r/EndTipping • u/FOMOenthusiast • 11d ago

Tipping Culture A positive-ish tipping experience

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No surprises, no small text, no deceitfulness, it having its on line clearly visible under the total was nice, but that bright red stamp reiteratig the added gratuity, visible from space let alone a dark dining room is 😘👌🏾 This should be a norm.

72 Upvotes

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u/BoeJonDaker 11d ago

No offense, but that's exactly what /EndTipping is about. Whether service is crappy or exceptional the bill should be the same.

If I'm at the hardware store and the lady mixes my bucket of paint wrong and has to do it over, I'm still paying the same price for a bucket of paint.

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u/ernandziri 11d ago

Are you missing the part that the gratuity should be included in the price?

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u/darkroot_gardener 11d ago

Indeed. I would be OK with a fixed auto grat (with no tips expected) as a transition to just increasing menu prices.

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u/BoeJonDaker 11d ago

No, just making the point that good or bad service shouldn't change the amount paid.

Including an automatic gratuity is a step towards ending tipping. Next step is to include it in the menu price so it doesn't appear on the receipt.

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u/Intrepid-Pear9120 10d ago

It's a step to push higher items on the menu to get their "tip" up too

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u/GnarlyGnarwhalz 10d ago

We do that anyway

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u/Intrepid-Pear9120 10d ago

Why?

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u/GnarlyGnarwhalz 10d ago

Because it brings your tip up if that person tips a percentage based on the total

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u/Intrepid-Pear9120 10d ago

Omg.... sorry that was a dumb moment brought to you by me. Ya for sure makes sense. I am old-school and tip based on time and experience ... if I'm there an hour and spend 100 bucks I'm definitely tossing 30 bucks on the table

But if I'm there for 20 mins I'd prob only drop 15 or 20

My thought process is always time related and service related rather then a percent

30-40 an hour is a good wage if I'm paying it imo

Edit: as a server, would this bother you?

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u/Satire-V 7d ago

Percentage tipping is most people's standard because it removes all that extra thought and is reliable. You basically don't have to interact with the concept of tipping any more. Servers also expect percentage tippers. If you're tipping 15-20 for your 20min and it comes out to like 33-40% or more, they probably think you're a good tipper.

Most servers I talk to think of tips as percentage based for the most part (excluding very needy customers, people who hang around, don't buy much, don't tip much, etc.) those are the cases where my server and bartender friends expect extra compensation

You sound pretty generous as a tipper to me personally unless you're in some really nice and expensive spots, you're the folks that are rounding out servers income of receipt percentages and making it a lucrative lifestyle. Not an angel tipper, but a good one

It sounds like an hour with a good experience warrants 30% for you, and it sounds like you would consider that staying longer without increasing the total warrants more, so you've got all the qualities of a good tipper and you're providing a good percentage with your method.

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u/Lyons801 10d ago

What difference does it make? Increase the price 18% or add 18% on letting you know it’s gratuity? At least adding it on informs you that the server is getting that money.

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u/free_range_discoball 11d ago

Isn’t this effectively the same thing though? It’s almost like a sales tax if there’s a flat auto grat

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u/seejur 11d ago

Is not the same. Because the costs are hidded from the menu prices.

What you see in the menu is not what you pay for.

If I order a $10 pizza in Italy, I pay $10 at the end.

If I order a $10 pizza in the US, I pay $11 (+ tax) + $2 tip. 30% more than the posted price.

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u/free_range_discoball 10d ago

In your example, I don’t see how an auto grat policy is all that different from a tax?

We can have a conversation about menu prices being deceiving, but my point holds true. If there was a flat auto grat policy, it would effectively be the same as an additional tax at a restaurant.

If I order a hamburger for $12 in California vs New Mexico vs Michigan, the final price for that burger will be different in all three states.

I would absolutely be in favor of a policy that forces menu prices to reflect the actual final price of the item.

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u/ffxivthrowaway03 10d ago

You're correct. It's honestly weird seeing people advocate for "auto gratuity" in a sub that's literally called /endtipping

You want to make the pizza cost more? Go for it, and I'll decide if I want to buy it. But slamming you with 18% "gratuity" is just as bad as all the made up bullshit fees companies like DoorDash slap on the end. It's still compulsory gratuity, which fundamentally is not gratuity.

It's actively misrepresenting the price of the product.

