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Tipping on alcohol at a restaurant
Posted: 2:45 pm, November 6th, 2009 in Miscellaneous
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57 Comments
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@Samwich: It's more like buying an Aston Martin, then being required to pay an extra $20,000 for the steering wheel. As a %, it's a lot more than an oil change is my point and you can't drink the wine w/o the server bringing it to you as you can't drive the car w/o a steering wheel.
Again, it's not whether you can afford it or not that is in question.
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@ adam...good point...i do think 200 is quite a hefty tip but if your gonna buy a $1000 bottle...i dont think the people who buy then are really minding most of their $ in how much they save on tip though...success has nothing to do with how thrifty you are.
ive never bought a $1000 bottle of wine so i cant really say...im just speaking hypothetically.
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@sushibar - so by your logic, if you order the $60 lobster special vs. the $20 roast chicken at a restaurant, you'd still tip $4 cause all the waiter did was take your order and bring the plates over?
People should tip on the total bill no matter what it is comprised of.
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my two cents: i agree, tip according to the bill regardless if there is a steep bar tab or not. if a server rings you up for a $1,000 bottle of wine, that server is expecting to be tipped accordingly and if im not mistaken, in the end is also taxed according to what tips he/she is expected to make.
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rinda's got it - when the receipts are totaled and sent to the IRS, that server is going to be taxed on, what is it, 8% of gross receipts, as the government assumes that is your tip allotment? That includes everything.
As many restaurants tip out everyone from a collective tip pool over the course of the evening, and your server probably doesn't keep every dime (busboys are customarily tipped a few % by the wait staff) not tipping a decent amount when a pricey bottle is added can make lots of people unhappy from that table. Bottom line: assume your wine costs 28% more than it's listed for (tax and tip), and if that's too much, don't buy it - bring in a bottle and pay the corkage.
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i have a problem with waiters usually... because i dont care about how much they survive on tips... if you survived on the tips you should be doing something to get them... being nice, being prompt, apologizing for problems in service or accidents.
if all you do is take an order and leave... then bring the food and leave... then give the check and leave... what did you do? maybe thats what the guy who buys a 1000 dollar bottle of wine, 40 dollars worth of food, and giving only about 5 dollars tip is thinking.
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I used to bartend... (beers only) and let me tell you how I personally tip at bars:
Beers and glasses of wine (which I NEVER order at a bar, unless it's a wine bar) get $1. $2 for the glasses of wine at a wine bar if the bartender/sommelier has explained it to me/recommended it to me/etc. actually done more.$2-3 for mixed drinks and special fancy cocktails as the drink gets more complicated.
It's a combination of labor and bother. And yes, $1 on the beer even if it's a $2 beer.
My question is - do you people tip the guy at the ballpark who keeps bringing you beers?
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I would go with the standard tip for the meal and drinks but calculate a separate tip for the expensive bottle and add it all up, I see no reason for him or her to hit paydirt because they happen to be serving such a table, the house already gets like a 70% markup on the wine so how many people need to be paid off here?
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I Tip depending on service provided.
I know employees that have been chased down 47th st. for 'only' tipping $20 on a $200 lunch for 2.
I Also HATE "PARties over 8 people will be charged a ManDatory 15% service charge".....what for?...providing income for the restaurant?
I'd far more rather pay 10% more for a meal and the employers of the staff pay them better than be charged for "Service".....you know....all's you're doing is carrying a plate to a table...you fuckwits.
rant over
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Tipping should be banned. I prefer it to be included in the price of items. i can't stand calculating and all the nonsenses that follow with it.
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I'd rather meals just cost 20% more. I think servers in Times Square and other hotspots for foreign tourists would readily agree (so long as their hourly wage went up commensurately). Exceptional service? Feel free to drop a few more dollars on the table.
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for those who are against tipping on a high bar tab or those who think waiters shouldnt even be tipped, period, let me ask.. have you ever worked in the food service industry?
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actually waiters and waitresses usually make more money than your cooks who graduated from culinary schools.
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I read an article once (I think Food and Wine, but I don't really remember) where a writer went to celebrate and bought two expensive bottles of wine. The bottles of wine were more expensive than the food ordered. However, the waiter, after bringing over the bottles and opening it, never really did anything. When the guy was leaving, he tipped 20% for the food, but didn't tip on the wine. When the waiter followed him out to ask him if there was anything wrong, the man replied no. The waiter continued and asked, then why did he tipped so little, and an argument ensued over the tip on the wine. The man was pissed off and crossed off the tip on the credit card bill and replaced it with 0%.
Is there a rule for this? Do you just tip 20% on the wine no matter what? For $40 bottles, this is not that big of a deal, but at several hundred (or thousand) it is.. so i was just wondering if there was some sort of rule for tipping on alcohol...