Do you tip when eating out??
By DonnaLawson
@DonnaLawson (4032)
United States
April 30, 2008 5:15pm CST
Do you tip everytime that you go out to eat, get your hair cut or do any of the type activities that has someone requiring a tip.. .. If you do, do you do it because you want to or because you feel that you are obliged to.. I have decided that I do not like the concept of tipping anymore, because most places expect you to tip even if the service was lousy.. Most companies that employee the type persons that require tipping to supplement their salaries, are companies that can afford to pay the employees salaries themselves.. I am not responsible for nor can afford to supplement the salaries of these people just because their company doesn't pay them a good decent living wage..
I am not saying that I do not tip, nor am I saying that I am going to quit tipping, but I am saying that I am not going to feel like I have to tip just to get good service.. One example is when I went to get a haircut this last week.. I went to get a haircut and one place that I usually go and get good service charges 12.00 for a haircut and a blow dry, and they do very good work.. But Walmart was closer and I went there.. I didn't ask how much for a cut??, that was my fault.. All that I wanted was a shorter damp cut and my hair blown dry.. I started off by saying I just wanted a damp cut and a blow dry, no shampoo.. I was told "well, we have a special going on now and the shampoo is free, so come on and lets get it washed, I accepted and thought, oh boy, a free wash.. I had just washed it earlier that morning, but it was free, so what the heck.. Also I wear glasses and have to take them off for the cut and as I was getting it cut, I told the stylist that I wanted it short but not as short as a man's, she said ok.. By the time that I put my glasses back on, I had a cut comparable to any man's cut.. It did feel good and didn't look bad, but it wasn't what I wanted nor what I asked for.. So, when I go to pay, I asked, "how much" and was told that it was 16.95, so I wrote the check for 20.00 to cover a small tip.. Then I got the heck out of the store and had to face my husband while he was having a fit about how much hair that she had cut.. Anyway, the more that I thought of it, the madder I got, I didn't get a "free shampoo", nor did I get a good deal on a haircut and to make matters worse, I left this lady a tip.. Why do we do the things that we do?? Do you tip even if the service isn't that good and if so, why?? This question pertains to restaurants also, do you tip, even if the service is bad??
17 people like this
48 responses
@Darkwing (21583)
•
1 May 08
I will only tip when I'm satisfied with the service given to me. For instance, I went one place to eat last Saturday... the waitress hardly spoke, looked as though she didn't want to work, and not once, came back and checked if the meal was ok. So, I didn't leave a tip. Last night, I ate out at a different place... the waitress gave me time to choose; in fact, she came back three times, she checked on my drink, she brought the food with a smile on her face, and checked back to see if the meal was ok. She even chatted for a while, whilst she wasn't too busy. So, I gave her a tip, happily.
In the case of your haircut, I wouldn't have left a tip and I would have told her I wasn't satisfied with the amount she had cut off my hair, I'm afraid.
Brightest Blessings.
2 people like this
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
1 May 08
Your second waitress is the one that i happily tip and wouldn't care to, but the first one is the one that I would not want to tip but am afraid that I would just to be nice.. I believe that I am tired of being nice, it really cost too much and it doesn't make anyone feel as if they have a responsibility to do their job to the best of their ability.. Have a fantastic evening
1 person likes this
@sedel1027 (17846)
• Cupertino, California
30 Apr 08
We always tip. There is no reason not too. Most of those people aren't even paid minimum wage because they are suppose to make up the amount in tips.
2 people like this
@sedel1027 (17846)
• Cupertino, California
1 May 08
If there is bad service, I don't tip. I am really tough on tipping though.
2 people like this
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
1 May 08
But do you ever feel that it is not right to tip at times?? Is your service always good, because I have always tipped before this..
1 person likes this
@icyorchid (2564)
• United States
30 Apr 08
Hi Donna,
Yes I do tip with I go out to eat. I tip accordingly. If I get great service, they get a great tip, if I get lousy service, they get what is left from what I spent.
