tipping bartenders/should you or not?

[quixotically]

Here's what a bartender does for me. PS - I drink beer and pop.

1. He squirts the pop into a glass.
2. He uses a can opener to open the beer.
3. He pours the beer into a glass.

Why the crap does he deserve a tip? In addition, the standard tip to a bartender is one dollar. I generally drink New Castle, 3.25. That's like a 30 percent tip for opening the bottle. Isn't the standard tip for a waitress 15-20 percent? How the hell did the bartender end up deserving a 30% tip or more?

 

[Cman]

its pretty much mandatory around here. they would probably ban you from the restaurant if you didn't.

thats one thing i loved about europe. it seems they don't tip there, or at least you aren't forced to tip. it was great.

 

[Pazman]

You don't tip, bartender will make you wait a long time next time you come in.
normaly I tip about $10 or more depending how long I stay and how fast I get my next drink. ( I hate waiting for my shot of Tequila )

 

[Supafly]

Not to mention the fact most bar tenders make about $3 an hour and tips are how they make their living.

I did it for 5 years and payed my own way through college.

I think everyone should have to work in the sevice industry. Then no one would ever ask, "Why should I tip?"

 

[Cman]

I have nothing against tipping, if I get good service and the tip is warranted. What I hate is the fact that its become like a mandatory tax and you HAVE TO tip even if you get BAD service.

 

[quixotically]

Most bartenders in Toledo at least, where I live, make minimum wage. And if you make your living off people giving you dollars at a time then you've asked for that circumstance.

 

[Supafly]

True, the service determines how much I tip. Nut, I do always tip. What I hate is when you go to pick up your dry cleaning or some shit and the dude who owns it who you know makes bank from fucking up your shit has a tip jar out on the counter.

My wife tips her hair stylist. That's right, $90 for a hair cut and she tips $20. Now that's fucking nuts.

 

[Supafly]

if you make your living off people giving you dollars at a time then you've asked for that circumstance.

Then in turn if you came to my bar and didn't tip you couldn't complain about me dipping my dick in your drink. You asked for that circumstance.

 

[l3lasphemer]

Well I have never been a bartender but I would say that the amount you tip the bartender is directly proportionate to the speed in which you will receive future drinks. Especially if you are in a very popular place.

Also isn't it true in some bars that the bartenders have to split their tips with the barbacks?

 

[Supafly]

Yeah, usually a % not a straight up split.

 

[quixotically]

eventually my question becomes: how did our society, the earthly one not simply american or canadian, come to the agreement that people should tip bartenders?

 

[stu2906]

eventually my question becomes: how did our society, the earthly one not simply american or canadian, come to the agreement that people should tip bartenders?

The reasons i tip bartenders.

1. The bargirl is totty, you get a smile and you can think "she wants me now"
2. i am drunk and that person has helped me get there
3. the bar is busy - you tip, you get served
4. You are too drunk to speak and the barman remembers your order because you are the nice bloke who gave him a tip earlier
5. It's a nice thing t odo for someone who has provided a quality low cost service

 

[quixotically]

Today I go to this bar I always go to....I barely ever tip.

Some chick who's just filling in gives me my pop for 50 cents. It's normally one buck. She says, "I'm hooking you up. Be generous."

What the fuck man. I was gonna slap the ho.

 

[Supafly]

Wait, Ive got it! Here's how to solve your problem.

Don't go to bars!

 

[RichieTBaum]

Some chick who's just filling in gives me my pop for 50 cents. It's normally one buck. She says, "I'm hooking you up. Be generous."

Was that bar pop fizzy and delicious? If so, the chick deserved a hefty tip...
Seriously though, since I usually run a tab, the bartender gets a percentage of my total bill. If I go up and buy a single bottle for $2.50, I'll give the barkeep $3.00 and call it a day. Though now I may start reconsidering...gotta save up my quarters for some pop...from a bar...

 

[Gatorman]

I bartended for a few years and have hung out in more than my fair share of bars and restaurants. If you want good service, tip. The amount depends on the circumstances. If the bar is busy, you definitely need to tip heavy on the first round if you want the bartender to remember you later. If you're drinking hard liquor and it's a "free pour" system, tipping will usually get you stronger drinks and possibly a free one every few rounds (note that that also includes beer -- draft is cheap as hell to pour and never monitored). If you're with a chick, she likes to see you tip heavy cause you get better service and she thinks you're generous. Also, the bartender will usually help you out by making her stronger drinks (it's easy to pour a little heavy when he makes her a Cosmopolitan). And, like it or not, the service industry in the U.S. has evolved into one where the employees depend heavily on tipping. You usually get much better service and a few freebies if you tip well (particularly if you're a "regular"). I've also found that to be the case in several other countries that aren't nearly as tip dependent. As a word of warning, don't abuse the waitstaff -- they'll spit in your food or find some other way of exacting revenge (ever see "Waiting?"). All that being said, it pisses me off when you eat with 5 (or sometimes 6) people, there's a mandatory 18-20% tip added to the bill, and the waitstaff is inattentive!

 

[endymion]

Tipping in Australia isn't really done that much, most bars have a glass on the counter for anyone that wants to, but usually it's just a good place to get rid of crappy change. I'm in the service industry, in retail, people don't tip me anything and I work a shitload harder than a lot of bartenders I know, why the hell should they get extra for working in a bar? Like the saying goes, do you tip people in McDonalds? No? If they get you a Coke at McDonalds, there's not much difference between getting that or a beer at a bar, yet you're supposed to tip a bartender? That's a load of crap.

Maybe the real concern should be that minimum wages are too low.

From "Reservior Dogs" - the best speech about tipping ever....

"I'm very sorry the government taxes their tips, that's fucked up. That ain't my fault. It would seem to me that waitresses are one of the many groups the government fucks in the ass on a regular basis. Look, if you ask me to sign something that says the government shouldn't do that, I'll sign it, put it to a vote, I'll vote for it, but what I won't do is play ball. And as for this non-college bullshit I got two words for that: learn to fuckin' type, 'cause if you're expecting me to help out with the rent you're in for a big fuckin' surprise. "

 

[JimE]

Where I live it was custom to tip bartenders quite some extremely long time ago. I guess the rule was 20%. They've changed all that and now the tip is included in the price of the drink. So we very rarely tip a bartender. I think it's easier, now we don't have to calculate it ourselves.
What however remains is the tip for the killer or bouncer at the door.

 

[The Young One]

I'd like to note the improper use of the slash(/), it should probably be a colon or semicolon or something. Not a slash, totally not a slash.

 

[JimE]

You have some examples of it's improper use ?
I use it sometimes to replace "and", "and & or" , "or".
The title of this thread is in my opinion an improper use of the slash. It should read something along the lines like: Tipping bartenders/waiters - should you or not ? In this case the slash replaces the "and" or the "or".