The $100,000 a year waitress isn't a myth: Some hard truths about tipping in Canada

[rage2]

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Goddammnit, now I don't know what to do!!!!!

Just don’t tip. Seriously, if you’re going to go out of your way to be cheap, might as well go all the way right?

[gpomp]

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Just don’t tip. Seriously, if you’re going to go out of your way to be cheap, might as well go all the way right?

This sums up the entire thread.

[ExtraSlow]

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Just don’t tip. Seriously, if you’re going to go out of your way to be cheap, might as well go all the way right?

Works for me!

[Mitsu3000gt]

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Not tipping for drinks. Lol. That’s rich.

The irony is the drinks are pretty well the only thing your server actually brings you, meals are usually brought out by busboys.

Do you agree that people should be paying a $40+ fee for them to unscrew the cap of a $200 bottle of wine that has already been marked up 600%? I'm all for tipping generously when the situation calls for it, but I personally can't wrap my head around that. And most of the time they leave it on the table and ignore you after the first pour, they don't even top it up for you.

Also, most restaurants I go to, the server only brings the first water (they usually greet the table with the water jug in hand, or offer still/sparkling) - food deliveries, every other drink, and water refill is almost always someone else.

[rage2]

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Do you agree that people should be paying a $40+ fee for them to unscrew the cap of a $200 bottle of wine that has already been marked up 600%? I'm all for tipping generously when the situation calls for it, but I personally can't wrap my head around that. And most of the time they leave it on the table and ignore you after the first pour, they don't even top it up for you.

Also, most restaurants I go to, the server only brings the first water (they usually greet the table with the water jug in hand, or offer still/sparkling) - food deliveries, every other drink, and water refill is almost always someone else.

You can always bring your own wine. Then get charged $40 corkage. Still come out ahead.

[CompletelyNumb]

Tipping is a necessity of dining out, just like diamonds are a necessity of getting engaged.

The world would be a better place if consumers stopped tipping.

[max_boost]

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Just don’t tip. Seriously, if you’re going to go out of your way to be cheap, might as well go all the way right?

And proceed to write up long winded posts explaining why one shouldn't have to tip.

When in Calgary....lol

Next time you guys dine out, this is a great topic to bring up to your server.

And honestly it's only $100k, everyone settle down now.

[Mitsu3000gt]

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You can always bring your own wine. Then get charged $40 corkage. Still come out ahead.

I do sometimes. It's not always convenient especially if you need to keep it chilled and have prior plans, but there are some good corkage deals in town - for example Anju is $15, and free on Sundays.

So do none of you big tippers tip your flight attendants on airlines that allow it? If you do, how much do you give them? 20% of your ticket cost?

[googe]

Do you understand the concept of a social norm?

[JRSC00LUDE]

If I were at server, and somebody didn't tip on drinks, I'd call the police and report them for drunk driving now. That'd learn em!

[Mitsu3000gt]

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Do you understand the concept of a social norm?

It's very much a social norm to tip anyone proving a direct service to you for going above and beyond what their job entails. People used to try and tip me when I worked at Rona Home & Garden lol. North America is very much a tipping culture for every little thing, and takes this to the extreme because in some places the expected amount is 20% just for showing up to work.

Why do you think flight attendants do not deserve to be tipped, but every server does? It's also not as uncommon as you may think to tip your flight attendants, especially if you have needy kids or something. I have even them accept tips on airlines they are technically not allowed to - most people don't turn down money when handed to them haha.

[max_boost]

lol keep going

[ercchry]

I would tip flight attendants if they stopped wearing lingering old lady perfume and didn’t bump their fat ass into me every time they walked by

[Tik-Tok]

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I would tip flight attendants if they stopped wearing lingering old lady perfume and didn’t bump their fat ass into me every time they walked by

Found the Air Canada customer

[bjstare]

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Found the Air Canada customer

Truth

[googe]

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It's very much a social norm to tip anyone proving a direct service to you for going above and beyond what their job entails. People used to try and tip me when I worked at Rona Home & Garden lol. North America is very much a tipping culture for every little thing, and takes this to the extreme because in some places the expected amount is 20% just for showing up to work.

