Things I find a tad exasperating v.3

[Cool Chris]

The Ring On It song is the one song I know by Beyonce. Can't say I know any by Rhianna. My kid kept correcting me because I was saying Rhiannon, like the Fleetwood Mac song. Last time I watched a halftime show was The Who for SB44.

[King Postwhore]

You would know her song Umbrella.

[lordxizor]

For lack of a better place to put this and because it does make me feel a tad exasperated:

I took the family out for dinner on Monday. I wrote in a fairly generous tip on the bill. The credit card transaction has now gone through completely (no longer pending) and it doesn't include the tip. So clearly our server got stiffed. Either she forgot to put it in, or the receipt I wrote it on got lost in the shuffle of us leaving. I know I didn't grab it because I had the customer copy only in my pocket when I got home. I kind of want to stop by, find her, and give her some cash. But honestly I'm not sure if I'd recognize her and don't have the receipt anymore which probably had her name on it. It's also a little out of the way and I'm just socially awkward enough that this would be a very uncomfortable thing for me to do. It's also a good chance it's her fault she forgot to add the tip on to the CC transaction after the fact. Things were getting busy as we left.

[Podaar]

Man, that would drive me insane if I knew about it**... I'd be over there having them look up my credit card transaction so that they could tell me the name of the server, so that I could make it right.

**I don't really balance receipts with my bank records, so this sort of thing could easily get by me.

[TAC]

I can't see getting all worked up over this. It all evens out.

[El Barto]

Man, that would drive me insane if I knew about it**... I'd be over there having them look up my credit card transaction so that they could tell me the name of the server, so that I could make it right.

**I don't really balance receipts with my bank records, so this sort of thing could easily get by me.

Yeah, pretty much this. I'd probably never know about it.

Two things I'll throw out: One, how long has it been. I've seen charge and tip show up as different transactions before. Maybe the tip is a day behind or something. Second, my solution would be to call the manager and ask about it. He can probably check the records to find out how things went awry and also who your waitress was. From there you could send her a gift card if you so desired.

[Adami]

I can't see getting all worked up over this. It all evens out.

What evens out?




I too wouldn't have even noticed but if I had, I'd also feel a nagging sense of doing something about it.

[El Barto]

I can't see getting all worked up over this. It all evens out.

What evens out?

Yeah, I think this is the textbook example of things not evening out.   

Technically I suppose somebody could accidentally write the wrong thing on the tip line and overtip by the precise amount that lordxizor tried to, but that seems unlikely.

[Stadler]

I can't see getting all worked up over this. It all evens out.

What evens out?




I too wouldn't have even noticed but if I had, I'd also feel a nagging sense of doing something about it.

Except in rare circumstances, I would ABSOLUTELY feel compelled to do something about it.  It's not just about the money; it's about the interaction as well.

[lordxizor]

Two things I'll throw out: One, how long has it been. I've seen charge and tip show up as different transactions before. Maybe the tip is a day behind or something. Second, my solution would be to call the manager and ask about it. He can probably check the records to find out how things went awry and also who your waitress was. From there you could send her a gift card if you so desired.

It's been three days at this point. I have never seen the bill and the tip run through as separate transactions, so I doubt that will still happen.

Honestly it's mostly that I don't want her to think I'm a cheapskate who came in on 1/2 price burger night, fed my family and rushed out without tipping. The service was average, nothing special, but she still deserves something. I could see on her face when we ordered water and 5 1/2 price burgers that she wasn't going to give us a ton of attention.  But I always try to tip generously in those situations anyway.

[El Barto]

Two things I'll throw out: One, how long has it been. I've seen charge and tip show up as different transactions before. Maybe the tip is a day behind or something. Second, my solution would be to call the manager and ask about it. He can probably check the records to find out how things went awry and also who your waitress was. From there you could send her a gift card if you so desired.

It's been three days at this point. I have never seen the bill and the tip run through as separate transactions, so I doubt that will still happen.

Honestly it's mostly that I don't want her to think I'm a cheapskate who came in on 1/2 price burger night, fed my family and rushed out without tipping. The service was average, nothing special, but she still deserves something. I could see on her face when we ordered water and 5 1/2 price burgers that she wasn't going to give us a ton of attention.  But I always try to tip generously in those situations anyway.

