There are some awfully mean tippers out there -- like the jerk who left nothing but a note saying "you could stand to lose a few pounds."
And now here's the scolding "my 2 cents" tipper. This is a customer who left a handwritten lecture and two pennies as a tip. The note got posted to Reddit:
Waitressing 101. Don't tell every customer you're very busy, to excuse your lack of serving skills. Your job is to attend to us, not make us feel like we're an inconvenience. A little bit of personal attention goes a long way in the form of a tip. Just my 2 cents.
Now obviously this was an obnoxious thing to do. If a server tells you they're busy, it's probably because they're beyond the point of just busy and have reached the OMG We're Way Understaffed Desperation Zone. It happens -- management is cutting corners and not hiring enough waitstaff. Or you get slammed with more customers than usual. Or people call in sick at the last minute. And maybe this was just a way for a harried server to let her table know why they weren't getting the service she thought they deserved.
It's also important to remember that servers' wages are on the low side because restaurant owners know they're getting tips.
But the mean tipper has a point.
Maybe tips are for people who know how to finesse a bad situation, not just manage it. A restaurant should be very busy. And as just about any server will tell you, half of the job is learning the art of soothing impatient customers. It's about smiling, making people feel welcome, saying, "I'll be right with you, so sorry to make you wait" instead of "Phew, I'm so busy!" Even in the worst circumstances. That's how you get that little extra sugar from your customers: By pouring a whole lot on them.
Anyway, clearly the server on the other end of this "tip" was angry -- probably too angry to pick up on any lesson. No one likes a lecture. But just because the messenger is a jerk doesn't mean their message can't still be valuable. Taking in this customer's "2 cents" could make the server a lot more money in the future.
Do you still tip even when you think the service was bad?
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Comments 102
I've worked in customer service and it's because of this that I have higher standards of what makes a good customer service rep, waitor/waitress, etc. I think this was absolutely awesome! I've personally done stuff like this before because sometimes the service is so bad or they're down right rude and/or disrespectful and in my opinion it is more offensive to leave a penny than nothing. When I was 14 a friend and I went to the same restaurant every Saturday and always ordered the same thing and always left a nice tip... one week we were short on money (HELLO WE WERE 14!) we had enough to cover the bill but not the tip, now most the waitresses/waitors knew us and knew we'd double up next week but this time had a shitty waitress (who was awful anyway) and she actually had the nerve to throw it in our face that a tip is a requirement and you should never eat out unless you have enough for the tip to which we repiled that we would've come back and doubled up because we were raised right but that she honestly was a bad waitress and a tip is not a requirement by law and that it is extremely rude and unprofessional to point it out so we pulled some loose change out and left it on the table and said that was paying too much!
This tipper was not obnoxious, they were dead on!
I agree that as a customer, one should be observant of how the server does thier job, not just for your table, but in general. This is especially important if it is busy. That being said, I've worked in a restaurant, both as a hostess and as a cook and I've known servers to be both very diligent and good at thier job no matter how busy or slow business happens to be at the moment, and I've watched servers be incompetent (by choice) because they are lazy. I also know that even though thier hourly is often below minimum, they often make very well above minimum wage if they are good at thier job. A tip should be based on service and no, I don't believe that people should tip no matter what. Be empathetic yes, but don't give handouts.
I work in the service industry. We tip well for average service and great for outstanding service. But a tip is optional not mantitory for a reason. I know what it's like to work for tips, I still do, but I'm not going to tip if the server was rude or bad at their job.
Most people can tell the difference between bad service, and the server just being busy. We sure can. We always tip, but the percentage depends on the service. If they're just busy, we try to be understanding.
I have a good friend who spent years as a server and then some time as a manager at a restaurant. I could totally see her saying something like that, because she explained to me once that as a server, there is pretty much no excuse for treating your customers badly. You can be crazy busy and still treat people well.
A tip is a gratuity, therefore it is not required but is given in gratitude for service. I've waited tables and tended bar, theres a reason its called a service industry and sorry if you provide me with substandard service I will not tip you. Servers choose to work for below minimum wage by choosing to be servers, so if they are horrible at their job then they need to be prepared to be broke. That being said there is a difference in simply not tipping to show your dis-satisfaction with your service and leaving a snotty note. Some people are just a$$holes.
Treat me good-expect a good tip.
Treat me like an inconvenience-expect a poor tip.
Very simple.