.

I also really hate it when people don't leave a good tip because they don't like the food. The server only serves the food. None of the tip goes to the cooks. Some people are really dumb.

Answer 10

Since I'm horrible at percentages and math we always double the tax.  If that doesn't seem like enough for the quality of service we'll add more until we feel right about it.

Answer 11

I go by the same standard as you.  If they're REALLY rude, then I don't leave any and take it up with the manager to explain it.

June

Answer 12

I don't care how they look but if they meet these three criteria they will be heavily tipped by me (at the very least 20%)

1. Get my order correct

2. Keep my glass full

3. Kind and friendly

Answer 13

Cleavage

Answer 14

i hate it when people tip based on the food, it's not fair because the waitress only serves it. ONLY TIP DEPENDING on how well the service is please. And usually 15-25%. Really depends on the tipper.

Answer 15

I'm a waiter myself actually. I ALWAYS give excellent service, a complaint against me is rare. However, some people don't leave any tips, some people leave more tips than necessary, some leave cheap tips, and some do the standard 15%. Here's how I do it when I'm a customer at a restaurant.

more than 15%=excellent service

15%=good service

less than 15%=not the worst service, but plenty of room for improvement

no tip: bad service

a dime, nickel, or a quarter=If I wanna insult you for giving bad service

Answer 16

If your a guy it is probably the size of her cans.

Answer 17

If you didn't watch my Father-in-Law, he would only leave a penny under his plate. Mom would always leave them a good tip though. Myself I leave 3.00 for so so,five for good.

Answer 18

15% is standard, but whether service is good or not, it is not an obligation.

Answer 19

I ususally tip 10%, which can be adjusted if they've done a good job or poor job. The quality of my experience determines the quality of the tip.