Ex: If lunch costs $20.50 I give $21 and they get $.50 tip 
I tip no matter what.
Let me explain why:
My mother was a waitress and she gave her best to her customers. She use to complain about people not tipping. So from experience I tip accordingly. I think the people who get the $.50 tip are the ones that are not surprised they got a tip!
Thing is they are surprised when someone who gave good service gets a $5 tip! They want to know why they got that amount and it is all in the service.
Monday we took a cab home from the grocery store after the doctor. My back was hurting and I didn't want to get back on the bus, so my daughter called us a cab.
Now we checked out and walked outside and our cab pulled up, didn't have to wait at all! He loaded the trunk, my daughter grabbed 2 bags, but the driver grabbed the heaviest stuff. Then we got home in less than 10 minutes. He got out and started to grab the heavy stuff again and I asked hubby if he had any cash on him (low bills) and he gave me a $5. I paid the $9.50 for the cab and the driver got a $3 tip he was quick and very helpful and very appreciative for the tip!
Not to mention he was very polite, he asked if we'd mind if he smoked, that's a first!
So I do believe in tipping according to the service you receive. If you get crappy service and don't feel they deserve a tip, don't tip them or like me give them the left over change.
About your hair cut, I would have told the person who rang you up the the wash was free according to the person who cut your hair and demanded that they not charge you for it. $16.95 is for a regular shampoo, cut and dry. I know, I get my hair cut there. I loved my hair cut, and gave the woman $3 for a tip. She was surpised at the tip too 
Sorry, this was long, but there are reasons for tipping and reasons for not tipping.
I tip no matter what.
Let me explain why:
My mother was a waitress and she gave her best to her customers. She use to complain about people not tipping. So from experience I tip accordingly. I think the people who get the $.50 tip are the ones that are not surprised they got a tip!
Thing is they are surprised when someone who gave good service gets a $5 tip! They want to know why they got that amount and it is all in the service.
Monday we took a cab home from the grocery store after the doctor. My back was hurting and I didn't want to get back on the bus, so my daughter called us a cab.
Now we checked out and walked outside and our cab pulled up, didn't have to wait at all! He loaded the trunk, my daughter grabbed 2 bags, but the driver grabbed the heaviest stuff. Then we got home in less than 10 minutes. He got out and started to grab the heavy stuff again and I asked hubby if he had any cash on him (low bills) and he gave me a $5. I paid the $9.50 for the cab and the driver got a $3 tip he was quick and very helpful and very appreciative for the tip!
Not to mention he was very polite, he asked if we'd mind if he smoked, that's a first!
So I do believe in tipping according to the service you receive. If you get crappy service and don't feel they deserve a tip, don't tip them or like me give them the left over change.
About your hair cut, I would have told the person who rang you up the the wash was free according to the person who cut your hair and demanded that they not charge you for it. $16.95 is for a regular shampoo, cut and dry. I know, I get my hair cut there. I loved my hair cut, and gave the woman $3 for a tip. She was surpised at the tip too
Sorry, this was long, but there are reasons for tipping and reasons for not tipping.2 people like this
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
30 Apr 08
I do tip and do it freely but I don't like the fact that even if the service is bad, the waitress still get a tip.. There is no incentive for her to do her job at all, if she get paid the same for giving good service as for giving bad service.. I did eat out at Shoney's, we were regulars there, and a customer left a .5 tip for one of the girls and boy was she mad.. I don't know what she did to deserve this but she may not have given this person good service.. As with the cab driver, he went above and beyond his job and deserved a tip.. These are the ones that I like to tip.. Most waitress's are over worked and surely underpaid, so I do tip them according to the service.. Because I have done this type of work before and know how it is..
2 people like this
@icyorchid (2564)
• United States
30 Apr 08
Oh I understand what you are saying, but the waitress that got the $.50 was mad because of the small tip, but I bet when her co worker got a $2 tip, she asked what did she do to get that tip.
