Tipping System

[Liebling:-)))]

Thank you for response my post. I appreciate it It's interesting to learn about your culture.
wow you have been went to Germany... Which part you visited to?

Liebling, I've been to Germany before and loved it there! We ate out quite a bit but didn't tip the waitresses.


1) Customers do not have to tip the waittresses, but it is definitely frowned upon if you don't.

.. Normally the owner of the resturant should correct their employee's pay slip instead of rely on customers for tips. IMO

I take it only voluntarily to tip waitresses. It's sad that waitresses expect tips from the customers which they don't have to... I would front my boss to improve my salary if I were Waitress.

Yes, I can understand it's America custom.

2) In America, poor people rarely dine out. If they do, it's typically fast-food such as McDonald's or Wendy's.

Well, we have few fast foods here in Germany. We are not rich but we still can visit to Greek, German, Indian and Italian resturants if we like to.

What's kind of resturants you have in America where the poor people can't afford?

3) Tourists from other countries usually are aware of the American custom of tipping before they come here.

Yes, I guess so. I didn't know about American custom until I learn from here and there.
I beleive I will get the tip from Travel Agency about America custom after book for go to America. I remember that I got the tips from them before we leave for Sinpagore and Australia. .

4) Tourists can decide not to tip. We can't make you, but it is considered rude.

You are right, it is a human being's decision to tip someone or not, but in our society, 99.9% of people tip.

Yes, I can understand that but I'm total surprise about American custom. I has to learn to accept their culture...

Hope that helps!

Yes, but one thing you did not answer my question about the example over the owner who profit a lot of money a day in my previous post.

I will remember your tip... I will tip any resturants when I'm in America. I need Americans to teach me how to tip any resturants when I'm with them...

I hope my questions is not too much for you... ?

 

[Liebling:-)))]

If they are poor, why are they eating in a restaurant?

Well, I'm not rich but we still can go Greek, German, Italian, etc. resturants. We don't have much fast foods here in Germany.

We are normal people like you who can go to resturant... I mean is we are poor, not rich... right?

 

[Liebling:-)))]

Well I know alot of deafies who sit in Denny's restaurant half the night drinking coffee. They feel that Denny's is a gathering place for THEM and "too bad if they do not agree". > Perhaps the restaurant would help by asking them to leave after a decent amount of time. < If they are just drinking coffee, they do not feel the need to tip. 'Just an observation here from someone who has "been there".

Half night for just drinking coffee? Oh dear! I would be feel uncomfortable to see the frown face from waitresses... No way!

I understand but it's very simple way for the waitresses go to them and ask them anything what they want to order in manner way? It got the customers feel that they have to leave if they don't order anything.

European countries have some great ideas. I have heard that if you do not care for the outside of your home (the yard, etc), your taxes will be RAISED. And doctors do not earn huge salaries in Europe, they are supposed to be doctors to help the people , NOT to get rich. This is just what I heard, I would like to hear a discussion on it.

Yeah, taxes... it's not relate to this thread. I'm going to create a new thread over taxes today or tomorrow... You will get my answer...

 

[Cookie Monster]

People-watching is a sport for me in outside cafes and I do that with my best friend and I can just see him laughing so hard at this post. My SO and I do like going to outside cafes and people-watch, we sit for hours and drink coffee. Just be sure to leave a hearty tip and the wait staff will appreciate that. In Europe, you can people-watch, sit in outside cafe and drink only coffees for hours and not even have to worry about the wait staff. It's quite the norm in Europe and Canada/USA is starting to develop this routine.

 

[Liebling:-)))]

People-watching is a sport for me in outside cafes and I do that with my best friend and I can just see him laughing so hard at this post. My SO and I do like going to outside cafes and people-watch, we sit for hours and drink coffee. Just be sure to leave a hearty tip and the wait staff will appreciate that. In Europe, you can people-watch, sit in outside cafe and drink only coffees for hours and not even have to worry about the wait staff. It's quite the norm in Europe and Canada/USA is starting to develop this routine.

