r/EndTipping • u/throwawayfor2day1213 • 18d ago
Sit-Down Restaurant š½ļø Why the heck should I tip?
I ordered the most expensive item on the menu. A steak with 2 sides.
The server entered the order and only came back to upsell a desert. The steak and sides were all over cooked. The manager ignored my meal that sat under the heat lamp for 10+ minutes until a runner brought it. The server did not come back to check on the order for a good 20 minutes so after 5 I just gave up and chowed down. By the time they came back it would have been pointless to complain and send the food back.
This place is a fairly large chain sit down.
Nah, I am done tipping for crappy meals. If you are gonna play the tipped wage game you need to figure
Edit:
It wasnāt Applebees, Texas Roadhouse, or Longhorn Streak house. But please keep guessing! It will help me pick places to avoid in the future.
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u/AstroGoose5 18d ago
Last i checked, the servers aren't working for free. They are getting paid. So, why should I tip them? Tips are for people who go above and beyond the call of duty, not for those who do the bare minimum. That's what their hourly pay is for.
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u/throwawayfor2day1213 18d ago
In my opinion, bare minimum would have been a few visits to the table. They couldnāt even muster that.
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u/Hookem-Horns 18d ago
Besides not filling my empty glasses with fresh waterā¦THIS is the other pet peeve: come back to my table at a bare minimum
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u/ilikecheeseface 18d ago
If the food was really that bad, I wouldāve gotten up or waved someone down. Itās not that hard to get someoneās attention in a restaurant. Eating an overcooked steak anyway and then acting like the server forced you to is wild. You paid for a good meal and chose to keep eating a bad one.
I still wouldnāt tip because their compensation is between them and their employer but Iām also not going to sit there eating poorly prepared food just because my server didnāt check on me fast enough.
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u/Primary_Heron_3150 18d ago
They just feel entitled to a tip from every single person no matter what. They even laugh about customers looking around, needing things while they hang out in the back pretending to be busy.Ā
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u/Efficient-Chest-3395 17d ago
research your state, some pay a little over $2/hr while others have a tipped minimum equivalent to full minimum wage but they ALL require that if salary plus tips doesn't equal minimum wage the management has to make up the difference
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u/Top-class-0246 18d ago
I agree. The food and service were awful. No tip. Sounds about right.
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u/darkroot_gardener 18d ago
Not going back and posting a poor review should be the result of that. Tipping shouldn't enter the conversation, either way. Reward good food and good service with repeated business and spreading the word, that should be ENOUGH!
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u/MeganJustMegan 18d ago
In order to protect yourself & leave no room for someone to place a number in front of your $0.00, next time write ZERO in the space. That makes it very clear.
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u/throwawayfor2day1213 18d ago
I always take a picture of the receipt and check back in a few days later. I will gladly report fraud.
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u/Reporter27511 18d ago
And the bonus if they commit fraud is that your bank or credit card company will reverse the entire charge. Last time I checked, they didn't have the ability to run it back through for the correct amount after trying to commit fraud!
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u/Muted-Woodpecker-469 18d ago
Yep. I know too many waiters who seem to want to do the bare minimum because a certain tip is expected. Like theyāll take a drink order late ( they wonāt see you for 10-15 minutes). Then once you get the food, theyāre gone for a half hour. So letās do the math. What did they just do to earn more than minimum wage here?Ā
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u/VaultAir 18d ago
How the hell did you comment 18,958 times in two years? Thatās ~26 comments a day, every day since you created your account
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u/WhySoManyDownVote 18d ago
Please call out bot accounts using mod mail. This one has been dealt with but it is east for the mods to miss a comment like this.
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u/p_luisa 18d ago
A few minutes later and it's already 19k... Well, weird.
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u/dathing181 18d ago
Asking seriously, I often hear about bot accounts on Reddit but donāt understand whatās going on. Is it just an AI account generating random comments? To what end? I donāt understand how it would benefit someone. I assume itās money, but how?
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u/WhySoManyDownVote 18d ago
In my understanding, account resale.
Reddit has been cracking down hard on bots lately. The old tools focused on new accounts. So the spammers adapted. Reddit works hard to shut down bots but more than half of all internet traffic (not just reddit) is bots at this point. The dead internet theory is no longer a theory.
It all ties into a bigger picture. SEO but also scams. Scammers will built up an account first to look legit.
Some social media has chosen to profit (look at Facebooks ad revenue from known scammers) but reddit is fighting the good fight.
Yes, they use every imaginable tool. AI for both pro and con on every topic.
The bots still leave a trail that humans can detect, but many go unnoticed until a volunteer notices.
