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European here. Tipping is not already included in the price of the meal. Living wage is included in the price of the meal.
Tips is completely voluntary, if you think the service was excellent then you really just round up to the nearest nice round number (something like 22.85 becomes 25)
Well, a lot of restaurants add a few percent tip to large parties in my experience (and some try to start that shit for tables of 4).
American here. I understood most of what you said, except for the phrase “living wage”. Could you explain this to me? I’ve never heard of it before.
Oh man how I wish to tell you all about Belgium's healthindex.
Livable wage, is that a better term for it?
Cuz noone else pointed it out to you, the comment you responded to was sarcastic. It wasnt a language barrier thing.
Ah. I thought I had used the wrong term.
Nah, all we have are poverty wages and billionaires here.
Tipping is not already included in the price of the meal. Living wage is included in the price of the meal.
That is the tip. In the US, "tipped" labor often has a reduced minimum wage, under the expectation that they make the difference up in tips.
Yup, something like $2.50/hr, when federal minimum wage is ~$7.50. If a server doesn't make minimum wage, the restaurant is required to step them up.
It's a stupid system IMO, because not leaving a tip is a giant slap in the face, when it really should just mean "you did just okay." If the service is really that bad, I will complain and expect a comp or something on the bill, so the bill should reflect "good enough" service. I'd actually like to pay tips if it actually meant "fantastic service," like putting up with my screaming children, convincing the cook to make something off-menu, or still providing good service when we're not spending much (we don't drink, and that's like 50% of the bill). I'd prefer to tip based on the service, not on the size of the bill.
Oh, and if we had such a system, not taxing tips would make a ton of sense since it's pretty literally a gift.
In the US, if you are never going to return to an establishment, why tip?
Because you care about other people?
So tipping is for charity? Why should the wait staff get priority over the Tibetan koala sanctuary (or any other charity of your choice)?
There are many more people in the world who deserve greater care than 1st world plate carriers.
My guy/gal/pal.
We do things differently in different parts of Europe.
You’re right, I made the same mistake as OP. There is no “European system of tipping”.
To add to that I'd say there's no drama attached to not leaving a tip.
Totally, waiters don’t expect a tip at all. So if it’s given, it’s appreciated even more.
But that means if I don't tip they'll think I thought the service wasn't excellent :(
In the US, sure. But in Europe, a tip isn't expected, so any tip you give means "better than average service." As in, what tips should've been all along.
I have no problem giving tips, I have a problem with tips being expected.
someone once told me tips where invented to skip the queue at the bar... and apparenty its also some witty acronym for that as well (the brits supposedly invented the concept and they famously like to play with their words)
edit: "To Insure Promptness", but apparently that's just a backronym that someone made later... damn, i enjoyed that factoid, never should've checked it xD
Ensure would be the right word here, but tep doesn’t sound as nice
haha now that you say it... maybe i didn't question it cos it involved money to ensure xD
i you mean it, tip 10-15% of the bill! (often the "living wage" is still precarious.)