Tipping, for Little gem

Quote by little gem
I thought this would be about tipping, you know leaving extra money when you've already paid for what you've got/had/done/received etc. so I'm a little thrown off-kilter having instantly prepared a 200 word rant in my head based on just the title alone! That'll teach me a lesson! :lol:

LG. x

Quote by Kaznkev
Looking forward to gem's rant; I myself was looking forward to a thread about tipping the velvet.
Amongst the men I can't shag are mean tippers; it's right up there with bad teeth and talking about reality tv!

Quote by markz
I usually give tips.........but they never win............:mrgreen:

Quote by little gem
Ok, lets get a few things straight here Nelliekins... that restaurant was actually the Bistro side because we were deemed too common, by the penguin in the cheeper suit than my shoes, to sit in the Michelin Star side of the pub, and lets face it, it is a pub with very nice food, but a pub non the less. In the middle of nowhere, next to a very nice landmarky type place, but it is a country pub gone upmarket. Soooo 6quid for a bottle of water on a �100plus bill for the food including serivce is rather excessive, especailly as the waitress was miserable, we waited 10 minutes or more for that bottle of water, then it was slammed down like I'd asked her for ketchup (which even I wouldn't do, despite my love of ketchup, in a proper eatery of any quality) and then huffed when I asked for a glass! Oh no, I've not forgotten. Over 20 quid of that bill was service charge. :? 20 quid. I'd at least want a Maitre'D who wasn't overly snotty, a bar we could have got to and seats that weren't right next to said bar with folks two or three deep because the bar staff were like ashtrays on bicycles, so I was constantly being hoofed past. Deffinately not worth 20 quid extra on top of 80plus for food & one bottle of wine cos I was driving. :? No no no no no no!
And that's another thing ...
When they put the tip on the bill it doesn't even go to the poor lemmings who are throwing themselves at your mercy for the entire night, it quite often goes to the 'house'. I.e. the managers and in the till to count as profits for the fat arsed owner at the top of the chain, not the workers at the bottom on bare minimum wage.
Why are they on bare minimum wage? Because the people who set the wage rate figure their tips into their wages rather than actually paying them, double whammy for the worker who can sometimes be demanded to declare and then get taxed on their tips. Just pay them a better base rate and put my dinner up by a quid or two. End of panic about 'how much do we leave? What do we think this night was worth?' Tedious. I will not conform.
Now, I've been reliably told I'd hate it in America because they have standard givens for how much to tip, to whom, when and how. etc... Yep, too right I'd not like that.I'd be seen as a little rudey pants and not in the best possible way either. ;) The only places I have ever left extra behind are hairdressers (but then I get students to do it, cos they need the practice and aren't on the payroll most of the time, so they'd get a fiver out of me, but only if it's a great haircut, if it's not I'll make them redo it until it is. :? ), restuarants (but only when the service and food is exceptionally good or I'm in a generous mood. Grumpiness, queues, snottyness, slovenliness, waiting an excessive time for the effort involved, frozen, microwaved or oven chips loose points and therefore prizes!) and lastly taxis (but only when it's �4 something and I have a note, I won't make them break into coppers and shrapnel to give me change, I'll round to the nearest pound for ease, unless they've taken me around the houses, then I'll sit there until they give me to the penny change because they've taken the piss already.)
Why should I give up my hard earned cash to someone who's paid to do a job and is getting a wage for it? Not every time. It gets that way that it becomes expected. Like putting the service charge on my bill. Ooo, I detest that. If it's mandatory, put it on the bill, but it's not, it's at my discretion. Poor Neil cringes every time I ask them to take it off the bill and leave the cash. I'm not as tight as he makes out with that one, ten percent of the total bill or the food bill is enough for good service. Can you imagine how broke we'd all be if we had to rely on tips for our wages? Can you even imagine having to tip *everyone* to even do their job and do it properly? In company I round up and keep quiet mostly.
Now, what really gets my goat is bill spliting when with a crowd. Fortunately our group of friends whom we dine with are fabulous when it comes to this part of the meal. You know the bit, where you're sat there, 10 or so of you, do you work out what each of you have had or split it equally? That's where the rows come. In the past I've had a lovely meal with good conversation brutally ruined because someone broke out a calculator, insisted on having the menu back and worked out to the penny what they'd had. Not even when they were broke I may add. :? Then there is the other side of that splitting the bill equally thing where one glutton (family member in this case, married in, not blood may I also add) has ordered starters, the most expensive slab of meat, pudding, a bottle or three of tipples and then expects to just throw a tenner into the kitty. Cough up a reasonable amount! :?
I suppose its about being a considerate dinner guest, which I'm so so grateful for with our friends. They're top about things like that and I comply willingly. I know how hard it is to look after a large group of people who all want feeding at the same time, so don't cringe one bit when throwing an extra bit into the kitty or covering someone's meal when it's their birthday, or when you know they're skint. But then, that's one of the many reasons why I love our friends so much.
So, there you have it.
My love affair with leaving tips.