Why do you think flight attendants do not deserve to be tipped, but every server does? It's also not as uncommon as you may think to tip your flight attendants, especially if you have needy kids or something. I have even them accept tips on airlines they are technically not allowed to - most people don't turn down money when handed to them haha.

Ok, so you don't understand the concept of a social norm

[Mitsu3000gt]

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Ok, so you don't understand the concept of a social norm

Explain it to me then please. North America is a tipping culture, through and through. Nearly everywhere you go to has a tip jar or an option on the credit/debit machine. Even if you go to a street market, the hippies selling their homemade jewelry have tip options on their Square Pay FFS. FroYo places where you literally serve yourself have tip jars and tip options on the machine. EVERYONE wants a tip just for showing up to work. So why only tip a small subset of these people? I bring up flight attendants because most of them accept tips, and yet I don't think that many people tip them. They are probably the most underappreciated demographic that accepts tips but doesn't often get them. On top of that they deal with 10x the crap any server does, probably literally on some days.

Do you tip because of above and beyond service or do you tip just because the guy next to you tips?

If you tip because of over-the-top service, why don't you tip other industries that accept tips for over-the-top service?

I am trying to learn why people tip ~20% because someone showed up to work and did the bare minimum that their job entails in industry where they are already compensated based on a zero tip assumption or close to it (i.e. they aren't paid below minimum wage because of tips like much of the USA). I am very much in favor of tipping generously for above and beyond service in any industry that accepts them, the only thing I am against is blindly tipping 20% for poor service, which is the expectation in Calgary and the reason why service is so bad here.

[HiTempguy1]

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I am trying to learn why people tip ~20%

Because it's an ego stroke to spend money frivolously.

[msommers]

@mitsu there is no rhyme or reason why some things are 'tippable' in NA and others are not. I came to accept this long ago and just don't give a shit anymore.

I just auto-tip 15% (though I think about 12-13% should be "normal" to offset the higher minimum wage), or higher if it's a place I like visiting or supporting because they're not as busy as usual. Or if the server was attentive, kind and knowledgeable. Awhile back my Mom took me and my fiance to Teatro for my bday. The waiter and support staff were awesome throughout and it reminded me being served in NYC. Then there's other instances like when I was at Paper St. Order my food, waitress asks 'Do you like gauc'...yes but is it extra? 'Oh ya'...then no...as she proceeds to scowl at me. Food was subpar at best and she got like 5% from me, but really I should have just gave 0% cuz what's the difference lol.

There's a lot of 'why the fuck' moments as I've grown I just stop caring or realize one can vote with their dollars. Like buying clothes that were made by a 9 year old kid - buying premium brands doesn't equate to this practice not happening.

[Mitsu3000gt]

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@mitsu there is no rhyme or reason why some things are 'tippable' in NA and others are not. I came to accept this long ago and just don't give a shit anymore.

This is true, but what I am trying to understand is of the many tippable 'services', why are restaurants really the only place so many people auto-tip 15-20% or whatever it is regardless of quality of service? That is what I have trouble understanding, especially when that industry is probably the one that is most consistently disappointing from a service perspective, in Calgary anyway. It would be a completely different story if they were paid $2.00/hr plus tips like they do in so many states (some employers have to top them up to min wage if the tips don't get them there), but the problem naturally solves itself because that is also when you see service quality increase dramatically.

As soon as minimum wage hit $15 (and really it wasn't much lower before I suppose at $13.60 or whatever it was), I have been tipping dramatically less (0-10%) for bad or standard service and really well for above & beyond service (~20-100+% depending on bill size). Rather than auto-tipping I am trying to redistribute my tips to reward the people who do something beyond showing up for work that day.

Also as you point out, I just don't care as much as I used to. Years ago I would be embarrassed not to leave a good tip and would never speak up if I got a bad meal or something, and now I am the opposite and it's only been a positive experience.

And yeah - so many places offer you options hoping you won't figure out they also cost extra haha. Anything to increase that bill.