Tipping question - What would you do?

**BuckyBadger** · 08-02-2015, 03:08 PM

I'd probably leave like 10 bucks. I usually leave a few bucks per person at a buffet. Not knowing how the servers get paid - like wait staff or like ship employees - makes it a little confusing, but either way $10 to $15 doesn't seem unreasonable.

**rennigade** · 08-02-2015, 03:41 PM

Id be in the $10 range as well.

**greenskeeper** · 08-02-2015, 04:24 PM

$1 per drink delivered

**ESMonitor** · 08-02-2015, 04:32 PM

Originally posted by BuckyBadger View Post

I'd probably leave like 10 bucks. I usually leave a few bucks per person at a buffet. Not knowing how the servers get paid - like wait staff or like ship employees - makes it a little confusing, but either way $10 to $15 doesn't seem unreasonable.

I agree with BuckyBadger. The first amount that came in my mind was $10 (assuming excellent service).

**safari** · 08-02-2015, 06:14 PM

I'd leave $5 for the table, which is what we do in Las Vegas when we eat at a buffet. I noticed that the majority of people don't leave anything at all.

**FLA** · 08-03-2015, 02:34 AM

I was thinking ten but wondering if fair d/t paying close to $160 but it's a buffet. Glad to hear $10 is reasonable

hope it was fun!

**phantom** · 08-03-2015, 04:58 AM

If the tickets weren't free, I think I'd go with about $10, plus extra for any paid for drinks. The tickets being free would probably make me more generous and cause me to leave $20.

**bjl584** · 08-03-2015, 05:24 AM

Originally posted by disneysteve View Post

Scenario: Four of you are taking a lunch cruise on a local sightseeing ship. Tickets are $42/person. That includes the cruise, a buffet lunch, music and dancing. You have a server for your table who brings drinks (coffee, tea, iced tea are included, bar drinks are extra) and buses the table.

How much do you tip (assuming excellent service)? Do you tip based on the ticket price? Or something less than that since not all of the money is for the meal - and it's a buffet? How about if you ordered any drinks from the bar?

To further complicate matters, assume you were given the tickets for free so the whole day isn't costing you anything but you still want to take care of the server and don't mind being generous.

Tell me how much you would tip in that situation?

Rule of thumb that I've seen is to take the first number of your bill and double it.

So, if your bill is $20, then you should leave around a $4 tip.

Even though I got the tickets for free I'd still tip using the formula above.

**riverwed070707** · 08-03-2015, 05:41 AM

Any time I dine at a restaurant (not including a fast food style...) that isn't full service (order at counter, buffet, etc) I tip 10% instead of my normal 20%. I serve at a popular pizza place in town where people ordered at a counter but we took drink orders and brought out their food. 10% was typical so that's what I've always done. I'd probably do the same in this situation. Chances are the servers do some sort of tip share so 10% would leave a nice tip for them while allowing them to tip out their bartender and any other support staff.

**BuckyBadger** · 08-03-2015, 06:19 AM

The fact that it's a part of a whole package complicates it, though. You're not eating a $42 pp buffet. That $42 includes the cruise and everything else. If I were eating at a fancy $42 pp buffet (like a big fancy Mothers day buffet or something) I would top more, but this is probably a $15-$20 pp buffet as far as food quality goes.

I'm sure enough people don't tip them anything at all that whatever you give would be appreciated.

**ua_guy** · 08-03-2015, 06:52 AM

$10 on the meal doesn't sound unreasonable, plus $1-$2 for each drink depending on what you order, and how it comes.

**tiffany85** · 08-03-2015, 07:06 AM

I loathe tipping. I wouldn't worry about it too much since everyone else they serve is probably just as confused.

**disneysteve** · 08-03-2015, 07:24 AM

Originally posted by riverwed070707 View Post

Chances are the servers do some sort of tip share so 10% would leave a nice tip for them while allowing them to tip out their bartender and any other support staff.

Originally posted by BuckyBadger View Post

I'm sure enough people don't tip them anything at all that whatever you give would be appreciated.

My thought was that the server, the DJ, the photographer who goes around, the bartender, the buffet staff probably all share tips.

Since the day really didn't cost us anything except $15 to park, I was a lot more generous. If you all think $10 would have been sufficient, then I'm sure our server was quite happy with what I left her.

**avil_saver36** · 08-03-2015, 10:09 AM

My answer is not going to be popular and will possibly offend several people.

I find the whole concept of tipping quite disgusting. In the situation above, I would not tip.

Why? First, you simply do not know the economics involved as a discrete consumer and that gives rise to the big confusion of "how much to tip". Suppose a waiter is serving 10 tables on a 2 hour cruise. Suppose each table has 4 people. So the waiter can serve 40 people for 2 hours without breaking much sweat (really, the waiter is only providing a taxi service for something I can get myself). If each person left $5 in cash on the table, the waiter gets $200 for 2 hour work in cash that he/she probably would not report to the IRS. If a job can pay $100 per hour tax free and requires very little skill if at all, where do I sign?

As a customer, you pay your bill. You are in no position to figure out what's the appropriate "extra amount" you need to give to the underpaid labor. This information will be purposefully obfuscated from you by the greedy business owner, and you will be psychologically compelled/bullied into leaving more.

I have read/heard many stories about several people who make an absolute "killing" being waiters/bartenders. Some good looking females utilize their looks and something "extra" to solicit more tips - you can quickly being to see problem #2 that tipping encourages discrimination based upon a person's prejudice.

A business has to figure out a business model by taking into account the cost of labor and then present to you one bill for the services offered - period. You can compare apples to apples, and choose whether you need/can afford the service in the first place.

What's the alternative? In the US's rotten culture, there isn't one. For us, we have simply stopped going out to eat - it has served our bank balance and health well in the hindsight. Eating out was much like addiction - once we got off it, and started loving home made food, we haven't looked back. We still go to casual places like Panera and Chipotle, where we don't have to tip at all.

I am also not alone in how I think. Several people have been pushing back. Ultimately, is it good for the long term health of the service industry to lose customers with high discretionary incomes like me? I will pay the sticker price for the food - pay the workers a damn living wage and don't make me figure out how much to tip them.

Tipping question - What would you do?