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Tipping on Takeout

Do you tip on carryout


  • Total voters
    61
  • Poll closed .
When you order food to go from a restaurant and don't use table service do you leave a tip anyway? I mean, I don't tip at any fast food places or other places where you order at the counter so it's never occurred to me to tip at a regular restaurant if I order out. I figure that I'm not taking up any of the servers time as it's usually a hostess or the manager who handles things and they are usually getting a full wage instead of server rate.

What's to tip? The chef doesn't get tips - tips are for the waitress, who didn't have to wait on you.

No tip.
 
Pretty much same here.

I tip for table service.
I tip for delivery.

I do not tip for take out.
I rarely tip for buffets (I'm pretty much serving myself)
I absolutely refuse to do tip jars. That's nothing less than outright begging, IMO.

I usually tip a little at a buffet because they usually do clear your plates off the table at least.
 
Depends on the restaurant and what I have ordered.
If I have a simple order I am less likely to offer a tip for a togo.
And if I do decide to tip, it's never as much as for if I have a whole meal there.
 
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One of the reasons I order food to go is to avoid the freakin surcharge TIP.
You could look at it as an actual fee for the service rather than a surcharge on your food.
Essentially, that's what your tip is paying for-the service, not the food.

They provide a service for a fee. We get to unilaterally decide the price of the services we have already obtained.
De facto, servers work for the customer, not the restaurant. They just work AT the restaurant.
 
You could look at it as an actual fee for the service rather than a surcharge on your food.
Essentially, that's what your tip is paying for-the service, not the food.

They provide a service for a fee. We get to unilaterally decide the price of the services we have already obtained.
De facto, servers work for the customer, not the restaurant. They just work AT the restaurant.

In theory yes but the reality is TIPS have become an expected part of wages regardless of service so in reality it is a surcharge.
 
The etiquettes of tipping is a little unclear on takeout....however, keep in mind that if you order takeout from a full-service restaurant, it is usually a server that has to ring up the order, put it together and package it for you....and the sale is included in their overall sales that they have to claim at least 8% tips. So if you don't tip, you are actually taking money from the server's pocket....which is why I generally tip 10% on take out.
 
When you order food to go from a restaurant and don't use table service do you leave a tip anyway? I mean, I don't tip at any fast food places or other places where you order at the counter so it's never occurred to me to tip at a regular restaurant if I order out. I figure that I'm not taking up any of the servers time as it's usually a hostess or the manager who handles things and they are usually getting a full wage instead of server rate.

BTW...it is not usually a hostess or manager that handles things. They usually assign it to a server and only handle the front-end part of it.
 
In theory yes but the reality is TIPS have become an expected part of wages regardless of service so in reality it is a surcharge.
Because there is an expectation to be paid for rendering a service, tips are no longer payment for a service?
Perhaps I mis-understand.
 
When you order food to go from a restaurant and don't use table service do you leave a tip anyway? I mean, I don't tip at any fast food places or other places where you order at the counter so it's never occurred to me to tip at a regular restaurant if I order out. I figure that I'm not taking up any of the servers time as it's usually a hostess or the manager who handles things and they are usually getting a full wage instead of server rate.
I tip the pizza driver - but if I pick up the pizza myself, on, I don't tip.
 
Of course you leave a tip if a server went out of their way to package the food, adding condiments and putting napkins and plasticware in the bag for you. Maybe even making a salad. If you ever watch a server prepare a custom carry out meal, you can see she/he works as hard on that as if delivering the food to the table. Also, you do get the food handed to you with a smile, right?

Leave a tip. Don't stiff the server just because you're taking out.

Now, if you grab a burger at a fast food joint or a pie at a pizza place, no tip is needed. That stuff doesn't require extra effort of special care to package.
 
Because there is an expectation to be paid for rendering a service, tips are no longer payment for a service?
Perhaps I mis-understand.

Supposedly a TIP is based on quality of service but now you are expected to TIP a certain percentage no matter what, some restaurants are just adding the so called TIP to the bill even.
 
When you order food to go from a restaurant and don't use table service do you leave a tip anyway?
I mean, I don't tip at any fast food places or other places where you order at the counter so it's never occurred to me to tip at a regular restaurant if I order out. I figure that I'm not taking up any of the servers time as it's usually a hostess or the manager who handles things and they are usually getting a full wage instead of server rate.




If I order from a regular employee I may give that person a small tip.
 
