Ok, I know we've done this before, but a refresher might be ok...

[atlcomedy]

Tipping

Not in the hobby but everyday life. restaurants, delivery drivers, hair sylists, cabbies, doormen, housekeepers, newspaper boys (does anyone still subscribe to a print edition?), shoeshine guy, etc. etc.

The impetus for this thread: I ordered a pizza today for late lunch. Total is $12.something (including a delivery fee). All I got is a twenty. Now I really don't think a $7.something tip is appropriate, so I pay by credit card and give him $4.something.

I believe in tipping well but not excessively.

So, what are your tipping norms

[atlcomedy]

Oh, another one of particular interest: You order take out from a nice, sit-down restaurant. What if anything is the appropriate tip? Particularly since you are giving the tip to the bartender or hostess that really provided no service other than ringing your order into the register and taking your money.

[Ansley]

Good timing. If you answer my question I will answer yours in an hour or so. Do you tip a seamstress?

[atlcomedy]

Originally Posted by Ansley

Good timing. If you answer my question I will answer yours in an hour or so. Do you tip a seamstress?

No, I don't. My experience is that most places have an extra charge for "rush service" so I feel like it is kind of built in for normal alterations.

I'm sure that it makes sense and is appropriate under special circumstances.

I don't normally tip my dry cleaner (that also does my fluff & fold), but at the holidays give her a gift card to a restaurant.

[nevergaveitathought]

whenever i gave a nice tip and it happened to be to a female of concurrent or younger age...

i felt the heat..and it wasnt deserved....

[Guest050715-1]

· Restaurants- I round up the nearest multiple of five and then tip twenty to twenty-five percent at a restaurant
· Lunch-type Restaurants - where the bill is never over eight or nine dollars, I have a minimum tip of $3.50
· Valet - $5.00
· Hairdresser – I get a cut and a color (about an hour and a half) $20.00
· Take Out Delivered - $5.00 or 20% whichever is larger usually in cash.
· Take Out Picked Up - $3.50 (My minimum tip)
· Maid in Hotel - $10.00 per day
· Starbucks or Tip Jar Places – Whatever change I get back.
I can’t think of anywhere else I tip.

[Guest050715-1]

Originally Posted by Ansley

Good timing. If you answer my question I will answer yours in an hour or so. Do you tip a seamstress?

I literally have nearly everything I buy tailored, and I never tip. Should I?

[nevergaveitathought]

somehow the moderator got on the topic of tips...he said that the highest tipped profession...(pre-9-11, maybe it doesnt apply now) was sky caps at airports....he was a lawyer dealing with the IRS so i guess he knew...this was probably 20 plus years ago..and they received in tips around $150,000 per year back then...im not sure if that was average or the high end of the scale...

[atlcomedy]

I got another one: Limited service catering

So you got a lunch meeting for 15-20 people. Bill is say $300-400. All the guy does is bring the food into the conference room and set it on a table. Do you tip on a percentage of the bill or just give him $10 or $20 bucks?

I tend to opt for the latter, but take into consideration special circumstances (like having to go thru security, etc. anything that takes time)

[Gryphon]

Barber--$3 on a $10 haircut (my hair is too rebellious to rate a stylist).

Skycap--$2 per bag + extra if they ignore an overweight bag.

Takeout delivered--$3-$4 or 20%, whichever is greater. More if it's winter & the roads are bad.

Waitress--20-25% of the pre-tax total, including wine.

Hotel housekeeper--$5-$10/day, depending on how much I trashed the room.

Bellhop--$3 per bag.

Valet--$5.

Cabbie--20-25% of the fare or $5, whichever is greater.

Concierge--Variable, depending on what he/she did. Scoring a reservation at a restaurant that's booked for the next 6 weeks and that the lady I'm with really wants to go to--$50.

Masseuse (therapeutic deep tissue massage, not hobby related)--$20-$40 depending on how wobbly I am afterward.

[Guest053011]

I will almost never tip less then $5, even on a $5 cab ride, or $7 check at a cafe or $10 pizza delivery.

I generally give 15-20%, but will tip more if they were somehow exceptional.

I tip my shoe repair guy about $5 a pair of shoes. If I sent in multiple I tip $4 a pair.

I tip may hair dresser/masseuse/esthetician/maid $20, regardless of the cost. I will give more if that doesn't cover 15%.

I worked in services oriented business and appreciate that they earn a modest living and may have a family to support - and that I earn a comfortable one. It's my little way of helping others out when I'm doing well. My father worked as a driver at nights when we first arrived as refugees, even though he was still working days in a factory - despite his advanced education. I have great empathy for immigrants in service work.

If I've had a particularly profitable date, I do tend to tip excessively for the next couple of days.

I am ashamed to say I often forget to tip a doorman for flagging down a cab for me or getting my bags...

[atlcomedy]

Originally Posted by OliviaHoward

· Maid in Hotel - $10.00 per day
.

Originally Posted by Gryphon

Hotel housekeeper--$5-$10/day, depending on how much I trashed the room.

.

.
Ok I never tip the hotel maid, unless there are special circumstances. I think I'm in the vast majority.

Am I wrong? Out of touch?

And how is it done if not personally delivered? With a brief note? ("Thanks, this is for you."). Otherwise I would think it would violate many hotel's policies to take anything of value from a guest's room unless there is an explicit instruction to the contrary. I've come back to many a room that has a whole bunch of garbage neatly arranged on a table to the floor; the maid obviously afraid to discard anything that might be of value.

[Guest050715-1]

Originally Posted by atlcomedy

.
Ok I never tip the hotel maid, unless there are special circumstances. I think I'm in the vast majority.

Am I wrong? Out of touch?

And how is it done if not personally delivered? With a brief note? ("Thanks, this is for you."). Otherwise I would think it would violate many hotel's policies to take anything of value from a guest's room unless there is an explicit instruction to the contrary. I've come back to many a room that has a whole bunch of garbage neatly arranged on a table to the floor; the maid obviously afraid to discard anything that might be of value.

Ya, I can see your point. I know a lot of people that don’t tip the hotel maid. It just feels like a “service” so I tip. I tip the bell hop ($10) for bring up my bags, and I tip room service too. And I’ve never used a concierge, but I would. So it just doesn’t seem fair not to tip the lady cleaning up after me.

I leave it fanned out on the night stand with a Thank You note.

I don’t tip masseuses though. To me it’s outside the “hairdresser / manicurist” realm. Maybe I’m wrong.

[Tiffany Cums]

The last time we went out out for a meal, the ticket was about $50 but the tip we left was $20!

Yeah...she was a rather cute waitress...reminded me of Dolly Parton...country, sexy & sassy!

[Gryphon]

Originally Posted by Tiffany Cums

The last time we went out out for a meal, the ticket was about $50 but the tip we left was $20!

Yeah...she was a rather cute waitress...reminded me of Dolly Parton...country, sexy & sassy!

Exceptional service always gets more.