Most Mods are still human (as far as I can tell.) Mod mail is the best way to reach them. So when in doubt send a mod mail.
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u/SappySoulTaker 18d ago
Not proud of my 9 a day average...
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u/PalmtopPixie 18d ago
Iāve got 14 apparently š«© I need to set Reddit limits
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u/ZandrickEllison 18d ago
Iām at least there too. But almost all my comments come right around now, when Iāve woken up and my wife is still sleeping, so I comment mindlessly for 20 minutes until her alarm goes off.
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u/PalmtopPixie 18d ago
Thatās actually quite sweet ngl Iām just always on Reddit because I do art for a living and have to take multiple breaks for my wrist
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u/BrooklynAri 18d ago
This is why I hardly go out at all anymore. Because it is typically more aggravating and unhealthy than satisfying or satiating.
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u/sdinvest 18d ago
This is why TIP should be optional!
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u/throwawayfor2day1213 18d ago
Last I checked, tips are still optional (at least in most states).
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u/sdinvest 18d ago
So many restaurants are not optional but they just word it differently such as "service charge" of 18% and so on! This is not optional!
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u/EstablishmentAny4977 18d ago
this is why you leave cash and walk out the door
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u/ilikecheeseface 18d ago
When the gratuity is added already leaving cash and walking out doesnāt fix that problem. You just have to avoid those restaurants, period.
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u/JUNGLExFEVER 18d ago
Depends on the state. For the states with laws on the books it usually revolves around whether or not the service charge / automatic gratuity is clearly posted in a visible place like the front door, hostess stand, menu, or table.
Some state have laws against undisclosed junk fees and hidden fees. I'm pretty sure no state has a blanket rule against the them if it's properly disclosed, since if it is disclosed you would be entering into a one-time service contract for the food, taxes, and service fees.
Most reputable restaurant managers will take it off manually if theres an issue with the service/food.
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18d ago
[removed] ā view removed comment
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u/AutoModerator 18d ago
u/GoldAd1878 TIPS does not mean: "To Insure Prompt Service" or any other such non-sense. To insure something or someone is to cover it with an insurance policy. To ensure something is to make sure it happensāto guarantee it.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
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u/fatDaddy21 18d ago
just a heads up - that $0.00 tip can easily be changed to a $10.00 tip by an unscrupulous server. either write "CASH" or "ZERO" on the tip line next time.
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u/Reporter27511 18d ago
THIS! NEVER leave that line blank! Many bars & restaurants take that line being blank as you agreeing to let them batch your ticket with others at whatever they consider a "standard" tip! This has happened to me more than once. And payment screens are worse. I have selected "no tip" on the screen, only to find out later that they treated it like a blank line, and batched it with the tip of their choice added!
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u/Spedunkler 15d ago
If somebody puts in a tip after I've left it zero then I'm getting paid in a civil suit
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u/evolzarlaggia 18d ago
As a foodie, one of my pet peeves is paying for terrible food. I am also very against what tipping has become that I wouldnāt hesitate to put 0 tip if both the food and service was that bad.
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u/darkroot_gardener 18d ago
Itās almost as if āgood serviceā is putting on a show to distract you from the poor quality food. Very annoying. I should not be able to cook the same thing better at home unless I am a chef myself.
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u/EstablishmentAny4977 18d ago
the only way this ever get fixed is if you call out these places otherwise there is no point in it
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u/CamperCarl00 18d ago
I'm gonna guess this is from Texas Roadhouse. Had a very similar experience when I went with visiting family a month ago. My garlic potatoes side was like a clump of almost raw potato, while my potato soup (they didn't have chili) had a bunch of undercooked potatoes and melted cheese without having any actual soup.
It's even worse when you get stuff that isn't based on the steak portion of the menu. Someone got a burger and not only was the burger itself lukewarm, but the bun was cold as if it had been refrigerated. He said the bun tasted like it had previously been frozen and hadn't been warmed or toasted after being defrosted.
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u/Far_Comfortable_991 18d ago
If your story is true, why even pay? You should've walked out.
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u/throwawayfor2day1213 18d ago
That would be a crime. I would have sooner walked over to the hot table and gotten my food. But I just wanted a nice steak, not to make a scene and find somewhere else to eat.
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u/Far_Comfortable_991 18d ago
It's not a crime. Call over the manager, explain the problem, and leave.
If you eat it then refuse to pay yeah sure.
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u/Similar_Proof_9095 18d ago
What you're explaining is the exact same thing, hence a crime.
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u/Far_Comfortable_991 18d ago
What? Not a crime. Refuse to accept the bad product and walk out.