Sometimes waitreses take out thier bad day on the customers not realizing that is blowing their tip. They could be doing it and not realizing they are doing it, but it is still unacceptable to do in any case.
I believe if you are going to be in customer service, you need to know how to interact with customers in all situations.
I believe if you are going to be in customer service, you need to know how to interact with customers in all situations.2 people like this
@AmbiePam (85498)
• United States
30 Apr 08
I always tip something. From mylot members I have learned it is not typical to tip in England mostly. I wonder if it is like that elsewhere. Sometimes in a restaurant the service is terrible, and they won't get the standard tip from me, but they still will get something. Once or twice I've had pizza delivered and didn't have money for a tip. I felt bad, but then the delivery charge was part of why I couldn't give a tip.
2 people like this
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
30 Apr 08
That is part of what I was talking about, we have been conditioned to feel bad about not tipping.. The pizza could not have gotten to you any other way but to be delivered, so why the delivery charge.. I have never ordered one and had a delivery charge tacked onto it, and I don't think that I would.. They are set up to have to deliver the merchandise, so it should be included into the price of the pizza..
2 people like this
@skinnychick (6905)
• United States
10 May 08
Being in the restaurant business I'm keen on service- giving and receiving it. I hate when you even go to Dunkin Donuts and they have a tip jar out. For what?
I tip pretty well for good service, a nice haircut, etc..I tip over 20 percent in restaurants and I'm picky being a bartender and all.
For bad service, I tip 10 percent if anything at all. Luckily, I haven't really had very many bad service experiences. I stiffed someone once because they were beyond horrible and rude. Generally, I tip people either way. If I stiff you, you should probably get out of a tipped profession.
2 people like this
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
10 May 08
That is exactly how I feel, If I don't tip you, then you should probably get out of a tipped profession..
1 person likes this
@Rosekitty (19368)
• San Marcos, Texas
30 Apr 08
So Sorry Donna...its a habit of ours I think to tip no matter what if we have been doing it for awhile..i know its mine but i've decided no more unless its deserved.
I've been ordering food for lunch for years and always thought the place i get from were delievering to me for free since its the next block and don't like to close the store in case i could get a customer, well it turns out they have been charging me a dollar for delievery fee and its not mentioned on their menu at all, so now the poor kids don't get a tip since they do that..if they want their tips again then they have to drop that fee.
2 people like this
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
1 May 08
It does seem as if everytime that we have to pay a dollar out, someone is sticking their hand in our pockets for more.. I am getting to the point that it is going to be every man for himself and I have never felt that way before.. One of the first things that really got me was when we received a bill for our cell phone and they charged us .55 for a "paper bill".. Now that just really go to me.. I almost called them and told them to just send the bill by telepathy and I would send the payment the same way.. Oh well, it will be something else as soon as "they" can think of it..
2 people like this
@Rosekitty (19368)
• San Marcos, Texas
1 May 08
Donna..that was so funny..I wish you would have told them you would send them a bill for your time and energy in reading the darn thing..paper bill..what will they think of next?2 people like this
@rogue13xmen13 (14403)
• United States
1 May 08
I tip out of politeness, but my boyfriend and his father believe in only tipping if the person has truly done a good job. Tips have to be earned is what they believe.
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
1 May 08
I agree with them completely.. Most people think that a tip is their due, but that isn't the way that is it supposed to be.. thanks much for your thoughts on this..
1 person likes this
@lovespecialangel (3632)
• United States
30 Apr 08
I tip according to the service I got. When I go to a resturant and get good service, I leave a good tip. If I get bad service, I might leave a dollar if they are lucky. When getting my hair cut, I tip according if they did it right or not. If they cut my hair wrong and it looks horrible, they don't get a tip. If they do a good job, they get a tip. So, it's all in how I get treated as whether or not they get a tip. In the case of your hair cut, I wouldn't have tipped because they didn't cut it like you told them too. Although, I don't go to Wal-mart to get my hair cut because they normally don't do a good job.