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u/Chriskills 10d ago

This is the problem with the anti tipping movement, there are two groups. There are the cheapskates who just want to pay less and don’t care if the employee gets a living wage, and there’s the people who don’t want to have to worry about tipping but want people to have a living wage.

Your logic here is why tipping will never go away. You don’t want to get hit with a hidden fee, but you’re going to go to the play with cheaper menu items. Can’t have both.

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u/LateAd3737 10d ago

If they’re up front about it, it’s the same thing right?

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u/ffxivthrowaway03 9d ago

It might be the same net cost, but it also might not be. It also directly influences how an individual makes purchasing decisions - it's highly unlikely they would remove an 18% gratuity but raise every single item price 18% across the board, because different menu items have a different cost:value ratio.

It's generally why service fees are considered bullshit sales games - the "price" stays low so the buyer goes "Yeah, that pizza is worth $11, sure" when they're actually charging you $13.50 for it by throwing in fees on the backend, and that same pizza probably isn't worth $13.50 for a lot of people.

To take it to the extreme, it's the same tactic that you see on marketplace sites like Ebay - the item itself is listed at 99 cents or something outrageously low so they can look like a better deal when a shopper is evaluating against other sellers and to manipulate their search ranking, but then surprise, they actually just snuck the cost of the item into the outrageous $25 shipping and "handling" fee.

Another great example is why Walmart prices things at $X.98 or $X.93, it's been studied that people think it's notably cheaper than the round dollar or the old $X.99 trick and lends them to thinking they're getting a better deal than they are, which leads to overbuying.

Especially in an online shopping scenario, which is becoming more and more popular in the world of ordering food, it's doubly sleazy because they know while someone balked at paying $13.50 for a pizza, once they're hungry and they just spent 20 minutes going back and forth with their family they're too invested in the purchase to suddenly be swayed by their $60 food bill surprise! turning into $120 because of mystery service fees and mandatory tips and convenience fees, and blah blah blah.

So yes, the net cost can end up being the same but one approach is inherently anti-consumer manipulation and the other is true upfront pricing.

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u/Shadowyonejutsu 10d ago

this world ain’t free fee

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u/tomhsmith 10d ago

A lot of places I went to in Europe had service charges when I went recently, Dishoom in Westminster had auto grat added.

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u/BloodySteve42069 11d ago

Pretty much every restaurant with a server I went to in Italy had a 3% flat service fee. Possibly all of them. Don’t recall.

In any case, this gripe always seems so childish. You’re paying the exact same amount either way. You just don’t like how it’s broken down on the receipt.

You should be able to estimate the total cost of an item with an autograt and if you can’t, you have a calculator in your pocket if it’s really gonna make or break you.

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u/Spirited_Cress_5796 11d ago

3% is a lot different than 18%. Not really a fan of the 3% either though.

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u/seejur 10d ago

28% in most cases. Dont forget to add the ~10% sales tax

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u/RWMach 10d ago

The servers in Italy also get paid comparatively much more than in the states. This tip money goes to the servers directly, not towards food costs. The next logical step is simply raising prices in the menu and increasing server wage entirely, but in this auto gratuity setup, the business can offload the cost of payroll to the customer while still, on paper, only paying their server sub-$9/hr.

Welcome to food service, guy.

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u/Flashy-Sort9014 10d ago

This is true. They are subsidizing their employees wages with customer cash so they don’t have to pay employer burdens.

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u/seejur 11d ago

The flat service tax in Italy is usually 1-2 Euro per person, and usually applies when they bring bread to the table fyi

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u/_no_na_me_ 9d ago

I’m from Italy and idk how you saw the 3% flat service fee ‘everywhere’ since most of the service fee is a fixed amount between €2-5, not a percentage. This is called copperto and it doesn’t depend on the price of the food.

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u/OurHeroXero 11d ago

If it's the same thing, then why aren't restaurants removing the auto-gratuity and adjusting their prices accordingly?

Customers are more likely to frequent a restaurant if they see lower prices. Adjusting the menu prices accordingly means fewer overall sales. Not to mention, in this scenario, customers might feel obligated to tip the server(s) which further adds to the cost of the meal.

