gratuity
Main Entry:
gra·tu·ity
Function:
noun
Inflected Form(s):
plural gra·tu·ities
Date:
1540
: something given voluntarily or beyond obligation usually for some service; especially : tip
Main Entry:
gra·tu·ity
Function:
noun
Inflected Form(s):
plural gra·tu·ities
Date:
1540
: something given voluntarily or beyond obligation usually for some service; especially : tip
We just came back from lunch in which our large party ran up a sizable tab. Most restaurants automatically add the gratuity to the bill for a party of 10, but not this place. Fine, the person handling the bill added a tip that brought the bill to a round number and handed it all to the waitress. The waitress came back with the bill and informed us that the tip was not sufficient. Excuse me?? Back when I worked the greasy spoon, one took the tip that was left and if it was shitty, so be it. I'd grumble and tell the other waiters but I would never have considered going up to the customer and harassing them for a bigger tip. This is not an isolated incident. One of the gals in our party told us that she had a similar experience over the weekend, and another co-worker told me of a waiter doing the same thing to her last weekend. When did this become the trend??
I tend to over tip because I'm bad at math so I have not had this experience on my own, but has anyone else out there? Is it common practice for wait staff to demand a better tip? Most people would never dream of NOT tipping, but the very definition of the word "gratuity" is that it is voluntarily given--not a requirement.
And, the waitress in question was a beyotch from jump. "Unlimited BBQ" means you bring us food until we say stop, not until you don't feel like coming over to our table anymore. Say, would it kill you to check in and see if we need more water? Oh, and how about a little less eye-rolling with our service. All this and she demands a bigger tip? She's lucky she got what she did, which wasn't a bad tip to begin with.
6 comments:
Are you fucking kidding me? If anyone ever tried that with me, I would demand the tip be returned and I would talk to the manager, too.
this is a very shades-of-grey situation... but i will say this:
what is considered a bare minimum tip for a party of 2 or 4 is differnt from what's appropriate for a larger group, and even more different from an all you can eat situation.
I agree with Annika. 100%.
If tips were such an issue with a large group, they usually automatically add it to the bill. Also I wonder how the little snit would have liked to have every person have their own check. If the tip was really offensive, I am sure that a few of you would have just left a few extra dollars on the table. I have done that when I thought the people we were sitting with were on the cheap side.
Seriously? That is totally unacceptable. A waiter does not ever let the table know that the tip was "not sufficient". I definitely would have talked to the manager.
What did your group do?
Once, while in Boston, my large family and I had an equally rude waitress whose service completely sucked, but had the gall to tell us that our tip was not good enough. We ended up not adding any more money to the tip because of her attitude, and when we left the restaurant we heard her mumbling racist things under her breath (we're Indian). I have never been so incensed in a restaurant in my life-- we told the managers, but we wished there was more we could have done (a public stoning?)
Anonymous - you gotta kinda expect that in Boston. Lived there for 2 years. THE rudest bunch of folks I ever had to deal with. Cold, stand-offish, selfish, unfriendly, and its all about them. I wouldn't take it personally. I think it's in their nature to be nasty, you know, like a birth defect. Shake it off and let it go.
anyway - when I was waiting tables way back when, the tip was indicative to the service they received. Good service warrented a good tip. And getting left 25 cents was worse than no tip at all, that was the message that the service sucked. And there are those who never tip well, even if you washed their feet for them. Yep, I'd have talked with the manager too, and give the waitress some serious lip service.
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