Sure, I like to watch outside of Italian Cafe to have drink coffee or portion of ice cream as long as I like but not stay half night for only one cup of coffee...

Waitress come to check either we finish with our coffee or ice cream or not. She ask us what she can serve us drink or else if they see we finish with our coffee/ice cream. I would ask them to serve me a mineral water if I still want to stay to have good view of Cafe bit longer.

I remember when my girlfriend and I went Italian Cafe last April after finish our Shopping spree. We found right place to stay outside of Cafe and chat and eat our ice creams. The waiter came to us and ask us what we want anything... My friend and I decided to stay longer because our chat is still unfinish so we order coffees. Waitress give us sataisfy look when we order more coffees or mineral waters...

Waitress would ask you if it´s okay with you that she bring the bill for you or she will give you odd looking if you don´t want to have bill yet but stay longer with nothing to order but chat...

I can image it´s too embarrassment to stay chat for long hours to half night for just one coffee.

We often ask waitress to keep the change after paid the bill. Waitress are happy and sataisfy.

Yes, I realized that every cultures are different.

 

[Pvt. Parts]

If they are poor, why are they eating in a restaurant?

Because many welfare agencies enable them to without holding them accountable!

1) Thank you for response my post. I appreciate it It's interesting to learn about your culture. wow you have been went to Germany... Which part you visited to?

2) .. Normally the owner of the resturant should correct their employee's pay slip instead of rely on customers for tips. IMO I take it only voluntarily to tip waitresses. It's sad that waitresses expect tips from the customers which they don't have to... I would front my boss to improve my salary if I were Waitress.

3) Well, we have few fast foods here in Germany. We are not rich but we still can visit to Greek, German, Indian and Italian resturants if we like to. What's kind of resturants you have in America where the poor people can't afford?

4) Yes, but one thing you did not answer my question about the example over the owner who profit a lot of money a day in my previous post.

I had a hard time with the formatting of your last post so I formatted it myself to make it easier to read.

1) Heidelberg, Bonn, Berchtesgaden, Dachau, Chiemsee, and into Austria to visit Salzburg and Vienna. We took a side trip to Paris after that.

2) Even though the actual wages are low, most servers make well above minimum wage when all is said and done. It is VERY difficult to explain, but when all is said and done, it is more profitable for both the owner of the restaurant and for individual servers this way.

3) We have a large variety of restaurants in the U.S. A fast food restaurant usually runs $5-6 per person, but these places don't have waiters/waittresses. On the opposite end of the scale, a "5-star" restaurant can easily cost over $100 per person.

Most restuarants in the U.S. where you sit down and get waited on will run you $12-$20 per person for a 3-course meal before the tips. Most poor people do not go to these as it is out of their price range.

When you come to the U.S. you will be stunned at how many options you will have to dine out -- your head will spin trying to decide where to eat.

4) I skipped over that because I didn't understand. Do you mind re-phrasing it?

 

[Cheri]

I notice that some of members here or other forums are angry with deaf tippers for give waitress/waiter little tip. I was like wow... because tipping system is not known in Germany.

Deaf people are bad tippers? That sounds new to me, I'm a very good tipper, If the service is good and the waitress or waiter takes good care of me, comes to my table refill my glass, asking if I need anything else, I give them a huge tip, If the service is lousy, They will not get as much. I think it's important that waitresses and waiters do a good job taking care of customers. Isn't that's their job?

I am sure surprised that Germany doesn't tip waitress or waiter? Interesting. We do tip them because, they serve us. I think they deserved a bonus for taking good care of us.

 

[Liebling:-)))]

I had a hard time with the formatting of your last post so I formatted it myself to make it easier to read.

1. You do not need because I understood your previous posts prefectly but I am still not convince why the waitresses get very low wages and expect the tip from the customers. Yes, I understand that we have different custom in our country.

1) Heidelberg, Bonn, Berchtesgaden, Dachau, Chiemsee, and into Austria to visit Salzburg and Vienna. We took a side trip to Paris after that.

