do waiters chase you if you don't tip in america?

[kherbert05]

Ah. A good idea to always put the tip on the credit card (if used), to avoid theft, then.

I disagree. I've told this story before. My Dad was a member of a club. The manager of the club decided to save money by switching the servers from non-tipped employees to tipped employees. But he didn't tell the general membership. THe new cards had a spot for tips but since most people have never tipped at a CC, people generally didn't see them. On the rare occasion someone did list a tip there - the manager stole it.

That isn't the customer's problem.  That's a situation where the server needs to stand up for themselves and report the theft to the authorities.

The server was a young university student - who went to his/her parents for advice. The father worried about his child being hurt financially asked a business person he respected for advice - which resulted in the members getting the unethical manager fired.

Because of that story I make the personal choice to hand cash tips to waiters. That way I'm not chancing an unethical person taking the tip from the table or stealing from the credit card slip.

[White Lotus]

I spend a fair amount of time in a no-tipping country.  I also spend a fair amount of time in a bargain for everything, tip everybody all the time country.  I live in the US.
I prefer the Land of No Tipping.  It is restful to just know what things cost.  Bargain-Tipping is exhausting even when you know the language and the system.  They'd chase you down there, for sure.  I have never, before this board, heard of US servers chasing people down who weren't ducking a check or had forgotten something, from anything like a credible source.  I have always thought of it as, in the US, anyway, urban legend.

[weeblewobble]

I used to frequent a local Italian place that was right next to my office.  They did a lot of carryout business and kept a pretty ornamental box (with a lid) by the register to collect tips for the hostess/cashiers marked "carryout service tips."  I usually tipped about 20 percent. 

One afternoon, I went in to grab my carryout lunch order.  Unfortunately, the hostess had her back turned and didn't see me drop my tip into the box.  The odd thing was that I was having such a good day, I decided to "pass it on" and tip generously.  As I counted out my cash to pay the bill, I dropped what amounted to a 100 percent tip in the box.  It was the only cash in there, so I guess I was the first tip of the day. When my transaction was complete, I called a cheery thank you to the hostess and walked to the door. I guess she didn't check the box, because she hollered, "You know, it's NICE to tip the people who handle your FOOD.  Especially if you come in here a lot.  Cheapskate."

I literally froze in my tracks.  I turned around, opened the box to show her the bills I'd just dropped in and said, "I'm going to need to speak to your manager."  The woman's face went white, but she went to get the manager, who apologized profusely.  I didn't take the tip back. I refused an offer for a gift card. But I did inform the manager that due to the hostess's attitude and the fact that she would be handling my food, I was not comfortable coming back to the restaurant.  So they'd just lost a regular customer who came in at least once a week.  I've never been back.   

[kareng57]

My new non-smart cell phone has a tip calculator.  The default percentage is 15%.

I don't have a phone with a tip calculator - but, when I'm paying by credit or debit card and it offers me the calculation - it's based on after-tax, not before-tax.  I don't believe in tipping on the tax, but I'll admit that sometimes if my brain cells are getting weary, I'll just let the machine figure it out....

[nuit93]

Ah. A good idea to always put the tip on the credit card (if used), to avoid theft, then.

I disagree. I've told this story before. My Dad was a member of a club. The manager of the club decided to save money by switching the servers from non-tipped employees to tipped employees. But he didn't tell the general membership. THe new cards had a spot for tips but since most people have never tipped at a CC, people generally didn't see them. On the rare occasion someone did list a tip there - the manager stole it.

That isn't the customer's problem.  That's a situation where the server needs to stand up for themselves and report the theft to the authorities.

Sadly, that's a great way to get fired in a lot of companies.

[Giggity]

well, i live in the UK so tipping isn't something you do unless you received phenomenal service, over here it's become a running joke that if you don't tip waiters in america they will do anything short of kidnapping you to get you to pay extra.  what is with the obsession with tipping? surely you just pay the price of the food on the menu, i mean, i know waiters are paid badly but don't they receive minimum wage?  and do waiters really hunt you down if you don't pay up? i'm really curious if it's true as it's not something we do here 

Really?

Uh, no.

[MrsJWine]

This is such a strange question. I've never heard of anyone chasing someone down for a tip. And if I did, I'd conclude that person was the worst server ever. It's kind of an unwritten rule that you don't even mention tipping to customers, unless they're people you've very at ease with. In fact, when customers did give me the tip in person instead of leaving it on the table, it always made me deeply uncomfortable.

[DottyG]

well, i live in the UK so tipping isn't something you do unless you received phenomenal service, over here it's become a running joke that if you don't tip waiters in america they will do anything short of kidnapping you to get you to pay extra.  what is with the obsession with tipping? surely you just pay the price of the food on the menu, i mean, i know waiters are paid badly but don't they receive minimum wage?  and do waiters really hunt you down if you don't pay up? i'm really curious if it's true as it's not something we do here 

Really?