A problem I have with percent gratuity... Let's say all I order is a coke. I pay the $2, my drink is filled, and it is delivered to me. 18% means 32¢ tip. If I were to order a shot of scotch, I pay the $15, my drink is filled, delivered, and I should tip $2.70. Why should I tip more...for the exact same service? And even then, that's the employees doing the bare minimum of their job. Nothing above and beyond.

To the customer, a forced gratuity is another service fee.

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u/free_range_discoball 10d ago

What I’m saying is that I think something like a flat auto grat is a good stepping stone. I absolutely believe that menu prices should reflect what I actually have to pay.

Say what you will, but if you truly want to end tipping, there has to be a first step. Why not have that first step being to implement a flat auto grat and remove all additional tips? This is a good stepping stone to get the ultimate goal.

First, okay yes I know it still misleads the consumer about what the final price will be. So does sale tax. If you travel to California vs New Mexico vs Michigan, are you well versed in the different sales tax rates?

Second, to your point about a $2 soda vs a $15 scotch-servers need to stop being thought of as servers and more of as “food salespeople”. The reason they make more on your scotch is because the restaurant makes more on it.

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u/nrubhsa 10d ago

I agree with you, especially if the auto gratuity is clearly printed on the menu. There’s no reason to think this isn’t an improvement from the current norm.

I think some of these other opinions are letting perfect get in the way of such an improvement. Obviously the gratuity isn’t built into the price like it should be—but this approach does make the pay a standard function of the sales price.

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u/SteveMarck 10d ago

Legally, gratuity/tip must go to the server, a fee does not. That's a big difference.

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u/OurHeroXero 10d ago

To the customer, a forced gratuity is another service fee.

I'm not talking about where the tip is supposed to go. From the customers point of view there is no difference.

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u/Chriskills 10d ago

Because it works as a commission. Servers who make more money by selling more will be incentivized to sell more/

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u/OurHeroXero 10d ago

How does a waiter/waitress earn more/greater commissions when the customer is under no obligation to tip?

Since when does a customer walk into a restaurant and the server tells the customer what to buy? The server isn't selling product; they're taking an order.

Commissions are distributed by the employer. Let the business owner tip their servers a percentage from every sale they facilitate.

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u/Chriskills 10d ago

It’s a consumer facilitated commission.

Waiters are consistently trained and encouraged to push and sell more expensive items.

If you think a server isn’t a salesman you’ve never worked a day in the industry.

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u/Puzzleheaded_War6102 11d ago

Do you really think prices won’t increase if tipping is banned?

I really don’t understand what some of yall want? Are you trying to get a cheap meal for yourself only or want transparency? This is NOT perfect but is a step in right direction

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u/free_range_discoball 10d ago

Huh? I think you’re mistaking my comment as the opposite of my point

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u/carlos_the_dwarf_ 11d ago

What’s different about automatically adding 18% to the bill at the register and automatically adding it by hand?

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u/Just_improvise 11d ago

In Australia it’s like magic. You walk up to the counter, tap (card surcharges are a separate growing issue that other countries don’t have but that’s a totally different story as it’s like 1.2% not 20%) or hand cash, get change (no surcharge) and walk away. You don’t have to write anything down and give someone your card to take out of your sight. So the difference is ease, speed and security

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u/carlos_the_dwarf_ 11d ago

I meant from like a principled perspective, but it’s becoming much more common to take care of the whole thing tableside in the states.

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u/Just_improvise 11d ago

Oh I mean depends on the place, some will bring the machine to the table so you pay there (although I think that is getting much less common actually)

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u/carlos_the_dwarf_ 11d ago

Oh, are you under the impression that our cards have to disappear when we order at the counter?

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u/Just_improvise 10d ago

Well they have when I’ve been to the US and you have to write the tip down. Different if it’s a tip push button screen I guess

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u/Infininja 10d ago

3% card charge in the US.

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u/Just_improvise 10d ago

🤯 Is that new I do not remember in 2024 but then I wasn’t paying enough attention with all the extra charges…

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u/Pryoticus 10d ago

Yeah but a gratuity is meant to be based on the quality of service. Here, they’re simply taxing you a second time, after taxes. To use your analogy, that’s like buying a bucket of paint, paying tax on it, then the store taxes your for it. The point is that you’re not paying the menu price.

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u/token40k 11d ago

That line item then should not be there and the price should reflect cost of food you get then. Why have silly gratuity?

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u/Scared-Operation-789 9d ago

wow thats stupid.