Advice on US tipping A huge ballyhoo on the size of tips in the US as now it is common to give a 20% to 30% tip on your, say, restaurant bill. Customers, who now suffer from “tip fatigue”, are outraged not only of the extraordinary size of the expected tip but also the expectation of a tip in instances were no human is involved in the interaction as is the case with a self-checkout machines, where you know that no human is going to be the recipient of your tip. I have absolutely no problem with this now as I simply dissociate in my mind the tip from the quality of service provided and consider it as cost of the product or service I am buying especially as tipping in the States has become almost mandatory and you are going to be hassled if you did not leave what they consider a “respectable” tip. I’ve learned my lesson after being hassled in the famous Peter Luger Steakhouse in Brooklyn after leaving a $150 tip that was not, percentage wise, what they thought was "appropriate". Customers in the US! Don’t be naïve and get lured by the net price of a good or a service. Add the sales tax (if applicable) and the tip then you decide.
I just went to a restaurant in California, where I was charged a “fair wage contribution” on top of 20% service charge and the mandatory tax. When I calculated, I had paid about 40% on top of the menu prices. How shameless for a high end restaurant to admit that they will not pay fair wages unless the customer chips in.
Director Human Resources II at University of Central Florida
10moFor me it’s all about service. Exceptional gets 20%, rarely ever more than that. Passable service 10%. Mediocre a small fixed number