What is the second slot in a casino poker table for?

Question

I played my first casino poker game today, and in addition to the rake box, I noticed another slot in the table to the left of the dealer. Ever hand, she would deposit a chip in this slot. This was not the rake, and I never noticed whether the chip came from the pot or her till. Is this a way to count how many hands have been played at a table, and is this money comming from the pot, or just the dealer's till?

Answer 1

I think what you are describing is a tip box. The dealer is likely to collect tips in a specific place until the total is at least $5. The dealer will then color up $5 in tips and deposit a $5 chip in the tip box.

Answer 2

There's usually three drop boxes.

One is the house rake.

One is for dealer tips.

One is for the jackpot.

Answer 3

The dealers usually carry around their own tip container.  The slot you are referring to is money for the bad beat jackpot.  Most poker rooms take $1 from every pot that goes to a horrible bad beat, usually aces full of tens getting beat by something bigger.  

Hope this helps!