Yeah, I'll certainly increase my tip on something like that, and I'm also a pretty generous tipper. I wouldn't let the restaurant's sale effect her takehome pay.

[Stadler]

Two things I'll throw out: One, how long has it been. I've seen charge and tip show up as different transactions before. Maybe the tip is a day behind or something. Second, my solution would be to call the manager and ask about it. He can probably check the records to find out how things went awry and also who your waitress was. From there you could send her a gift card if you so desired.

It's been three days at this point. I have never seen the bill and the tip run through as separate transactions, so I doubt that will still happen.

Honestly it's mostly that I don't want her to think I'm a cheapskate who came in on 1/2 price burger night, fed my family and rushed out without tipping. The service was average, nothing special, but she still deserves something. I could see on her face when we ordered water and 5 1/2 price burgers that she wasn't going to give us a ton of attention.  But I always try to tip generously in those situations anyway.

Yeah, I'll certainly increase my tip on something like that, and I'm also a pretty generous tipper. I wouldn't let the restaurant's sale effect her takehome pay.

Me too; at the local, we win free drinks and apps sometimes for trivia; I tip 25% on what the bill WOULD have been.

It may not be valuable to others, but as a result, when I go in, there's a High Life waiting for me at the bar, sometimes we'll get to sample the new dishes (or new drinks, though we usually stick with beer) and my step son and I don't have to herd out like cattle when last call comes. 

[Harmony]

Speaking of tipping - and this has probably been addressed in this thread before.  But I was at a fast food chain the other day and bought myself a beverage while I bought someone else a burger.  When did it become SOP to tip at a fast food counter for someone just taking an order?

I declined.

[Stadler]

Speaking of tipping - and this has probably been addressed in this thread before.  But I was at a fast food chain the other day and bought myself a beverage while I bought someone else a burger.  When did it become SOP to tip at a fast food counter for someone just taking an order?

I declined.

I have a hard time with that.  We ordered out last night, actually, and I did pick up.  I know they pack the food and all, but, I just can't.   

[pg1067]

Speaking of tipping - and this has probably been addressed in this thread before.  But I was at a fast food chain the other day and bought myself a beverage while I bought someone else a burger.  When did it become SOP to tip at a fast food counter for someone just taking an order?

I declined.

Tip jars have been around for many years.  If I'm paying with cash (uncommon), I'll sometimes drop my change in the jar.  If it's a pay point system that prompts me for a tip (somewhat more recent), I always click "no tip."  From what I've heard from my kids, both of whom work/have worked jobs where this is a thing, they get $25-50 per week in tips.  Also, a friend from work and I went to lunch yesterday.  It was his turn to pay, and I saw that he added a tip to the bill.

I have a hard time with that.  We ordered out last night, actually, and I did pick up.  I know they pack the food and all, but, I just can't.   

Well...that's their job - and around here, they're getting paid $15-16 an hour to do it, so I'm with you in not doing it.

The thing I always find amusing is when you get a check.  Let's say it's $50 for whatever you ordered, and there's sales tax on it, so it totals to $54.63 (9.25% sales tax is pretty common around here).  Then they have "suggested tip" amounts.  They don't even bother with 15%.  It's usually 18%, 20% and 25%.  But the kicker is that they calculate the tip on the AFTER-tax bill.  I am NOT tipping on the sales tax.  No way.

[jingle.boy]

Speaking of tipping - and this has probably been addressed in this thread before.  But I was at a fast food chain the other day and bought myself a beverage while I bought someone else a burger.  When did it become SOP to tip at a fast food counter for someone just taking an order?

I declined.

Sometime during the pandemic.  It's also SOP to offer 'default' tip % of 18% at the low end, and 30% at the high end for any kind of service that traditionally receives tips (I saw that recently with the cabs in Vegas).  I recall I reading a study that people are inclined to default to the middle option when presented with low-medium-high choices.  Thus, 15% is no longer the 'standard' as providers search for more income/revenue.

But yeah, except in VERY RARE circumstances, I don't tip when I'm picking up any kind of food.

[pg1067]

30%?!!!

No.  Friggin'.  Way.

