Calling on my lifelong experience as a waitress, I certainly do not begrudge ANYONE a tip if, and when, it is deserved. I have often tipped for things like oil changes and home repairs when they did an excellent job. Carhops have to work in freezing cold, atomic heat, deal with idiot customers and idiot corporate BS. Whatever their meager wage is, it is not enough IMO. As mentioned in other posts, the best way to insure that the person you want to tip is the actual recipient of said tip is to tip the person DIRECTLY. IN CASH (as wrosie said) and AFTER BEING SERVED. Here’s why from my real-life stories:
One diner owner, when at the restaurant (Croton Diner I am calling you out!), would disappear to the office after the dinner rush and tell all the wait staff that no one received any credit card tips that night. Yet we knew differently, especially since there were many regular customers who never would have stiffed us
.
At another restaurant, all credit card tips were pooled and divided, as far as we knew, evenly among ALL staff, even the ones who got more than $2/hr.
At yet another, we received our CC tips at the end of the night – minus “Service charges.”
These are some of the lighter stories but, yes, there are many ways in which a corporation, manager, coworker or owner can and will steal the gratuity meant for a server.
As mentioned, you never know who will get your money when tipping via credit card, whether the server will get it at all or even a portion of it. If you pay by card for everything, as I do, you might keep a little pile of fives and singles in your glove compartment for just this casual type of occasion. Just something to think about.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/18/2023 07:06PM by sestrahelena.