Sometimes I go to a restaurant where there’s generally no service other than someone taking your order, giving you the food, and then you’re on your way. For instance, McDonald’s works this way. Obviously, there’s no tipping involved.
I’ve been to some restaurants, like BBQ joints in this area, where the service is the same: they’re behind a counter, take my order, give me the food, payment happens, and then I leave. But when I pay, at some places the credit card receipt prints with a line for a tip.
Am I supposed to tip?
Now granted, sometimes at the BBQ joints I ask them a few special things, like to cut the brisket just right, or to wrap things up in some foil and plastic bags so I don’t get drippings on the inside of my motorcycle saddlebags. That’s a little bit out of the way, so I will usually throw a buck or two into the tip jar.
But when you think about the unquestionable tipping situation in a restaurant — you have a waiter and they wait on you — someone just taking my order and handing me back my food well… that doesn’t really seem to equate. Fundamentally it’s the same service, but really the waiter does a whole lot more.
Just sitting here doing bills, reconciling statements against receipts, a few receipts came up with that and well.. I thought I’d ask and see what people thought.
Stuff From Hsoi 
Generally on credit card tips, the receipts print by default, if you write a tip, it may or may not be received, depending on store policy (basically it could be pocketed by the owner not given to employees, etc).
It is better to do a cash tip in any place where the employees aren’t paid as waitstaff (meaning they don’t work on tips). I keep change and/or several ones for the express purpose of tipping this way. Plus, ones are not a bad idea as throw down or give away cash to get someone away from you. While I’d rather not encourage larceny/panhandling I’d rather keep the more persistent of them away from me. A dollar from the pocket tossed away is worth it to me.
-Rob
Yeah, I figured that most of them just printed that way. Thing is, I can never tell who is working for tips and who isn’t. Just because they don’t look like waitstaff to me… does that mean they aren’t working for tips? I don’t know.
But yeah, often I do that sort of thing. I just have the charge go through for the proper amount (no tip) but I’ll drop a buck or two in the jar. Still, sometimes it bugs me to see it… almost like they’re trying to obtain tips where tips aren’t to be obtained. *shrug*
Most credit card receipts print it automatically. One of the gas stations I frequent has the same thing. It prints out a line for Tip. When in question, ask. Do you accept tips? If I put a tip in this line, do you actually receive it or what?
A girlfriend of mine in high school worked at a restraunt that had a shitty set up. All the tips would go in a large pool, and then it’d be divided by all the waiters and waitresses. So, if the total in tips was $400, and there were 8 wait staff, every member of the wait staff got $50.
The reason I say ask is in some instances (like me at Walmart), we aren’t allowed to accept tips. People practically force the cash into our hands, but we can’t take it. If we accept it, we will lose our jobs.
As obvious as it sounds, I never thought to just ask. I dunno… felt rude I guess.
That tip pool stuff is b.s..