The only time I did something like that was a couple weeks before Christmas and I took my kids to a casual sit down place.  The waitress was really friendly - especially with the kids (and probably attractive), and I had just gotten or was about to get a really nice bonus, so I tipped her like $50 on a $75 check

[Stadler]

I'm a generous tipper by almost any non-Hollywood, non-celebrity standard, and even I'm not giving 30% absent something spectacular, like a free round of shots or something like that, and it will be a server or bartender that I know and have dealt with before (and will deal with again).

[WilliamMunny]

I'm a generous tipper by almost any non-Hollywood, non-celebrity standard, and even I'm not giving 30% absent something spectacular, like a free round of shots or something like that, and it will be a server or bartender that I know and have dealt with before (and will deal with again).

Nice to see I'm not alone in this—having grown up dirt-poor, I will always have a soft-spot in my heart for those working their asses off, and as far as I'm concerned, those in the service industry are working their asses off.

Long before I could afford to, I always made it a point to round that bill to a nice round number.

[pg1067]

I'm a generous tipper by almost any non-Hollywood, non-celebrity standard, and even I'm not giving 30% absent something spectacular, like a free round of shots or something like that, and it will be a server or bartender that I know and have dealt with before (and will deal with again).

Exactly.  When I was in Chicago on business last summer, I went to a pub near the hotel.  I ordered a rib dinner and two beers.  The bartender gave me the check for $33.75 + $3.03 sales tax.  I noticed that only one of the beers was on the check and pointed it out, completely expecting that he'd add it and give me a new check.  Instead, he said something like, "eh...if I forgot to add it, it's on me," so I tipped him $10, which was just shy of 30% on the pre-tax check (and, in this case, the the "suggested gratuity" numbers (18/20/22%) were properly based on the pre-tax amount).

[Stadler]

I'm a generous tipper by almost any non-Hollywood, non-celebrity standard, and even I'm not giving 30% absent something spectacular, like a free round of shots or something like that, and it will be a server or bartender that I know and have dealt with before (and will deal with again).

Exactly.  When I was in Chicago on business last summer, I went to a pub near the hotel.  I ordered a rib dinner and two beers.  The bartender gave me the check for $33.75 + $3.03 sales tax.  I noticed that only one of the beers was on the check and pointed it out, completely expecting that he'd add it and give me a new check.  Instead, he said something like, "eh...if I forgot to add it, it's on me," so I tipped him $10, which was just shy of 30% on the pre-tax check (and, in this case, the the "suggested gratuity" numbers (18/20/22%) were properly based on the pre-tax amount).

That's what I would have done, more or less.

[wolfking]

For lack of a better place to put this and because it does make me feel a tad exasperated:

I took the family out for dinner on Monday. I wrote in a fairly generous tip on the bill. The credit card transaction has now gone through completely (no longer pending) and it doesn't include the tip. So clearly our server got stiffed. Either she forgot to put it in, or the receipt I wrote it on got lost in the shuffle of us leaving. I know I didn't grab it because I had the customer copy only in my pocket when I got home. I kind of want to stop by, find her, and give her some cash. But honestly I'm not sure if I'd recognize her and don't have the receipt anymore which probably had her name on it. It's also a little out of the way and I'm just socially awkward enough that this would be a very uncomfortable thing for me to do. It's also a good chance it's her fault she forgot to add the tip on to the CC transaction after the fact. Things were getting busy as we left.

Maybe cause I'm Australian and don't get the whole tipping thing over there but this seems something I wouldn't worry about truthfully.  Shit happens.  I certainly wouldn't go out of my way to go in there especially to give her money.  That's creepy as fuck.

[Harmony]

I am also a generous tipper for restaurant service because I have been a waitress myself.  20% for good service is my comfort zone.  But I have gone above that for excellent service.  I also like slipping some cash to staff that are not the server or bartender.  After my sister's memorial service, I made sure to pass out some 20s to the folks who had set up and then were breaking down the tables, etc.

The one thing I refuse to do, however, is tip 15-25% on an expensive bottle of wine in a restaurant.  Wine that is likely already marked up 50% or more.  The server pops a cork the same way on a $20 bottle as they do on a $200 bottle.  Unless there is a wax top, in which case, I'll add a bit more.  So for fancy dinners out - rare for us - we take off the cost of the wine, calculate the tip on the remainder of the bill, then add in an extra $10 (or whatever their corkage fee is) to pop the cork.

[wolfking]

You tip some joker to open your bottle of wine?! 