2. wow, you are Europe traveller. Did you visit camp in Dachau?

2) Even though the actual wages are low, most servers make well above minimum wage when all is said and done. It is VERY difficult to explain, but when all is said and done, it is more profitable for both the owner of the restaurant and for individual servers this way.

3. Why should it's difficult to explain? It's very simple to convince that the owner of resturant receive fat profit thru 50 customers a day.

3) We have a large variety of restaurants in the U.S. A fast food restaurant usually runs $5-6 per person, but these places don't have waiters/waittresses. On the opposite end of the scale, a "5-star" restaurant can easily cost over $100 per person.

4. Yeah, it's same with here in Germany.

You mentioned $100 per person in "5-star" Hotel...
Can I give you the example?
The owner of resturant profit $5,000.00 a day ($100 x 50 customers a day) and the owner has to pay the 1 waitress ($2.90 a hour x 12 hours = $34.80), I know it's not just one waitress...
I would say 5 waitresses... $34.80 x 5 = $174.00.
Around $1,500.00 a day for utilities used, tax, manager, personal etc.
The owner got overleft $ 3,226.00 a day.

I know what I am saying because my brother is successful businessman. He is disagree with Waitress's US wages and rely the customers for tips because their wages are low. We accept that Europe custom is different as US custom. Europeans waitresses received good paid. I'm still not convince why the US waitresses get low wages.

Most restuarants in the U.S. where you sit down and get waited on will run you $12-$20 per person for a 3-course meal before the tips. Most poor people do not go to these as it is out of their price range.

5. The prices of most resturants in Germany is almost same as US resturants between $10 and $25 per person including VAT. Of we are not rich and still can go resturant. Tips are not known to Europe. We often tell the waitresses to keep the change after pay the bill. No offence/frown impression from waitresses. They got good paid why should they expect tips from us?

I would say 100 customers goes to resturant a day... How much the owner get the profit a day? Awful alot of money... why paid waitresses cheaply and rely on customers for the tips... They will be upset if the customers didn't pay the tip enough since you mention in your previous post that tips in your country are voluntarily. It would be rude if there're no tip....

When you come to the U.S. you will be stunned at how many options you will have to dine out -- your head will spin trying to decide where to eat.

Yes, I can image. I would really love to........... I has to accept their custom for tip the waitresses...

4) I skipped over that because I didn't understand. Do you mind re-phrasing it?

Liebling's post:
I would say the example:
The owner collect around $3,000 profit a day. It make the owner richer and hire waitress cheaply. Right? Waitresses work hard all the day to serve the customers and expect the tips from them. They will be offend if they did not receive tips enough from the customers which it´s no right. The owner are suppose to pay waitress due correct tarif because it´s them who hire waitresses, not customers.

Is it hard to understand?

Well, check from pos. 3 what I just explain you the example about the owner's profit a day.

Thank you for response my posts. I enjoy myself to learn something about US custom from you here and also debate with you, too.

 

[jazzy]

I have to create a new thread over tipping system separate from other thread
http://www.alldeaf.com/showthread.php?t=9599&page=2&pp=20 because this issue over tipping is not relate to thread "I am angry with parent". I took some of posts as quote to here. I hope you all don't mind.

Come to discuss with us why you think tipping is okay in your country...

I notice that some of members here or other forums are angry with deaf tippers for give waitress/waiter little tip. I was like wow... because tipping system is not known in Germany.

yeah true, some of them are lousy tippers. My husband is angry over this deaf guy for taking my husband's tip which it means for waitress. He saw him took his five dollars from the table and put in his pocket then took out and put his own one dollar bill on the table. My husband told him, "give my five dollar back" and he did then my husband put five dollars back on table and told him to leave it alone and not his to take it. Why would anyone try to steal someone else tipper's money and give waitress a buck? I do not care if this man is living on SSDI, he owns a house and live high life. No excuse for him and he is not a child.


Anyway many time I had to cover others if they tip so low.