Uh, no.

Uh, yes. Keep reading the thread.

[SheltieMom]

My son and his wife both work at the same restaurant, as server and hostess. They each make $2.13 an hour, and the tips are split between them, the busboys, and the bartenders. Income taxes are automatically taken out of their checks, regardless of whether or not they actually get a tip. So if you don't tip, you are actually costing several people a part of their income, even though they may not be responsible for your service.
My son got a $2 tip on a $150 check a few weeks ago because the kitchen messed up an order, and a different server delivered the food and didn't catch the mistake. And yes, the restaurant requires any server to take food out if they are not busy and the original server is waiting on another table.

[kglory]

When I was young, my mom taught me that the rate to tip was $1 for every $7 (in essence, 15%). She was good at math, so this was easy for her to remember.

The first time I went out with a friend to a sit-down restaurant as a preteen, I incorrectly remembered it as 7 cents per dollar!  OOPS.  So mortified.  To the waitress from the Friendly's at the mall in the 1980s - sorry!  I knew something was wrong when our tip was like 40 cents apiece....

More recently, as a university student, I was out with my roommate and her 3 friends for a moderate level sit down restaurant. I knew her but had never met those 3 guys before.  Well, we had a regular meal with regular service, but at the end, the waitress accidentally gave us the check for the next table only, which had only 2 people!  And we were 5 eating meals!  The 3 guys got so excited and started to wink and whisper about dropping a $20 on the table to cover the incorrect bill and running out the door!  I knew this would come from the waitress's paycheck, so I wasn't going to let that happen.  I tried to see if I  had enough cash on hand to discreetly leave what I thought was the full amount of our bill, but of course I didn't.  So then I did signal the waitress and inform her that the bill was wrong.  Those 3 guys gave me the stinkeye all night.  Losers!  Like that e-hell story, they were all adults going out for dinner, and forget tipping, how could they think of not even paying for their meals?

[Corvid]

I"ve spent a a lot of time in a particular country where tipping is not expected, and while I don't really have any complaints about the service because different places have different ways and you have to roll with that, I will say that the service there was definitely not as attentive as I get here in the U.S. where servers work partially for tips.

[Katana_Geldar]

I may end up in e hell for this, but I have been given the wrong bill in a restaurant and I have paid for it. But that was because the food was terrible and the servers were bothering us every five minutes. DH and I were on our second date and we could barely complete a conversation sentence when someone would come up and ask us if our meal was all right.

[Snooks]

My expectation of service in the US is a lot higher because I know they're working for tips.  I normally tip 15% when we're in the US, unfortunately I have found that the service often takes a nosedive when we don't order alcohol.  On our most recent trip to the US (2011) we gave a higher tip to a waiter who didn't go above and beyond but was attentive in just the right amount (prompt to the table, friendly, unintrusive) and dropped tips to a waitress who ignored us in a nearly empty restaurant and then served the group who was seated after us before us and came to us with no apology for the wait.  I never tip on the tax, I was told that by a Canadian relative.

In the UK standard tip is roughly 10%, we ate out this week and for the first time ever I actually halved the tip because the waitress tried to charge me for a drink I didn't have, our desserts came out at different times and she failed to bring us the water we asked for, I wouldn't have minded but I was so tired I could barely get my words out and she finished the sentence for me when I was asking for the water so it's not like she didn't hear me!  I've been in a group and tried to argue against the auto-gratuity when the waitress served us frozen garlic bread but all my friends said we had to tip.  I just didn't include a tip with my share.

[zinzin]

well, i live in the UK so tipping isn't something you do unless you received phenomenal service, over here it's become a running joke that if you don't tip waiters in america they will do anything short of kidnapping you to get you to pay extra.  what is with the obsession with tipping? surely you just pay the price of the food on the menu, i mean, i know waiters are paid badly but don't they receive minimum wage?  and do waiters really hunt you down if you don't pay up? i'm really curious if it's true as it's not something we do here 

Really?

Uh, no.

Uh, yes. Keep reading the thread.

While there are some anecdotes, her question asked it as if wondering were it a common or standard thing - it is not. I think even though who have directly experienced it would likely agree that being "tailed" by a waiter is uncommon. I know several people that have worked that job and never ever followed someone down for non-tipping.

It can happen, sure, but it's not a common practice would be the most correct answer.

[Sharnita]

I may end up in e hell for this, but I have been given the wrong bill in a restaurant and I have paid for it. But that was because the food was terrible and the servers were bothering us every five minutes. DH and I were on our second date and we could barely complete a conversation sentence when someone would come up and ask us if our meal was all right.

Well, you knowingly skipped out on part of your bill so ehell worthy and also criminal. Valid options would have included complaining to management, reflecting service issues in the tip, posting reviews, never returning. Theft - not so much.