This article appears in Dec 6-12, 2007.
A tip for tourists
To all of you foreign visitors: In North America, individuals tip when they receive foodservice. They don’t do this in Europe or Australia, because the wages of the servers are SUBSIDISED BY THE PRICE OF THE FOOD. But in Halifax, we are paid MINIMUM WAGE
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Right on! Waitstaff bitching about tips or lack thereof. That chestnut never gets old.
Holy Shit. You must be one of the 6 good servers in HRM that deserve the extra cash for the high quality service. Where do you work? I’ll plan my next outing around your accompanying shift.
Dear tourists: thank you kindly for sustaining the tourism economy so that you may, in fact, be employed and make any money at all.
Dear Servin’ Your Food…, *please* do some research before bitchin’ ’bout those “foreign visitors”: In Europe, they *do* tip waiting staff. Being from Germany, I know that for a fact. We tip in Germany, in France, in Italy, in the UK, etc. So stop bitchin’ about us and focus your grudge on those who pay you too little money in the first place.
Ok, here’s my take on the whole thing: it is not the responsibility of the patrons to pay your wages. That is what your employer is supposed to do. That means that restaurant owners need to pay their staff more than minimum wage. Will that ever happen? Not likely. Working as a server sucks, I know, but tips are GRATUITIES and are optional, not mandatory.
I guess it’s a matter of the staff will remember you. We always tip well (unless the service and/or food is really bad) and we get excellent service in every restaurant we go to. They remember us. I have a feeling they also remember those that don’t tip or tip low. If you’re getting your food cheap, expect that the restaurant is also cheap with it’s staff. Send a clear message to the owners (as opposed to the people who work for him/her) and don’t go back. If you’re paying a high price or competitive price for your meal then you need to match it with your tip. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that employers who pay their staff well and serve good food manage to thrive.On a side note. Closing up shop at 9:00 pm during peak tourist season is a bad business practice. Tourists like to wake up late, take in the action/scenery, come back to their hotel for a nap and a shower and then go out to eat. That puts them at about 9 or 10 pm. Rushing to meet deadlines is what happens all year round for most people. They don’t want to rush when on vacation. Food for thought :).