2 people like this
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
1 May 08
I "always" tip, but lately have been having second thoughts about any of it.. I normally tip according to the service because that is the way it is supposed to be, even if the service was bad, I would leave a $2.00 tip.. But with things going the way they are now, with the high gas and grocery prices, I can't afford to support someone else's family, I do good to help take care of mine..
This was about the second time that I did go to the Walmart but never again.. I am very bad about taking the service that I get and never complaining.. Someone in one of the posts asked me "why didn't I complain when paying", The lady ringing me up was the one that cut my hair.. I really don't like to speak up for fear of hurting someone's feelings, but maybe no tip, will speak loud enough..
1 person likes this
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
1 May 08
That is the way that it should be.. Have a wonderful evening..
1 person likes this
@callarse1 (4783)
• United States
1 May 08
Hello ma'am. I do tip servers because most of the time they make so little due to the server wage. Most servers are really good. I leave between 15--20% if they are really good, if they are bad I still leave a tip because I figure everyone has a bad day (about 10%). The barber I go to (I'm a man) charges $10 and he is so professional and cuts your hair so fast. He has his system down and can cut a normal hair cut in under 10 minutes and it's always perfect. I usually tip him, but unfortunately I didn't have any money so I had to just give him $10. I don't tip at places like Stake n Shake because they actually get a regular hourly wage (no server wage), and I don't tip at coffee shops, I don't tip "to go" orders at restaurants.
I would tip if the service is bad, but very low such as 5 to 10 %. I figure everyone has a bad day.
Pablo
2 people like this
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
1 May 08
Pablo, that is a good system that you go by and if it works for you that is great.. I mainly have a problem with bad service and feeling like I have to tip, even if the service wasn't good.. Have a great day and thanks for sharing..
1 person likes this
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
1 May 08
That is a very honest answer.. Sometimes it is hard to enjoy a night out with your family, it is expensive enough, and the have to help pay the employees wages..
1 person likes this
@di1159 (1580)
• United States
1 May 08
I usually tip for services only because my grandmother was a maid in a hotel and they usually depended on tips to get them through. I do agree with you though that sometimes there are a lot of "service" people who don't know how to provide service. We've left sometimes without tipping when the person has been rude. We just went out for some drinks last week and my husband wanted to drink Johnnie Walker Blue. Well he asked the girl how much it was and she said well its an additional 8 dollars. He ordered it. When the bill came the drink was charged as $40.00. The usual drink is $11.00 so he was expecting to pay 20.00. When we asked her she said that she didn't know how much it was and that she told us that. Luckily we had witnesses at the next table who heard the entire thing and vouched for us when the manager came over. Needless to say, we did not leave her a tip.
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
1 May 08
Good for you.. It was great that you had witness's who heard it all.. I believe that most of us are being browbeat into tipping even if the service was not good.. But, I would never not leave a tip, if the service was really good.. I have worked in the public for years and about 10 years at one job which I made .50 an hour and had to depend on tips, but when I think of it now, my employers should have been paying me a decent salary instead of depending on everyone else to pay it for them.. Our favorite Shoney's closed down but before they did, we had gotten close to all of the girls who worked there, and we were told that they were only bringing home about $20.00 a week.. That is not right, the employers should have to pay their employees.. Have a good evening..
1 person likes this
@eigna9187 (113)
• United States
1 May 08
i always tip just for te fact it is thier income. if they are bad, they might get a dollar, but when thier job is to give service, why wouldnt you do your job?
if they arent good at serving and whatnot, they need to go work as a cashier or something...they would make a lot more money
2 people like this
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
1 May 08
Usually 10% is good enough unless the service was excellent, then if I can afford it, I will leave more.. But because I want to not because I have to..
1 person likes this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
30 Apr 08
I don't think your service was bad, you were not clear enough, put yourself in her shoes, not as short as a man's well for one men wear their hair all lengths including balled. The only way to get the cut you want is to bring in a picture of that cut. This is a tip from one of my hairdresser friends,
I tip as well all the time except if I am not happy with the service in which case I will tell the person why I did not tip them. But that is very rare, usually the service is good wherever I went.
