Seven of us went out to dinner last Thursday for my birthday. The waitress had kept the tab separate by guest number. The check comes, and we accordingly divvy up who owes what. My GF covered my portion. Every gives the waitress their CC/cash for their portion. She runs the cards, comes back with receipts, at which point people leave the tip amount. The usual. She picks up the filled out tickets, since her shift was ending. She then comes back a few minutes later and says (with a slight attitude) "Did I do something wrong tonight?" Everyone looks at each other, confused, and replies no. She walks away, visibly upset. The service was great, so we were puzzled why she said that. My buddy's wife goes over to talk to her. Apparently the tip was just under 9%. This was 100% an accident. I'm a numbers guy, but didn't even look our share of the receipt. As I said, my GF covered ours. So, once we realized this, we took another $50 over to her, which brought the tip up to around 30%. One of the girls in the group thought this was rude of the waitress to do. I felt completely the opposite. This is her livelihood. What say you?

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Get your friend's a Wizard.

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Its not prudent to complain about a tip. I mean she got something


I dont know how you guys made that mistake though. Someone must have stiffed her

Maybe she shouldn't be such a loser and get a real job?

My one buddy is notoriously cheap, but I wasn't gonna call him out in front of the group. Like I said, had I handled it (which is usually what happens), it would have been different. Guess the group didn't trust me after all those beers I had

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IT DOES OTHER THINGS

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1. Usually a party of 6 or more has the tip included.
2. Waitress should have kept her mouth shut. Tipping is not an obligation, though it is the cultural norm in the US. I doubt she would have said this to Scottie Pippen.
3. At least one of your friends is cheap as shit and didn't tip at all.

One person not leaving a tip will not drop the total from 20% to 9%...so, that means a couple of people fucked up...like 3 of them.
The other explanation is that some people in your party assumed 18% was included.

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@audioidkid

Parties of 6 don't usually have the tip included. Isn't it at least 8 or 10?

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He could have one really fat friend.

From the restaurant's website.

Sales tax will be added to the price of all food & beverage items served. For your convenience, an 18% gratuity is added to parties of 8 or more. Gratuities are discretionary.

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Absolutely the waitress has a right to say something. I would be embarrassed if I shorted a tip that bad n would apologize to the waitress n thank her for letting me know.

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If I were her, I'd ask. Don't see a downside. If she really had screwed up, it's in her best interest to know why. And if the table screwed up, she gets her tip.

You lost me when you said your GF paid.

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Pffft. Fuck that. She automatically assumed she did something wrong and then confronted the group with an attitude. I would have had her give me back the "tip" I already gave her.

Few thoughts

-Bitch move on her part. You don't do that. Sometimes people f you on tips, life of a server. Couple weeks ago I literally got nothing from a $200 party of 7. They complemented the owner about their experience on the way out, so I know it wasn't the service. It sucked, but I just got drunk and it was okay.
-Classy move on your part. She'll literally remember that forever
-Guessing people assumed 18% was already in the total. Different places have different policies

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Team Cutler.

Why?

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In many respects it shows that she cares about her performance.

I've been to a couple of places where the 18% started at 6 patrons. Mostly in the City and on vacation.

"Did I do something wrong?" is the industry standard question with respect to tip %.

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@audioidkid

If a waitress ever questioned my tip, I would say, "You're right, I did make a mistake." Then I would give her nothing.

Nah, she knew she did her job well. Was just trying to get those cheap pricks to dig deeper. It worked, smart girl.

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I think it depends how she delivered the message. If she came storming up to the table all bitchy she would have gotten a prompt 'piss off' from me. If she came over and geniuely asked if something was wrong with the service then I think the problem gets corrected and everyone is happy.

Tipping is up to the customer and to ask for more of a tip is a douche worthy move. What if you did 15% and she came over to ask for more? She basically begged you and your friends for money. Where do we draw the line people?!?!?!?!?!

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Cheap pricks? Wow. Go ahead and fuck yourself.

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What's the downside of politely asking if the service wasn't good? You don't have to use the word tip, or be a dick or anything.

Exactly. I thought it would be an interesting question to pose here.

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Team Cutler.

The downside is you are begging a stranger for money.

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I'm not saying ASK for a better tip or question. I'm asking the customer:

"was the service not up to your expectations tonight?"


If it wasn't, you should ask why. If you did something wrong and don't know what you did, you should want to know so you don't keep doing it.

If the waitress came over inquiring, as if to apologize and get feedback to improve herself, then I wouldn't have had a problem with it. If she had an attitude and was defensive, she would have gotten nowhere.

Did a manager notice any of this and see what was going on at any point, or was it all just her and you guys?

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"The foregone conclusion that Theo will lead the Cubs to the World Series, is reminiscent of the overconfidence when the Titanic left for NYC" via GridAssassin

You left me a message I DID NOT listen to....what was it?

There is no begging, poor choice of words. If you don't tip atleast 15% stay the fuck at home.

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