Left a small tip today

mammag wrote: We went out to eat today and I left a very small tip ($2 for a $55 meal). I normally tip 20% but the service was really bad. I'm still a bit upset about it. The waitress wasn't rude but certainly not going out of her way to make us feel welcome. She brought us food and no silverware. When we asked another waitress (ours kept disappearing for long lengths of time) she said there weren't any clean that they were in the dishpan and should be done soon. Then we had to wait 10 minutes from the time she brought us a box until she brought the check. I was going to order desert but I figured I'd be adding on another half hour to the time and the baby was getting fussy.

How do you normally handle this situation? Should I have left 10%? Nothing? Asked for a manager?

It ruined the nice family meal I was anticipating. We don't eat out so often so when I do, I want to be treated properly.

MomToMany replied: I hate when that happens! If it was really bad, I would've asked for the manager. Otherwise we usually leave a pretty crummy tip as well. If they don't like it, then tough! Maybe then they will realize how crappy the service was and change it.

amynicole21 replied: Leaving a small tip makes more of a statement than leaving nothing. I probably would have left $5 or so, but would have said something to the manager about the treatment. Sorry you had such crappy service!

aspenblue1 replied: I would have asked for a manager and probably left nothing.

Mommy2BAK replied: uhhh.... that makes me so mad!!!

i probaly would have done the same thing as you.

A&A'smommy replied: I think I liked what you did... I would have been rude to her... I guess she didn't really care that she wasn't making that much money tonight, huh!

Maddie&EthansMom replied: She must be RICH!

Seriously this has happened to me. I didn't leave a tip and will not if I get bad service or everything I order they 'happen to be out of.' (especially if it is a big chain....like Olive Garden) I usually e-mail the corporate office and they send a gift card for a free meal.

kit_kats_mom replied:
As a former waitress, leaving nothing just leads the server to think that you forgot. Leaving whatever loose change you have in your pocket makes more of a statement and a short note or a few words to management say a lot more.

Maddie&EthansMom replied:
True! I will keep this in mind. Although hopefully I won't have to do it.

Mommy2BAK replied:
wow, really???? I am going to do that next time. How big of a gift card do you get?

Maddie&EthansMom replied:
I wrote Olive Garden awhile back b/c we were taking some friends to dinner and EVERYTHING we ordered they were out of. It was embarrassing. They sent me a $30 gift card.

superlydia replied: I never thought of emailing corporate. Thats a good idea. Usually where we get bad service at the big chains anyway.

I would have done the same with the tip too, except maybe less

3_call_me_mama replied: Whenever this happens to me, and it used to happen a lot (but i guess i've lowered my standards or am too busy with the kids to notice ) I would write a note on the check (cause we usually pay with debit/credit card) that says "tip reflects service" that way i know they understand the reasoning behind the lack of the tip and not just assume that i forgot or didn't have the $$. Also i know that more than one person sees this note (manager at end of night adn who ever does the books and processes resiepts... so hopefully they will shape up or be shipped out!

jolene555 replied: I used to waitress and bartend, and around here the tip has meaning behind it. Obviously, if someone leaves a decent sized tip it's a good thing, but if they also leave a single penny it is understood to be a complement, and 2 pennies with the tip was a kudos to the cook. Now, if there was only a penny and no tip it meant the service was shatty and 2 pennies alone meant that everything sucked the big one.

jjmea replied: I used to waitress also and was told that one penny face down, meant that service was really crappy. I never got one like that, but know a couple waitresses who did and they were not happy.

CCTandME replied: I would ask to speak to the manager AND write a letter. You could have gotten your meal for free AND a gift cert.

redchief replied: While DW is the queen of insults and has in the past talked to corporate offices about problems at a chain, I'm a little more direct. For instance we were in a major "neighborhood taverm" chain and my DW got a meal with the tags from the plastic bags the veggies came in cooked into her meal. We notified the waitress of the problem and while DW has a thing about not sending food back or ordering another meal, we also spoke to the manager. The meal was deducted from our bill with apologies from the staff.