 

[Liebling:-)))]

Deaf people are bad tippers? That sounds new to me

Really,
Most of members from here and other forums complaint about deafies's tips. Check this example:
http://www.alldeaf.com/showthread.php?t=9599&page=2&pp=20
I would like to paste the link from other forums to here but AllDeaf are not allow. If you really want to know then I will give you link that you will read everything there which it's sooo long pages debate over that tipping.

That's why I created a new thread here to take some of posts as quote to add here.
http://www.alldeaf.com/showpost.php?p=347236&postcount=3

I'm a very good tipper, If the service is good and the waitress or waiter takes good care of me, comes to my table refill my glass, asking if I need anything else, I give them a huge tip, If the service is lousy, They will not get as much. I think it's important that waitresses and waiters do a good job taking care of customers.

Sure, it's same with in Germany, the waitresses are friendly and ask me either the taste of meals is good or not.
The customers has the right to complaint to the owner of the resturant if the waitresses are unfriendly and rude to us. The owner will do something to give us gratis like glass of wine, ice cream, discount etc. as apology in manner way.
And check my response post on Monster Cookie's post.

Isn't that's their job?

Yes, it's waitress job to be friendly toward customers. My opinion is: the owner of the resturant are supposing to pay correct wage instead of very low wage because it's them who hire waitress, not the customers. Check my example post to response Pvt. Parts's post.

I am sure surprised that Germany doesn't tip waitress or waiter? Interesting. We do tip them because, they serve us. I think they deserved a bonus for taking good care of us.

Yeah, this is Europe custom which different as US custom. Why should the waitresses expect the tips from you when they know their paid are good?

It's waitresses job task to be friendly to customers. They will get the fire if they treat the customers badly. The owners demand the waitresses to treat the customers as King & Queen when they are in their resturant because the owner paid the waitresses good to treat us well.

You will be surprised when you visit Europe and will say that Europe is different as US... Yes, I will also surprised when I visit your country. I'm traveller and collect different custom from countries which it's interesting experience for me...

 

[DeafSCUBA98]

diehardbiker- are you serious its $2.90? i find this funny...

i used to work in enviroment where i collect tips... i earn the federal min wage.. and its $5.15 that time(1998). and recieve tips... its same as the writress.. myself was a delivery guy earning federal minumum wage. however combined with tips its an average of $15 an hour. anyhow i believe that's the same with writress.. and i find it odd that they earn $2.90.. because federal law requires u enter taxes which the minumum wage above the federal income..

and a friend of mine who works as a writress at perkins he earns little above the federal minumum wage.. he earns $6.50 a hour.. plus tips.. giving him combined of $12 a hour. (he works part time druing lunch hours)

 

[Liebling:-)))]

diehardbiker- are you serious its $2.90? i find this funny...

i used to work in enviroment where i collect tips... i earn the federal min wage.. and its $5.15 that time(1998). and recieve tips... its same as the writress.. myself was a delivery guy earning federal minumum wage. however combined with tips its an average of $15 an hour. anyhow i believe that's the same with writress.. and i find it odd that they earn $2.90.. because federal law requires u enter taxes which the minumum wage above the federal income..

and a friend of mine who works as a writress at perkins he earns little above the federal minumum wage.. he earns $6.50 a hour.. plus tips.. giving him combined of $12 a hour. (he works part time druing lunch hours)

Better ask Pvt. Parts because he/she knows alot since he/she was former manager of the resturant.

Yeah I am very amazing about waitress's very low wage. I would say :madfawk: to $2.90 a hour because waitress's job are work hard... which it's not cheap.

I think $2.90 could be true because Pvt. Parts must have read diehardbiker's previous post before Pvt. Parts responsed my post but the other forums said the same things what diehardbiker said.

