Knowing how to tip your server is essential when dining out. Although it’s not mandatory, there’s something called tipping etiquette. Leaving your server a sub-par tip or none at all will guarantee you a dirty look.
Servers rely on tips to stay competitive with the rest of the working force. They make $9.90 an hour which is lower than the standard minimum wage. Moxie’s server and shooters girl at Belfort Shannon Butterworth told XFM News that if she were to rely on her paycheck alone, she wouldn’t make enough to sustain her lifestyle.
In all of the restaurants that she’s worked, they have to tip out. This means that a percentage of their tips go to the hosts, busboys and other kitchen staff.
“ You also tip out, so say you got bad tips all night, sometimes you can go home with nothing if you got no tips the whole time ” -Shannon Butterworth, Moxie’s server
Sometimes knowing how much to tip is difficult. You calculate it based on the total of your bill and the quality of your service. Servers consider anything below 15% to be a bad tip. Butterworth recalls a time that she was serving a very demanding party who racked up a $500 bill. As a tip, they left her $50, which is only 10%.
A common misconception is that servers expect a tip regardless of their efforts, but that isn’t the case. Service Hospitality Technician at Saffrons Darryl Taylor says if the customer isn’t happy with his service then getting a bad tip is justified.
Tips are more than the money to servers. It’s a way of showing appreciation for their hardwork and dedication to making your dining experience as joyful as possible.
