Tonight I served a table of foreigners (insert your perceived stereotype here). I knew off the bat that I wasn't going to make a dime. I knew it. It's like thinking tossing $5 into a VLT is a good idea. You know that you're going to lose your money but you're hoping Lady Luck will throw you a bone to win $100. It was a sure thing that I was going to get stiffed but that little bit of me -- the what if, the long-shot hope, made me think just maybe, maybe I'll make some coin. Serving is like gambling. Sometimes you're up, sometimes you're down but you're always chasing the gratuity dragon. Sounds more like a heroin addiction than gambling I suppose.
Now I know singling out foreigners and their poor tipping, or lack thereof, is in bad taste but it's the truth. And for a server, it sucks.
Not only was I on my 'A' game but I had to gather up all the other servers to sing a birthday song. I see the second hand embarrassment diners feel for us. It's in their eyes. Friends I have that serve at other restaurants cringe when I mention the birthday song.
I think that if you want to embarrass your loved one by having the restaurant staff clap and sing like trained monkeys, at least have the decency to throw a couple bucks my way.
What's worse is that the "birthday boy" kept yelling "kiss my cheek! kiss my cheek! It's my birthday!" Rude. I just awkwardly laughed it off. What I wanted to say to him probably would have gotten me in trouble. I don't respond well to getting in trouble as it more often than not ends in tears. My first instinct is to cry.
It wasn't the worst night I've had but it certainly wasn't the best. My tips were pretty pathetic for a closing shift.
- hours worked: 6.54
- total sales: $847
- tip out: $25.41
- cash in hand: $62
This night can only be saved by one thing: Bad Country at the Standard Tavern (formerly known as Hooligans and Eddy's Garage) because Bad Country is unreal.
The no tipping with foreigners is true.
ReplyDeleteIf your restaurant allows it you should just charge an automatic gratuity seeing as how most foreign places have that.
I know in most of Europe the tip is always included.
And in Quebec if you don't tip enough the servers chance you down and ask what was wrong with the service and demand an explanation on why the tip wasn't good.
And a lot of the west coast has an auto grat no matter what!
I feel like if you tell table the charge is theree t and they are foreign how can they be upset?