 

[Liebling:-)))]

yeah true, some of them are lousy tippers. My husband is angry over this deaf guy for taking my husband's tip which it means for waitress. He saw him took his five dollars from the table and put in his pocket then took out and put his own one dollar bill on the table. My husband told him, "give my five dollar back" and he did then my husband put five dollars back on table and told him to leave it alone and not his to take it. Why would anyone try to steal someone else tipper's money and give waitress a buck? I do not care if this man is living on SSDI, he owns a house and live high life. No excuse for him and he is not a child.


Anyway many time I had to cover others if they tip so low.

Oh dear, it must be hassle for you and your hubby. I know it's wrong of the man took someone's tip money which it's not belong to him. He must have known that tip to waitress are a voluntarily.

The tipping system to resturants are not known to Europe that's why we have no problem.

 

[Liebling:-)))]

I am sure surprised that Germany doesn't tip waitress or waiter?

I forget to add my earlier post.

No, it's not just Germany but Norway, England, and other Europe countries and also Australia, Sinpagore, too.

See what Liza said in her earlier post about tipping system.

Normally the owner cover the services for waitresses, not customer... It's good for the owner to be richer because the customers paid the tip to waitress for the owner. No offense.

As what you said $6.50 is still too low, DeafSCUBA98

 

[Liebling:-)))]

DeafSCUBA98
I pull one year old thread out and check in other forum few minutes ago. Yes, Most said that waitress's earn between $2.25 and $2.50 a hour.

 

[oakbluffs]

It raises another question: do you know of a deaf person working in a restaurant as a waiter? I've never seen a deaf waitstaffer

 

[Liebling:-)))]

It raises another question: do you know of a deaf person working in a restaurant as a waiter? I've never seen a deaf waitstaffer

Yes, we only know that we have a one deaf waiter in Nürnberg, Germany because my friend is married him. I only saw my friend twice a year at Deaf Club


I didn't know either we have more deafies around Germany or not All what we know is one deaf in Nürnberg.

Yes, Deafies work as waitress/waiter for any deaf clubs

 

[Reba]

If someone can afford to eat at a sit-down restaurant, he/she can afford to pay good tips. If someone can't afford to pay tips, then he/she should not eat at that restaurant. It is not right to deny tips to the servers. They did their work and should be rewarded. Being a cheap customer is no excuse. In America, the tip is part of the normal cost of dining out. If we don't want to pay tips we get "take-out" food.

Also, there is nothing wrong with restaurant owners making a profit. That is the reason they are in business. Owning and managing a restaurant is not a hobby just for fun.

 

[Cookie Monster]

It raises another question: do you know of a deaf person working in a restaurant as a waiter? I've never seen a deaf waitstaffer

Never say never..

There was a deaf wait staff and she had to endure such unbelievable orders from the Deaf customers. It wasn't the food orders, mind you! If the particular Deaf customers arrived at the restaurant, they'd motion to their ears and wave their hands in the air to motion they were Deaf, this meant they wanted the Deaf waitress. Lordy, the manager and supervisor had to deal with those Deaf customers to explain that each waitress was assigned to each table areas when he/she starts a shift.

To see such a scene myself, I wanted to hide myself because if one of the Deaf customers wanted a refill, all they had to do was wave their arms in public. What a way to attract attention! Even a few people from the table tried to pull the sorry old excuse saying "Hey we're the same kind, Deafies, gimme a discount on my meals, eh?"

The next time the very same group came, the Deaf waitress made sure she had the most difficult and "hard to get along with" wait staff serve them!

A wonderful comeuppance!

 

[Cheri]

It raises another question: do you know of a deaf person working in a restaurant as a waiter? I've never seen a deaf waitstaffer

I was a waitress at my dad's resturant years ago, There are some hearings who are bad tippers too not just only deaf people. I guess it depends on the person. And Diehardmaker, I disagree with you, because I used to be a waitress and I was making 4.00 an hour not 2.90 an hour. Where did a waitress made 2.90 an hour at?

the taste of meals is good or not.

But bear in mind, It's not the waitress or waiter's fault that the food are bad, because they didn't make it, the cooks in the kitchen did. But on the other hand, we should be paying tips based on how the quality of the service are from the waitress or waiter.