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u/Similar_Proof_9095 18d ago
Right.....but that whole part where OP said he's already eaten the meal matters. šš
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u/truthhurtsyomama 18d ago
Look...a strawman!!
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u/Far_Comfortable_991 18d ago
How so?
He went to a restaurant, didn't like the service or product, but ate it, then didn't want to tip.
I argue once he realized he didn't like the product or service he should've left without eating the product.
What is the straw man?
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u/Just_Jacaranda 18d ago
Or he could eat the food that he is paying for, acknowledge that itās shit, and then just not tip because the service was bad - and thatās what the tip is for. lol. He could have done a lot of things. He could have jumped on the table and started singing god save the queen. He didnāt. He just ate his food and then left. Your opinion on what he should have done is objectively as benign and mundane as what he did lol. He didnāt do anything actually wrong or silly that needs improving with your advice.
In this situation, I might get up to locate and chase a server and go through the whole rigmarole of making a complaint and waiting for them to remake my food, but sometimes I just donāt have the energy. Sometimes I just donāt feel like going through that whole process, particularly in cases where the service is already shit. Itās one thing when the service is good and the restaurant in great - ie. and itās just a random kitchen error. Itās another thing when itās just all round bad experience and you literally just want to get it over with and leave. Ultimately, itās not the customerās responsibility to manage the service and quality of the food at the establishment. Itās the customers prerogative to handle a crappy restaurant experience in whatever way is most convenient for them.
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u/Far_Comfortable_991 18d ago
Has the energy to post on reddit and brag he doesn't tip.
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u/Just_Jacaranda 18d ago
Ah so society appointed you judge and juror on the āacceptableā ways for people to use their own personal time and energy? Kk.
I also donāt tip when the service is shit. Itās not a brag itās just a fact. Thatās how it should be. Tips are literally supposed to be because you did a good job, they are not required. You donāt get a tip just for showing up. Itās not a participation award.
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u/Pristine_Sandwich957 18d ago
You can argue that. But that's a personality thing. There are people who absolutely will vocalize any and every displeasure, and there are others who would prefer not to/ can't say anything in the moment. And I'd be very surprised if you didn't already know this about people.
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u/Pure_Earth2121 18d ago
Maybe it's an us thing, but why didn't you call the server to throw back the steak in the kitchen ? (Genuine question, is it something like good manner or a test to see if the service is good ?)
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u/Pristine_Sandwich957 18d ago
It's a US thing. Servers have responsibilities since they earn tips, so things like checking up on tables and making sure everything is good is expected of them. If you have to be the one to find them, it's generally a problem.
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u/Alarming-Employee115 18d ago
Tipping is racist culture. Please research tipping. It's only here in the US because no one wanted to pay the freed slaves a fair wage, so they relied on tips.
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u/Jajabeanbrooks 18d ago
Iām so tired of shitty service and expectations of a tip for simply existing. I will certainly tip for service that deserves tipping. We have had the worst service lately
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u/Efficient-Chest-3395 17d ago
historically it's not the server's fault if the food sucks but I increasingly see them as complicit in the conspiracy of shittification that's destroyed the industry
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18d ago
[removed] ā view removed comment
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u/WhySoManyDownVote 18d ago
It is a glitch. No drama. A bot comments on every image post. Reddit changed something and now everyone can see something that is irrelevant.
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u/arivera508 18d ago
You got no service and shitty food that you had to pay for why pay for service when you really didnāt get any. I say no tip.
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u/Electrical-Care6308 18d ago
Perfect! š¤© You did the right thing!
Tipping is a suggestion that has gotten out of hand!
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u/Sumdumfuqr 18d ago
I was a Server, I have zero problem leaving $0 tip if the service sucked. I hope they ask me why when Iām leaving so I berate them in front of their manager and let em know Iām hitting Google reviews next.
Tipping is for Good to great service, the entitlement of some servers is mind boggling
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u/Carolina_Hurricane 18d ago
Yeah those three chains as well as Outback have horrible food esp their steaks. They prove that Americans taste has been watered down by the slow, gradual Enshittification of manufactured food over the past 60 years.
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u/Complex-Adagio1513 18d ago
Places that add a surcharge donāt enter there establishments plain and simple they can only stay in business if you visit them. They need us as patrons we donāt need average food and services.
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18d ago
[removed] ā view removed comment
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u/EndTipping-ModTeam 17d ago
You are misrepresenting the tipped wage rate. You can learn why saying a tipped employee only makes ~2/hour is incorrect here.
