Info requested from current or former waiters/waitresses

[what the hell]

I eat at restaurants a lot. Every day, and usually by myself.

My main question is what is considered a good tip from a single person?

Is it always based on the price on the bill?

My bills usually range from $9.50 - $15.

When I am by myself I always tip based on service because the wait staff has to do the same amount of work regardless of my bill. I know it is standard to tip a percentage of the bill, but they are doing no more work to bring out my $25 steak than my $7 sandwhich.

When I am with one or more people I usually tip less because I know the other people are going to tip also. When I am by myself, I tend to tip more because that is all they will get.

So, I would like to hear from former or current waitstaff as to what you would expect to get from a single person and not get mad.

If my bill is $9.50 should I tip less than or equal to $1.50? (15% is 1.425)

And if it is $15 should I tip $2.25?

Does the waitstaff actually calculate what 15% is and base their feelings on that?

By the way, I usually tip $4 if the service was even half good because I feel guilty if they only get $1.50. I can't imagine tipping less than $2 if I am by myself. With a group, sure.

I am trying to see if I am overtipping what is expected.

Cheap, maybe, but that means more hobbying!

[Captain Caveman]

Full discosure - I have never been a waiter and I eat out and drink a lot.

When I first moved to Dallas I was dismayed to see a tip jar in Subway. That's not something you see back east. The tipping culture here is certainly richer than some north eastern industrialized city.

My general rule is 20% rounded up to the whole dollar. If the tab is somewhere in the $10-$20 range I usually throw in $5 on the tab. Even at places like Subway or Chipotle where they have a tip jar I throw a buck in.

When it comes to my local bar I tip bigger... I take into account how long I was at the bar, how many free drinks did the bartender make me, how many beers she "forgot" to ring in. The tipping has paid off... if the bar is crowded those bartenders make sure I get a seat... when I sit down they make sure to take care of everything I need.

Maybe it is a karma thing... I just don't think I should short change these people who are serving me food and drinks.

[TexRich]

I know there are some people that think the standard tip rate is still 10% or 15%, and maybe that was the case in the 50s through 70s, but today it is 20%. The OP makes it clear from his past experiences he has never waited tables, and that is fine, ignorance is sometimes bliss LOL. I waited tables when I was in college, and before I waited tables I had the same take pretty much he did. I now normally tip 20% for good service. If the server was terrible or hardly gave me any attention, then I do not. If anything I am more critical since I know that even a busy server can give enough attention for me to know that he/she tried their best despite being triple sat, working a large section because they are short handed, or running other people's food for whatever reason. 20% is pretty reasonable, and if you cannot afford to give $1.90 of a bill of $9.50 as the lesser amount of the bill the OP post mentions, then you should probably stick to fast food or express dining where you serve yourself. The OP mentions he usually tips more, so I am just using his amount as an example.

One other thing to consider, say you order something easy or not that much service is re3quired but you decide to bring a book with you, read the newspaper, chat with a friend for an hour or more, or just open up your laptop and surf and such but stay at the table for a long while, then you are taking money away from that server because they cannot turn more tables. If you were to do that you may want to tip more than $1.90 if your bill is a total of $9.50, you may want to double the tip at least. From my experience, most people tip the right amount or more, most people base it off their total bill and service offered, not because they think the server are doing more work by bringing out a sandwich or a steak.

[slowmover]

Remember when an employer paid a decent wage to the employee instead of depending on the customer to pay the employees?

[seventonine]

I'll tip a waiter / waitress well. Usually around 20% of the total bill including tax unless the service is poor. When service is poor, I'll drop back but still tip. However, I do not drop coins in the tip jar at the $tarbucks, sandwich place, Mickey-D's, or some place like that. I paid for that service as part of the menu price.

[Chainsaw Anthropologist]

Archaic as it may seem, I still prefer to pay cash for my check in most instances. A practice that has crept into the service world is returning an even dollar amount of change.
Example: my check is $9.50, I use a $20 dollar bill as payment and receive $10 dollars in change. A 20% tip is about $1.40, but, because you already have 50 cents of MY money, you're going to get about a dollar more. Conversely, if you return more change than I would normally expect, say $11.00, I'll cover the total due, plus the appropriate tip.
Another practice I despise is returning a fistful of ones as my change. This, it seems to me is apparently an effort to increase the amount left as a gratuity. More than once, I've mentioned to my server that I don't need all ones as change.

c.a.

[TexTushHog]

I think to some degree it depends on the type of restaurant. I tend to consider 15% standard in a greasy spoon or low end chain and 20% or higher as standard in high end restaurants.