The other night we ate at a well known restaurant in Cape May, NJ (a town fairly well known for their restaurants). We were going to eat at another establishment but the wait for a table was too long, so we decided to try out another. My meal was overcooked. Our waitress asked if I would like it replaced but I declined. If the cook (I won't give him the respect of the title of chef) doesn't know medium rare from very well done the first time, I don't think he's suddenly going to get a clue. It was late by the time we sat to eat and the staff was cleaning up, with my 7 month old nephew asleep at the foot of the table. I would have had a fit, but my brother sat and steamed. As final insult, the waitress brought our check without offering us dessert or after dinner coffee. The bill included full price for my improperly cooked meal. My brother left a small tip... I would have left little or none, explaining why. Shame is we'd never eaten at that particular restaurant before, and they blew a chance at a regular custome. We'll never eat there again.

Finally, this morning we went out for breakfast. Service was slow (waited over 20 minutes for our waitress to arrive; a different one felt badly for us and brought our coffee even though we weren't her customers). DW made it clear that the tip would reflect the poor service. While service improved a little, no attempt was made to refill our coffee, or make sure everything was ok after we were served breakfast. I know the owner of this restaurant personally and will be speaking with him later. We tipped at 10%, as promised.

What I want to know is this; don't these people want to make money? We don't ask much for what we're paying! We ask for courteous and prompt service, and I ask for value for my money. If I don't get these things, I will not return. There are too many other places we can go. That's my

Boys r us replied: Well, it just depends on the situation and what's happened to make my visit unpleasant. A lot of people will take things out on the waitstaff that the waitstaff have absolutely no control over. For instance, how long the food takes to arrive or whether or not the restaurant is out of someothing or if the food is overcooked or undercooked...the server really has no control over any of these things and therefore, if she provided good service throughout the time you were there, then she should still be tipped adequately, then I would speak with management about the other issues.

As for the waitress not being on the ball or being neglectful, I do lessen the tip. But then I will tell someone why, b/c the whole point of tipping less is so that the server will KNOW she did a crappy job instead of just presuming I'm a cheapskate.
My husband is quite the food analyst and loves eating at nice restaurants..and I'm the one who is anal about the service I get..so generally speaking we will choose a more upscale restaurant, which works out good for both of us..he gets his food cooked by someone who deserves the title CHEF and I get waited on hand and foot like I'm the only customer in the building.
Of course now that DH lost his job, we won't have to worry about good service, haa..b/c if we out it'll have to be at Wendy's!

jolene555 replied: I'm going to add that generally I will tip well no matter the service. As someone who grew up in the restaurant business (my dad owns a small local lounge/restaurant) I know exactly how much can, and will, go wrong. Ovens and grills break, help dosen't show up, shipments come in wrong, and sometimes a wait is because EVERYONE wants to eat at 6 o'clock.

As a waitress I can tell which of my customers had worked as a waitstaff person before, because those folks generally don't get as uptight or upset when something happens.

I've also been someone who was tipped poorly for stupid reasons beyond my control - like a steak not cooked to their satisfaction or (my favorite) that I won't give them a senior discount even though they're "only 2 years shy of the discount age". Please be reasonable. These people do depend on tips for (sometimes) most of their income.

jcc64 replied: I'm generally willing to tip well, but I do get irritated if it's clear there's no effort being made on the part of the server, and would drop the tip down accordingly, but never lower than 10%.

mammag replied: I would never not leave a tip because of the food as long as the service was good. I'm very forgiving. I understand that they depend on the tips but if it were me and I were depending on the tip I would be as pleasant as can be and make every effort to serve my customer properly. I am understanding on waiting for food but only expect that it be explained to me. The food wasn't the problem, the food was great. I did write a note on the receipt explaining the $2 tip.

I think I could forgive most everything as long as the person smiled and seemed to be genuinely trying to provide at least average service.