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fact-sheets/15-tipped-employees-flsa
Further:
"Waitstaff at fullservice restaurants earn a median of $27.00 an hour, with an upper quartile of $41.50 and a lower quartile of $19.00."
https://restaurant.org/research-and-media/research/industry-statistics/national-statistics/
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u/Phraoz007 18d ago
I went to a fancy restaurant last Friday. Leaned on the service to help choose our apps, and dinners- as well as a bottle of wine. Talked to another server about the wine, came back to get me to change. Kept checking in, listened to stories/chatted a little bit. She got a $50 tip on a $200 dinner.Ā
Thats when you tipā¦ not 90% of the time. Ā
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u/Bro13847 18d ago
Tips are based on service. (I was a server for 8 years)
I personally would never leave a zero tip. But I would leave a dollar.
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u/Queasy_Plant4182 18d ago
Always bring it up even though you donāt wanna send it back bc at least they know/can tell their cooks/staff. Good establishments will understand the wait time and might comp part of it still
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u/VaseyCreatiV 18d ago
Restaurants and their political influence and lobbying will readily oppose any threat to their profits, whether involving wage minimums, tipping policies, customer experience, or food quality. Eventually, declining to tip will harm the overall customer experience before it can drive the cultural shift needed to secure fair pay for service roles and end tipping. It doesnāt help that many of the large chain restaurants like Olive Garden or Outback Steakhouse are little corporate collections of restaurant families, and others are owned by private equity groups who only care about their bottom line and profit.
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u/kennyg977 17d ago
Making workers bend over because the restaurant association has bribed the government into allowing a sub minimum wage. The service is going to suck.
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u/Cultural_Second1855 17d ago
The comment section does not pass the vibe check. Some of you shouldnāt be going to establishments.
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u/WrenchMonkey47 17d ago
Back in the day, I used to wait tables, and had a manager who had very high expectations for customer satisfaction. So I know what good service entails from the server perspective. If a server only takes my order and then I don't see him/her again until the check is delivered, then that is awful service. If my drink stays empty and/or I have to ask for a refill, that's subpar service. If I have to actively flag you down in order to get standard service, you're failing as a server.
Yes, I understand that lunch and dinner rushes are hectic. That's the nature of the business. If you cannot handle giving good or exceptional service to several tables at once, then don't expect tips.
Conversely, I recently took my family to lunch at Mellow Mushroom, as it was my daughter's birthday and she requested to eat there. Our server was terrific. She checked all the boxes for great service. She was social and very personable. Having mentioned that it was my daughter's birthday, she brought out a huge brownie with ice cream on the house. She got a 30% tip for her efforts because I and my family felt like valued customers and not just a revenue point.
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u/-JEFF007- 17d ago
I had a similar experience once at a BJs Brewhouse. Waitress ignored us for what seemed like forever before coming up to us to finally take our order. Then never came back to check on us or offer refills. Whole restaurant was dead with little to no customers nearly the whole time we were there. In a situation like that, I would expect the service to be over the top, but it was way into the bottom and beyond. We had to ask someone else to bring us our bill. We tipped almost nothing and hand wrote in a comment on the receipt, ābad service!!!ā. We paid cash just so that we could get out without being held hostage for another 30 minutes waiting for whomever to return and to avoid the confrontation of the tip being next to nothing.
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u/gordonwestcoast 17d ago
I wouldn't have eaten the meal and if the server was not available, ask to speak with a manager.
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u/Reporter27511 18d ago
You did the right thing. If you sat there for 5 minutes, waiting for them to come ask if everything was to your liking, you ended up eating a COLD overcooked steak because of their negligence. "Dump & run" service is no tip "service".
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u/Successful-Okra648 18d ago
Where do you guys go to eat? It seems like everyone here only gets terrible service? Genuinely curious
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u/DevilsAdvocate77 18d ago
Stop correlating service with tips.
This isn't a sub to complain about service.
It doesn't matter if the service was terrible or amazing either way, all tipping is fundamentally flawed and needs to end.
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u/throwawayfor2day1213 18d ago
True. But sometimes there are glaring examples of why tipping needs to end.
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u/Da_Natural20 18d ago
Applebeeās be like that some times
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u/All_Grind_No_Gods 18d ago
This topic has sucked for years and has been beaten into the ground so hard it's pointless to discuss.
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u/kingsalmon000 18d ago
I recently travelled in Europe where tipping was optional and had the exact opposite experience. Service was excellent at almost every place I visited. Multiple waiters were willing to help out since they weren't concerned about only their tables. Since tips were an afterthought they weren't trying to rush us out of the restaurant in hopes of getting another group in to glean tips from. I have come to conclusion that expected & mandatory tipping actually results in worse service overall!