cheap or too generous

[camochick]

Just though I would throw this out there because I am a waitress and I am curious to know what most people give when they tip. Do you always abide by the rule of 10 percent? Is that the rule everywhere or just here in Alberta? Do you adjust the tip according to service or do you give extra for good looking people ( I know the beer tub girl gets good tips but so would i if they let me dress like a hooker)? My co-workers and I are curious as to what and why people think is a good tip.  >

 

[Fishbone Jones]

10%? I thought the norm was 15%. That's what I normally leave, unless there is a problem.

 

[Fry]

I usually tip 5 bucks, regardless of the price of the meal. Unless I'm eating at the keg and spending 150bucks, yeha, 5bucks is the flat rate tip from me.

 

[big_castor]

15 % is the usually accepted norm in Quebec.  It's what I give unless I'm especially happy : then it's 20%, sometimes 25% if i'm trully impressed by the food and service.

Going under 15% requires an incredibly bad waiter and / or cook.

 

[George Wallace]

I go by Service.....if I feel slighted because the service is bad or non existant, so will be my tip.

Best one I heard was when I was instructing a D&M Crse to the recent graduates of a TQ3 Armd Crse.  We took them all to Halifax as part of their Convoy Exercise and we all spent a night on the town.  All the young guys landed up at Secretaries, and being relatively in poor finances were not tipping very well.  The Service stopped and they asked why.  A member of the Bar Staff informed them that it was because of their poor tips.  On hearing this, one of the young guys responded that he had a Tip for them...."Get the F*** out of the Maritimes!"  I guess they got no Service after that, but they felt better.

 

[Fry]

5bucks is decent though, seeing that I mostly only eat meals ranging from 5-20dollars.

 

[camochick]

I try to be nice to everyone, but believe me you remember who tips well and who doesnt.I know a friend of mine who was bar staff told me, always tip the bartender well the first time and he will be more likely to pore your drinks first when the bar is crowded. same for the coat check people.

I was told the norm here in Alberta is 10 percent, but almost all of my customers tip over that. Some people tell me they don't believe in tipping and if i could i would tell them that I don't believe in not dropping their food on the floor hehe. I am like most service staff, my hourly wage is crap and I work hard to treat my customers well, so I think that if i have done my job well and made their visit a good one, then i deserve something, anything hehe.

What about if you are a regular somewhere, do you always tip the same, do you tip less because they know you and you think they don't care?

 

[Jaxson]

"I try to be nice to everyone, but believe me you remember who tips well and who doesnt.I know a friend of mine who was bar staff told me, always tip the bartender well the first time and he will be more likely to pore your drinks first when the bar is crowded. same for the coat check people. "

buy the bartender a drink and sometimes the buy you a few 

 

[wotan]

  I feel that 10% is a fair tip, however it is not very often that I tip that.  I find that most of the waiters/waitresses in the Edmonton area do a fantastic job, so usually my tips are in the 15-25% range.  I have worked in restuarants prior to joining the Reg F and I remember the kind of hard work it can be.  As well, at many of the restaurants the staff are university students that are trying to improve themselves and their lot and I commend them for that.

  Do I tip better for a prettier girl?  Sure, but a friendly, cheerful server will always get a good tip from me, even if the food isn't necessarily the greatest.  Many things factor into it, but I think that a 10% tip is till pretty standard for most folks.

 

[9nr Domestic]

Most of the time I tip 15% on meal items, and $1 for each alcoholic drink item.

On a side note in Winnipeg the Army guys were always known to tip big. I once seen a guy try to tip the server 100% but then his wife stopped him and gave him a math lession.

 

[George Wallace]

but then his wife stopped him and gave him a math lession.

So true in so many cases...

 

[Michael Dorosh]

Double the GST is 14%, I do that, then round up, if the service was good. 

Some people tip dependent on the size of the waitresses' breasts also, under the adage "dump it in my lap for all I care, just give me something to look at."