If I'm dining alone, especially in a lower priced restaurant, I'll usually tip about a dollar or two more than that rate would suggest because I think it's just as much trouble for a waiter to serve one as it is to serve two. And I tend to linger when I dine alone. So if I have a meal alone and the bill is $12, rather than tip $2 (15% = $1.80, so $2.00, rounded up), I'll tip $3 or $4 depending on how good the service was. $5 if it was very, very good.

Higher end places, I usually tip 20%, rounded up to the nearest $5; or 25%, rounded up to the nearest $5, if the service was substantially above average.

[FondaCox]

you need to consider servers make $2.10/$2.25 an hr, they depend on their tips to even hit minimum wage. There is alot more involved than just shlepping your food to you. They have alot of side work. They have to deal with some not so pleasant people and keep a smile on their face...there really are people that order, and even if it is repeated back to them....they still say " that's not what I ordered" and as someone mentioned earlier, if your camping at your table reading the paper, surfing internet etc....for 2 hours and your basing your tip on your $1.99 breakfast special..you need to stay home and eat breakfast, you have just cost the server money. and some places charge the server for their credit card tips. On the other hand, there are some servers that should choose a different career because they have the personality of a pringle. so just consider, was your service good? did they check on you frequently? did they smile were they jovial? did they go the extra mile for you? as the saying goes.." the tip you leave today, determines your service tomorrow" lol.....and always overtip your bartender : )

[Hobbyfun]

Yes but what do you tip when say 2 people go to a high end steak house and have a couple of drinks and steaks and the bill is $175.00 to $200.00
That would be $35.00 to $40.00 tip @20 % and you know the wait staff had other tables.
Say they had 4 tables per hour and some 2 people and some 4 people and the average bill was $250.00 per table x 4 tables that would be $200.00 per hour in tips alone.

Dam I may need to change jobs.

[FondaCox]

alot of high end places limit the servers tables, for example Houstons, to a beginner you only get 3 tables, and in the crappy sections, the better tables, bigger parties, go to the people with seniority, and unless someone dies lol it will stay that way, and some people still think a dollar is a good tip!!!! yikes!..But I have to admit i am an over tipper just because I have been in the industry for a very long time. the only place I would even consider going back into that business would be at Dick's Last resort, where you get paid to tell someone their a cheap a**hole lol lol

[JohnBoyjrh]

I'm tired of hearing how hard it is being a waitperson. I waited tables in college, my two daughters waited tables while going to school. Anyone that deals with the public has to deal with a certain number of assholes. Even if you don't deal with the public , you will have to deal with assholes. If you're good at what you do you will benefit from your labor. Generally when I tip it's in the form of cash, even if I'm paying the bill with plastic. I've stiffed bad servers and I've tipped as much 50% to good servers. I generally tip 15-20%. I'm just tired of hearing how hard their job is. I worked in retail for over 40 years . I've met many an asshole but the nice customers made it worth the effort.

[Waldo P. Emerson-Jones]

Originally Posted by what the hell

So, I would like to hear from former or current waitstaff as to what you would expect to get from a single person and not get mad.

Former Chilihead here. I never expected a much bigger tip percentage wise from someone eating alone than I did from a party of 2 or more. Serving one person is easier than serving two. Maybe not half as easy, but still the more people at a table, the more work. Most people tipped based on the amount of their bill and that was what I generally based my expectation upon. One exception, mentioned already by TexRich, is a party that stays for a long time. They seldom tipped more than a party that ate and left, but I worked more (refilling their tea or water, just checking if there's anything they need or keeping an eye out for that table) and, if it was busy, they took up one of my tables and kept me from making money from another party. I'd also hope/expect bigger tips from parties that made me do lots of unnecessary extra work (for example, screwed up their order, repeated requests, spills, etc.). I'd also hope/expect bigger tips percentage wise from a person or party that was ordering very little dollarwise/person (for example, couple comes in to split a dessert after a movie).

[FondaCox]

Thank you Waldo, I can appreciate a man that has something "non-bitchy" to say lol

[Captain Caveman]

Originally Posted by Hobbyfun

Yes but what do you tip when say 2 people go to a high end steak house and have a couple of drinks and steaks and the bill is $175.00 to $200.00
That would be $35.00 to $40.00 tip @20 % and you know the wait staff had other tables.
Say they had 4 tables per hour and some 2 people and some 4 people and the average bill was $250.00 per table x 4 tables that would be $200.00 per hour in tips alone.

Dam I may need to change jobs.

Since you asked...

I would tip $35-$40 on a meal like that.

And why would you worry about what other tables the server had? Do they deserve any less of a tip if they served other tables with the same excellent service they showed you?

Maybe you should stick with Outback Steakhouse?

[JohnJohn]

Dayumm...I've been tipping 30 to 35% for many years now!

And I'll keep doing it too because I know a lot of these ladies are the only income in a single parent home. This economy is very rough on many less fortunate than me so I'll help now while I am able.