Tips? Just wondering.

[lisamoe]

Do you tip at Sonic or other drive-ins that are essentially fast food but they bring it to you?

How about at coffee shops like Starbucks where you order and pick up your own drink but they have a tip jar out on the counter?

Do you tip as much at buffets where you have to serve yourself but they bring you drinks, as you do at regular table service restaurants?

Comments

[jorjedatoy.livejournal.com]

I have been known, on occasion, to tip at Sonic in particular. Specifically if I get a waitress regularly or my waitress is particularly nice. I very rarely tip at Starbucks! I don't like the idea of the tip jar where you order. I mean, really... what if your drink sucks ass? The tip jar would be more appropriately placed where you pick up your order.

[mamaduck.livejournal.com]

I tip big at Sonic, don't go to Starbucks, tip less at buffets than at regular restaurants.

[tapestry01.livejournal.com]

I used to tip at Sonic, back in the day when they hung trays on your car window. I usually don't tip at buffets, but I make up for it by not making a mess.

[henridellik.livejournal.com]

At a buffet, I'll tip the barest 10%, unless the waitstaff sucked, then I'll leave a dollar, maybe even nothing. At a Sonic-like establishment, I'll leave my coin-change, if any, rarely more than that, since I believe they get paid the standard minimum-wage as opposed to the measly waitstaff minimum-wage. Were I to go to coffeeshops, I would treat their tip jar as I treat the ones in bars; I don't tip on the first drink unless I know the bartender. I usually catch them every second or third drink with a couple of quarters or a dollar if they're slow that night and could use some padding.

[tura.livejournal.com]

As a rule of thumb, I usually only tip at places where I get to sit down, eat my food of of real dishes, and where a staff person comes to the table (even if that is just to refill my drink).

[thebruce.livejournal.com]

Always. Tip.

If the service is up to snuff, a buck per body at Sonic and for the Baristas, and generally 20% more or less, at buffets like Golden Trough Corral.

The food service workers appreciate it a lot, and good service deserves better pay than what they normally get.

[kitwench.livejournal.com]

I'm a bitch.
I don't tip at coffee shops like Starbucks, I tip exactly a buck at buffets, and that reluctantly.
I tip waitstaff, barstaff, etc folks who get most of the income FROM tips based on the service, and if the service sucks I don't tip, period.

[msbyn.livejournal.com]

I don't tip at Starbucks, it never entered my mind. We always ALWAYS tip at least 20% and usually more everywhere we eat out, even Golden Corral or Souper Salad... especially since we have five kids and they eat A LOT, so the server is always having to pick up trays when they go by. As a family we rarely go anywhere that isn't a buffet, but Dh and I do occasionally and having both been wait staff before, we consider tipping part of the cost of going out. I tip at Sonic as well, just because I honestly really appreciate not having to even get out of my car, and every waitress I've ever had has been incredibly nice.

[bucky-musing.livejournal.com]

I don't bother at Sonic. I've never seen a reason why. (Because they brought food out to my car? C'mon, they aren't even on skates anymore! Besides at my local Sonic, the wait staff is surly enough that I don't go there often.) Nor do I tip at Starbucks. Again, no motivation. No extra service. No extra value being offered. No extra money being handed out by me. Nor do I tip as much at Golden Corral or other buffets as I do at a full service restaurant, but I DO tip. In regular restaurants, my tip is based on the quality of the service, typically between 10-20%. I've tipped more on a small check because service was especially good. And I've stiffed a member of a wait staff more than once, regardless of the size of the check, if the service warranted it. In bars, especially if I'm going to be there for a while, I tip pretty big upfront To Insure Prompt Service. And I keep the money coming through-out the night. Consequently, bartenders or the wait staff tend to move to me quickly.

Had a friend once who would start off a dinner by pulling out a banded stack of 50 one dollar bills from the bank, setting it on the table top and telling the wait staff, "This is your tip. It's up to you to keep it." At first, his audacity was entertaining to me, but after the first time, it was annoying to me. To me, it felt as if he was treating the wait staff like they were starring in his very own reality show.