 

[pte. Massecar]

I tip 10% before taxes. If there was exceptional service ill give a little extra. At the bar I'll pick a bar tender and leave a huge tip with my first drink.. like.. $20 bucks and ask them to take care of my buddies and I tonight. This works wonders. Then its usually a buck a drink.

 

[winchable]

Alright I'm going to be different here and say why tip a set percentage?

First off I'll say that I do normally tip, whatever I feel is appropriate based on service and never a percentage.
Sometimes, there's no tip at all.
Best thing to ever come out of a Quinten Tarantino film was Steve Buscemi's rant on tipping and he makes a valid point.
I've had people say to me that waitresses make minimum wage and do hard work, well I worked a minimum wage job for 3 years and it wasn't one that society has deemed tip-worthy and on top of that it involved cleaning out deep friers, serving customers food and being on my feet for 9-12 hours a day.
Then I work as a waiter for a few months at a place that does tip sharing and make nothing on tips even if I wowed customers (and I often did) with my service, the owners would take the tips, take a cut and share them out...so I quit that as you can well imagine.
And apparently waiters and waitresses work long hours, tedious work for little pay..I got news for you, I work long hours, doing tedious work, for very little pay nowdays so why should I take that money to a restaurant and tip someone to pay for their rent when no ones tipping me jackshit to do my job which is harder than slinging food for 12 hours a day.

If I'm tipping it's at a topless bar where the food is cooked by Jesus Christ himself and the service is instantaneous..

Well perhaps not quite that good, but I don't just automatically tip 15% of the bill.

 

[Gramps]

Generally for me, if the service is really good, I will tip up to 25%. Of course this will drop if the service is not so good and if it is really bad, I will leave nothing but an dirty look and a smart assed comment.

 

[Michael Dorosh]

Oh, I have friends who insist on tipping even if the service was bad.  I have no qualms about leaving a to the penny amount.

Tipping my barber is another biggie; not sure why I do, but it's habit now.

Tipping the pizza delivery guy just seems weird.  I at least make them walk up the flight and a half of stairs to the 2nd floor to bring it to my door.  The Chinese place charges a delivery fee for any order under 19 bucks.  If it is just me, then I don't order 19 bucks worth of food.  I usually don't tip the driver then;other places will deliver a pizza from closer for no delivery fee, so I figure the delivery charge is more than enough compensation.  If their driver doesn't like it, he can find a better job.

Tipping in restaurants would make more sense if it was like a gas station, and had the option of full service or self service.  I'd tip in order to get waited on. But what choice do they give you, really?

 

[mover1]

If she is hot Like feed the budgie hot. Then the tip will be around a toonie or a loonie.
No seriously.

15% if its good.
Keep the change if its mediocre.
Canadian tire money if its poor.
Walk out if its really bad.

 

[winchable]

Tipping my barber is another biggie; not sure why I do, but it's habit now.

Tipping the pizza delivery guy just seems weird.  I at least make them walk up the flight and a half of stairs to the 2nd floor to bring it to my door.  The Chinese place charges a delivery fee for any order under 19 bucks.  If it is just me, then I don't order 19 bucks worth of food.  I usually don't tip the driver then;other places will deliver a pizza from closer for no delivery fee, so I figure the delivery charge is more than enough compensation.  If their driver doesn't like it, he can find a better job.

Eeexactly! Thats a few more instances where tipping is quite silly.
Has anyone here ever tipped a taxi driver??

 

[Michael Dorosh]

Eeexactly! Thats a few more instances where tipping is quite silly.
Has anyone here ever tipped a taxi driver??

Yes, the Canadian taxpayer has, when I go to the airport to fly out for a course and I get a receipt to turn in with my travel claim.  The driver makes a couple bucks off of the taxpayer.

 

[winchable]

See I have decided to completely stop tipping taxi drivers.
Fair enough they have to pay for gas at a time like this, they can increase their rates to compensate for that. I'd rather pay more on the flat rate than feel obliged to give them extra money on top of already expensive prices, for doing their job.