Quote by little gem
Ok, lets get a few things straight here Nelliekins... that restaurant was actually the Bistro side because we were deemed too common, by the penguin in the cheeper suit than my shoes, to sit in the Michelin Star side of the pub, and lets face it, it is a pub with very nice food, but a pub non the less. In the middle of nowhere, next to a very nice landmarky type place, but it is a country pub gone upmarket. Soooo 6quid for a bottle of water on a £100plus bill for the food including serivce is rather excessive, especailly as the waitress was miserable, we waited 10 minutes or more for that bottle of water, then it was slammed down like I'd asked her for ketchup (which even I wouldn't do, despite my love of ketchup, in a proper eatery of any quality) and then huffed when I asked for a glass! Oh no, I've not forgotten. Over 20 quid of that bill was service charge. :? 20 quid. I'd at least want a Maitre'D who wasn't overly snotty, a bar we could have got to and seats that weren't right next to said bar with folks two or three deep because the bar staff were like ashtrays on bicycles, so I was constantly being hoofed past. Deffinately not worth 20 quid extra on top of 80plus for food & one bottle of wine cos I was driving. :? No no no no no no!
And that's another thing ...
When they put the tip on the bill it doesn't even go to the poor lemmings who are throwing themselves at your mercy for the entire night, it quite often goes to the 'house'. I.e. the managers and in the till to count as profits for the fat arsed owner at the top of the chain, not the workers at the bottom on bare minimum wage.
Why are they on bare minimum wage? Because the people who set the wage rate figure their tips into their wages rather than actually paying them, double whammy for the worker who can sometimes be demanded to declare and then get taxed on their tips. Just pay them a better base rate and put my dinner up by a quid or two. End of panic about 'how much do we leave? What do we think this night was worth?' Tedious. I will not conform.
Now, I've been reliably told I'd hate it in America because they have standard givens for how much to tip, to whom, when and how. etc... Yep, too right I'd not like that.I'd be seen as a little rudey pants and not in the best possible way either. ;) The only places I have ever left extra behind are hairdressers (but then I get students to do it, cos they need the practice and aren't on the payroll most of the time, so they'd get a fiver out of me, but only if it's a great haircut, if it's not I'll make them redo it until it is. :? ), restuarants (but only when the service and food is exceptionally good or I'm in a generous mood. Grumpiness, queues, snottyness, slovenliness, waiting an excessive time for the effort involved, frozen, microwaved or oven chips loose points and therefore prizes!) and lastly taxis (but only when it's £4 something and I have a note, I won't make them break into coppers and shrapnel to give me change, I'll round to the nearest pound for ease, unless they've taken me around the houses, then I'll sit there until they give me to the penny change because they've taken the piss already.)
Why should I give up my hard earned cash to someone who's paid to do a job and is getting a wage for it? Not every time. It gets that way that it becomes expected. Like putting the service charge on my bill. Ooo, I detest that. If it's mandatory, put it on the bill, but it's not, it's at my discretion. Poor Neil cringes every time I ask them to take it off the bill and leave the cash. I'm not as tight as he makes out with that one, ten percent of the total bill or the food bill is enough for good service. Can you imagine how broke we'd all be if we had to rely on tips for our wages? Can you even imagine having to tip *everyone* to even do their job and do it properly? In company I round up and keep quiet mostly.
Now, what really gets my goat is bill spliting when with a crowd. Fortunately our group of friends whom we dine with are fabulous when it comes to this part of the meal. You know the bit, where you're sat there, 10 or so of you, do you work out what each of you have had or split it equally? That's where the rows come. In the past I've had a lovely meal with good conversation brutally ruined because someone broke out a calculator, insisted on having the menu back and worked out to the penny what they'd had. Not even when they were broke I may add. :? Then there is the other side of that splitting the bill equally thing where one glutton (family member in this case, married in, not blood may I also add) has ordered starters, the most expensive slab of meat, pudding, a bottle or three of tipples and then expects to just throw a tenner into the kitty. Cough up a reasonable amount! :?
I suppose its about being a considerate dinner guest, which I'm so so grateful for with our friends. They're top about things like that and I comply willingly. I know how hard it is to look after a large group of people who all want feeding at the same time, so don't cringe one bit when throwing an extra bit into the kitty or covering someone's meal when it's their birthday, or when you know they're skint. But then, that's one of the many reasons why I love our friends so much.
So, there you have it.
My love affair with leaving tips.

I'd at least want a Maitre'D who wasn't overly snotty

Quote by neilinleeds
I'd at least want a Maitre'D who wasn't overly snotty

Quote by Dirtygirly
Entirely worth the wait!