2 people like this
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
30 Apr 08
I guess that I didn't make myself clear enough here, I was so long winded when typing the new discussion.. I did tell her how I wanted it and described the style which was a bit of heighth on the top and sides and a bit shorter on the back but not cut as short as a man's cut.. But I guess that you are right, I could have came out with my head shaved.
1 person likes this
@minnie_98214 (10557)
• United States
30 Apr 08
I will tip even if the service is bad but it will be a very low tip. i know its silly but i feel bad if I dont tip everytime. Now I have not gotten awful service yet that made me want to not tip but if I ever do I may consider not leaving a tip at all but it would have to be pretty bad.
2 people like this
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
30 Apr 08
I have walked out a couple of times without giving a tip and felt so guilty about it, but if the service is so bad, that I don't tip, there is no reason for me to feel guilty about it.. It is a reason for the waitress to think about how much effort she puts into her job.. We have been conditioned to feel guilt even if there is no reason to feel that way.. Can't win for losing..
1 person likes this
@Fishmomma (11377)
• United States
30 Apr 08
I will tip for great service. I'm not tipping for bad service, as I work hard for my money. It doesn't matter whether its a restaurant, hair cut or something else. i have watched hair places and restaurants raise their prices often and its now getting harder to just afford going out anywhere.
I report bad service to management and recently reported Subway. The worker overcharged me and I have discovered the person is no longer at Subway. Somebody told me they were fired and I wasn't the only one overcharged. It would have been terrible, if people allowed this person to continue this behavior.
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
30 Apr 08
Good for you for complaining. I believe we really take too much and do not complain when we really have a valid reason to do so.. And can you imagine the extra money Subway was making of off the overcharges, if the person wasn't keeping it for themself..
1 person likes this
@mayka123 (16584)
• India
11 Jul 08
Most restaurants pay the waiters very less salary because they get tips from customers. If the tip is given directly to the owner/cashier very rarely does it reach the waiter. That is why I always make it to tip the waiter, The amount would depend on how good he is at his job.
1 person likes this
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
11 Jul 08
Your first sentence sums it up as far as I am concerned.. Restaurants use the tipping method to pay their employees salary.. What if Walmart got this great idea and quit paying their employees and made them depend on the tips that they receive, would we be paying their salaries also.. Thanks so much for the comment..
@Hatley (163781)
• Garden Grove, California
30 Apr 08
I guess its the scottish in me but I am on a very limited budget
and no I do not tip and do not apologize as I cannot
both eat out and tip for every little thing. when I
worked I got paid for what I did and did not get
tips.let theemployers better their employees better
so they do not need tips and let me keep what
little money I do have to care for myself.
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
30 Apr 08
That is more or less what I am thinking.. The companies should pay a decent salary for their employees and not leave it up to us.. I do like to do things such as have my haircut, go out and eat, ride a taxi and not have to pay everyone's salary.. I really can't afford it myself.. But it is a question of getting what you work for vs. getting something for nothing..
1 person likes this
@sisterjinx (1135)
• United States
30 Apr 08
I believe most restaurants require you to tip and can actually have you arrested if you don't. (not that I think they would) With this in mind I look at it this way. If the service was so poor that I don't wish to leave a tip I will leave the minimum tip I can and I will complain to a manager. It the service was good I will usually leave a LOT more than I need to for a tip so that the server will know it was appreciated and occasionally I even thank them.
I seldom tip much for a haircut if anything. They charge enough for the cut as it is. If they did an exceptionally good job I will leave a tip but I haven't had that happen very often.
@DonnaLawson (4032)
• United States
30 Apr 08
I am totally against going to restaurants where they automatically add a tip.. Where I live it is added automatically when your party is over 8 people, and I think they add 15% to your bill then.. But even then the service can be bad and they still get the tip..
1 person likes this