[pg1067]

I'm pretty confident I've only been out to dinner once (in a non-work or large group setting) in which we ordered an entire bottle of wine.  I don't know how expensive the bottle was, but I recall the check being over $300 for four of us, and I'm pretty sure we did the usual tip on the pre-tax amount.

[El Barto]

I've kind of gotten to the point where I just don't think much about the tip. I kind of like it that way. If I'm already paying $20 for food and a drink, and I'm already resigned to paying $4 on that tab, an extra buck or three doesn't make much differenceto me. I'll typically shoot for 20% and round up. If I go over that's not a problem, as I'd rather over-tip than under-tip. Just something I've fallen into as I've gotten older and reevaluated how I spend money when eating out. To me principles come into play, and I'm not going to get ripped off, but I'm not going to cheap out on general principle, either.

Covid also changed my calculus a bit. Back when things were still spotty and restaurants were hurting I gave a guy a $20 for my $14 (after tax) breakfast. Didn't make me feel like I paid too much. Made him happy. Made me happy. Total cost was about $2. That's a win AFAIC.

[TAC]

I can't see getting all worked up over this. It all evens out.

What evens out?

Well, how about all the times I asked for BBQ sauce to be brought with my son's burger or mustard for mine, and it was never brought out, yet I still left a tip.

[Podaar]

I've kind of gotten to the point where I just don't think much about the tip. I kind of like it that way. If I'm already paying $20 for food and a drink, and I'm already resigned to paying $4 on that tab, an extra buck or three doesn't make much difference to me. I'll typically shoot for 20% and round up. If I go over that's not a problem, as I'd rather over-tip than under-tip. Just something I've fallen into as I've gotten older and reevaluated how I spend money when eating out. To me principles come into play, and I'm not going to get ripped off, but I'm not going to cheap out on general principle, either.

Covid also changed my calculus a bit. Back when things were still spotty and restaurants were hurting I gave a guy a $20 for my $14 (after tax) breakfast. Didn't make me feel like I paid too much. Made him happy. Made me happy. Total cost was about $2. That's a win AFAIC.

This is a good, easy system if you ask me. Plus, it would take some pretty spectacular service to make me feel like I'd need to give more.

[Adami]

I can't see getting all worked up over this. It all evens out.

What evens out?

Well, how about all the times I asked for BBQ sauce to be brought with my son's burger or mustard for mine, and it was never brought out, yet I still left a tip.

Huh? How does that even out for the server not getting the tip? Unless they were the person who messed up and you didn’t really want to tip them anyway. But if one server messes up I don’t get to say that another server not getting a tip evens anything out.

[TAC]

I can't see getting all worked up over this. It all evens out.

What evens out?

Well, how about all the times I asked for BBQ sauce to be brought with my son's burger or mustard for mine, and it was never brought out, yet I still left a tip.

Huh? How does that even out for the server not getting the tip? Unless they were the person who messed up and you didn’t really want to tip them anyway. But if one server messes up I don’t get to say that another server not getting a tip evens anything out.

It does for me. And that server will be overtipped at some point as well.

[jingle.boy]

I can't see getting all worked up over this. It all evens out.

What evens out?

Well, how about all the times I asked for BBQ sauce to be brought with my son's burger or mustard for mine, and it was never brought out, yet I still left a tip.

Huh? How does that even out for the server not getting the tip? Unless they were the person who messed up and you didn’t really want to tip them anyway. But if one server messes up I don’t get to say that another server not getting a tip evens anything out.

It does for me. And that server will be overtipped at some point as well.

Tim:  Bringing the exasperation to everyone in the "Things I find a tad exasperating" thread.

[TAC]

I just don't feel the need to come in here and say what a great tipper I am. I was just saying that in the example given, I would simply file under shit happens and I'd move the fuck along.

[wolfking]

I just don't feel the need to come in here and say what a great tipper I am. I was just saying that in the example given, I would simply file under shit happens and I'd move the fuck along.

Agree.  As I said before in my post, not sure why it would be something to get hung up on.

[King Postwhore]

That's punishing one person for another person's failing. You tip less for that person who didn't  bring the condiments asked.

[TAC]

That's punishing one person for another person's failing. You tip less for that person who didn't  bring the condiments asked.

No it isn't. I'm just saying in the grand scheme of things, to me, it all evens out.