I usually tip a little at a buffet because they usually do clear your plates off the table at least.
Me, too. They also serve beverages and keep my tea glass full. :)
 
Of course you leave a tip. A server went out of their way to package the food, often adding condiments and putting napkins and plasticware in the bag for you. If you ever watch a server prepare a carry out, you can see she/he works as hard on that as if delivering the food to the table. Also, you do get the food handed to you with a smile, right?

Leave a tip. Don't stiff the server just because you're taking out.

When I used to wait tables, I HATED take out duty when it was my assignment. The orders always came in during the busiest time of the night and it was a pain in the ass putting together the take out order and RARELY....did you ever get a tip...yet I had to claim 8% of the sale as a tip.
I don't blame people though....people who have never worked in the food industry really don't understand what it all entails as is evidenced by a lot of the comments on this thread. Most people assume that the hostess/manager is doing the work......nope.
 
Supposedly a TIP is based on quality of service but now you are expected to TIP a certain percentage no matter what, some restaurants are just adding the so called TIP to the bill even.
I've seen hotel restaurants add tips for room service. I've never seen a regular restaurant do it unless it's a large party, then some of the more expensive ones do.
 
BTW...it is not usually a hostess or manager that handles things. They usually assign it to a server and only handle the front-end part of it.

My experience is that it's usually been the hostess or manager that handles things since they are the one who answered the phone.

If I happen to know that a server is taking care of things then they get a tip but the times I run into that are few and far between (One exception, I order from a particular bar with some regularity and when I walk in they start making my order. Those folks all get tipped well)
 
Pretty much same here.

I tip for table service.
I tip for delivery.

I do not tip for take out.
I rarely tip for buffets (I'm pretty much serving myself)
I absolutely refuse to do tip jars.
That's nothing less than outright begging, IMO.




Generally, agree, but it depends on the place.
 
You don't ever tip wait staff?

Modestly...maybe 10% or so.

I wouldn't get me started on waitresses. If you think I crack on your profession, I go harder on waitresses. They make excellent money for work anyone can do. I worked with a guy who made almost 60 grand a year, and still made less than his wife as a full-time waitress at a reasonably upscale establishment. Not fair, if you ask me...but ah well.
 
When I used to wait tables, I HATED take out duty when it was my assignment. The orders always came in during the busiest time of the night and it was a pain in the ass putting together the take out order and RARELY....did you ever get a tip...yet I had to claim 8% of the sale as a tip.
I don't blame people though....people who have never worked in the food industry really don't understand what it all entails as is evidenced by a lot of the comments on this thread. Most people assume that the hostess/manager is doing the work......nope.
Things generally work different around here, I guess. It's usually the cashier (which is also the asst mngr) where I often get take-out, the servers never do it that I've seen. I'm not saying they don't in other places, though. Customs and SOP differ from city to city.
 
Supposedly a TIP is based on quality of service but now you are expected to TIP a certain percentage no matter what, some restaurants are just adding the so called TIP to the bill even.
I understand what you are saying there. But what I don't get is the part where the tip stops being payment for services rendered and become a surcharge on the food instead.
 
I understand what you are saying there. But what I don't get is the part where the tip stops being payment for services rendered and become a surcharge on the food instead.

When you are expected to pay a certain percentage no matter what the quality of service is it becomes a surcharge. If I get really bad service I leave a penny to show my contempt and one time a waiter followed me outside to yell at me over it. I told him you gave me s**** service, enjoy your penny.
 
My experience is that it's usually been the hostess or manager that handles things since they are the one who answered the phone.

If I happen to know that a server is taking care of things then they get a tip but the times I run into that are few and far between (One exception, I order from a particular bar with some regularity and
when I walk in they start making my order.
Those folks all get tipped well)




That's the kind of service that I'll give a little extra for,my time is worth a lot to me.
 
Modestly...maybe 10% or so.

I wouldn't get me started on waitresses. If you think I crack on your profession, I go harder on waitresses. They make excellent money for work anyone can do. I worked with a guy who made almost 60 grand a year, and still made less than his wife as a full-time waitress at a reasonably upscale establishment. Not fair, if you ask me...but ah well.
I can believe that. I worked at an upscale restaurant as a bus boy for awhile. I walked out with $20 on Friday and Saturday nights, the waiters averaged over $100. That was almost 40 years ago.


I disagree about who can do it, though. Being a good waiter at an upscale place isn't that easy.
 
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