PALO--to tip or not?

[JLSE50]

I thought that the $10 charge for Palo was to cover the cost of the fancier food served there. We tipped based on what we thought our dinner would have cost at a fine restaurant. Later someone said that the $10 is the tip and no other tip was expected or suggested.

What do you do at Palo? Tip or not?

Jan

 

[inkkognito]

We are additional tippers...we do the same as you and tip based on what a similar meal would cost on land (minus the alcohol, since a gratuity is already added for that).
Barb

 

[mrsltg]

I figure that the meal at Palo (minus alcohol) would be about $150 or so on land (for two). I will tip 20%, or $30, and I believe that we have already tipped $20 in the fee, so another $10 will be left at the table.

Erin

 

[WebmasterAlex]

absolutely you should tip

 

[aprilgail2]

We left an extra 20 on top of the 10.00 each charge...well worth it!

 

[baileybaby]

Do you just leave the tip on the table?

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Do you just leave the tip on the table?

We ate Bruch at Palo last Wednesday (during the CC evacuation). They bring your "bill" - the $10 charge - over to your table to sign for as you would any other ship charge. You leave your tip with that. We left $20 tip and it was worth it. At Palo dinner last year each of two couples left $30 tip.

 

[CruisinKate]

This topic has appeared on these boards before and I believe that I read previously that the $10 tip is shared among all the Palo's staff and does not go directly to your server.

If your service is good, I believe the custom is to tip as if you had eaten a $100-$150 (per couple) meal at a fine restaurant. You don't have to do this, of course. As you aren't required to tip in any restaurant.

My husband and I really enjoyed Palo. We didn't go on our first cruise when the kids were younger, but we've made a point of eating there the last two cruises.

Kate

 

[webray]

Definately tip, and tip them good.

 

[missycj96]

yes to tipping! We had both the champagne brunch and a dinner there and they were highlights of the cruise. Our waiter was wonderful. Enjoy and don't miss dining at Palo.

 

[MinnesotaMouseketeers]

We tipped an additional $15.00 on top of the extra fee. We felt it was well worth it. The food was terrific and the service great.

 

[erikthewise]

When we last went (2001) the charge was $5pp. DCL left it a complete mystery as to whether or not this constituted a gratuity. I actually asked to speak to the head waiter to get the straight story, as at the time there was more than one explanation online.

The head waiter told me the fee was split among the Palo staff (as mentioned above). I assume he meant everybody, not just servers. Not sure what to do, I tipped another $10. This time I plan to assume the servers gets roughly half the fees, which would be $10, and tip extra accordingly.

Just keep in mind that the servers at Palo are very likely the best servers on the ship. Assuming you agree after the meal, it would a shame if they were to be shorted in comparison with those in the rotation restaurants. It IS a shame that DCL makes it so difficult to figure out what is appropriate.

 

[westjones]

Originally posted by erikthewise
It IS a shame that DCL makes it so difficult to figure out what is appropriate.

I must admit, this tip thing has caused DH and I to skip Palo. If they would just make it clear, I would feel better about going. After reading this thread and seeing that some have left $15-$20 dollars on top of the other charge, that at least gives me an idea of what we should do.

We wanted to do the brunch, and I have been hesitant only because of the tipping situation. Now I feel I understand the situation better and will be prepared (I must confessed we were so confused on our first DCL trip that when we went to Palo we didn't understand there was even an extra charge--this was in 2000 before I found these boards--DH and I started to walk out without paying anything! It was SO embarassing! Since then we haven't gone back, but on our upcoming cruise we are thinking of trying the brunch).

DJ

 

[AnnMorin]

Besides the tip built into our (yes I admit very large) bar bill we usually leave an additional twenty dollars or so, we just write it in on the slip that is presented with the bar bill (best to have a drink ready when you read it )

 

[Jillpie]

I'm not understanding this tip thing. If everyone is adding 20-30 dollars more, then why doesn't Disney just make it a 50.00 fee (or so) to eat there? And tell us that that is the fee and this includes tipping? Kind of like hoop de doo...nobody tips there, or at least I've never seen tips afterward, its all included.
It just seems funny to me that we don't have to pay for all the other restaurants, but we have to pay for this one.

 

[wnissen]

Originally posted by Jillpie
It just seems funny to me that we don't have to pay for all the other restaurants, but we have to pay for this one.

Well, tipping is expected at all the other restaurants as well, so it only stands to reason that Palo is the same. I can appreciate the reasoning of those who reegard the #10 fee as a gratuity, but we left $30 anyway.

Walt

 

[WisconsinDisneyGirl]

do you tip in cash or do you sign for it???

 

[WebmasterAlex]

I usually follow the same formula that inkkognito mentioned and tip the same as I would for a meal of equal quality in an "on shore" resteraunt.
jillpie, in the regular resteraunts you tip at the servers at the end of the cruise

 

[scrapperjill]

This tipping at Palo's is a very intresting subject...one that I have wonder about many times. After reading through this post I have a couple more questions for you all....So are the servers in Palos totaly diffrent that others on the ship...meaning they only work in Palo's and not in any of the other dinning areas? And wouldn't you think if DCL increaed the fee to $50...people would continue to tip even more at that point...I mean it sounds like when the fee was $5pp people tipped...now at $10pp...it dosn't sound like the "tip" people are leaving is any smaller.

Can't wait to hear about the wait staff.

 

[Grumpy's Mom]

Jillpie, I get your point, sort of like some of the other cruise lines that include tips in their cruise prices so you don't have to worry about it while you are on vacation. But what do you do when you get exceptional service when your tips have been included?

If I understand the Palo situation correctly, the $10 pp is split amongst all of the employees at Palo (someone correct me if I am wrong). But as in any restaurant, your server is the person who takes care of you, sees that you have everything you need, makes suggestions, and in the case of our Palo experiences, brings us extra desserts!! I feel that like any good restaurant, if my experience there was great, and the service warrants, a tip is definitely appropriate.

We could look at the $10 pp as a premium paid for premium food - the quality of the food is higher, IMHO at Palo, than that in the dining rooms. I am not saying that the food in the dining rooms is poor (I think it is excellent), but the food at Palo is a cut above. The food in the dining rooms is covered by our cruise fee, and if we care for something over and above, it is available, at a small fee.

With drink in hand (cheers, AnnMorin), we have left a hefty tip based on a $100 - 150 estimate cost for food alone, several times.

My DH and I were curious about the CM's opinion of working in Palo as opposed to the dining rooms. The first night, our CM told us that he had worked very, very hard for three years to be promoted to Palo, and loved it. He was an excellent server, a little on the formal side, and was exactly what you would expect in a shore side restaurant of Palo's caliber.

The second night, we had a wonderful CM who had been on the Magic for a number of years, and had always worked in the dining rooms. He had been moved "upstairs" to help fill in for a vacation or illness, and had ended up staying. He had been at Palo for a year, and although we understood the money was better (he had a wife and 2 children in the Phillipines), he really missed the dining rooms -- he missed the children most of all, and missed getting to know the guests at his station over the week.

Bonnie