REALLY, REALLY crappy service still= tip???

[Kim&Chris]

It sounds like you had bad service but you never know what was going on with her. I always try to give everyone the benefit of the doubt. I will always leave atleast 15%. at the minium. If you had just left me 50 cents I would have assumed you were just cheap. It's so funny people don't understand that even if you don't leave a tip for whatever reason, The server still has to claim her amount of total sales for the shift, if people don't leave enough tip she has to make up the difference. So not only you don't tip her she still has to claim the sales at the end of the night and make up the difference out of her pocket.

It would be different if the waitress was running back & forth like crazy, trying to handle several tables....but the OP states she was sitting at the bar, laughing it up with the bartender! Doesn't sound like very much was going on with her that prompted such poor service. And even if she was having a bad day, it sounds like she didn't really care too much about her customers...so why should they care about what she needs to claim at the end of the day?

I'm a generous tipper, usually 20+%, but if this girl was my waitress, I would have probably left a $.50 tip also.

 

[Mrs. Charming]

As a former waitress, yeah, she probably would have gotten a dollar. Sitting and chatting with the bartender is inexcusable. You're at WORK. Working for MONEY. We're not going to give you a 15-18-20+% tip for nothing. Sorry!

 

[missypie]

On the few occasions I've left a really low tip based on terrible service, I've left a note explain that the service was terrible.

There are still people in this world who think that a tip is a dollar bill or maybe two put on the table, no matter the size of the bill or how good the service is. If I just leave a dollar or two, I want the server to know that it's because of them.

 

[lacrosse_lady72]

You sound like an excellent waitress - and I'd be willing to bet that your tips reflect that..

Exactly what i was going to say...I wish more waitresses were like you! Although, I've had some really good ones and can't complain about the service that I get usually! This was a very 'rare' occasion for us. I, too, have never even thought about leaving without leaving AT LEAST a 15% tip- until I had this woman/girl for a waitress. Then, it just seemed like I'd be encouraging her to continue with her 'everyone tips no matter what' theory she had going for her...

If anything, maybe she gave the people who came in AFTER us better service? Maybe??? Well, I can hope!

Thanks both of you! I really appreciate it.

 

[lacrosse_lady72]

YES!!!! I can not tell you how many times my kids are ignored. We eat out a lot, like 3-4 times a week sometimes, my kids know how to behave in a restaurant, they want to order their own food, we encourage our kids to talk to the wait staff, the kids need to learn how to communicate, use manners, express concern if the order isn't right. ETC......

I love talking to kids! Although, about half of the time they do the invisible thing (you know, when they try to hide) but for the most part, kids know what they want and they're pretty fun to talk to. Some of my regular families, the kids will bring me things such as drawings.

I was even talking to a kid a couple of weeks ago who had a little Buzz Lightyear figure and I told him how I met Buzz in Florida. Then he asked how he could meet Buzz and I told him how I've only seen him in California and Florida. Then, his (I assuming) mom told me how they were going to WDW in the summer and I told them the areas I've seen Buzz. I also directed them to the DIS for information .

 

[ols386]

I wouldn't have left a tip either.

99.9% of the time I leave a generous tip, but if I don't leave a tip, I will talk to the manager and tell them why I'm not leaving a tip.

 

[zachnsamsmommy]

I wouldn't have left a tip either.

99.9% of the time I leave a generous tip, but if I don't leave a tip, I will talk to the manager and tell them why I'm not leaving a tip.

Exactly!

DH and I are both really good tippers. Only once in my life have I not left a tip, and once my mom didn't as well (my birthday dinner where the waitress was either rude to us or ignored us). I always talk to the manager...I want them to know about the poor service, and why I DELIBERATELY didn't leave a tip. I could care less about whether the food was comped or not, I just didn't want someone else to receive poor service.

 

[JVL1018]

We had an experience very similar to that in a chain restaurant in Lancaster, PA last November.
I am not joking when I am saying it was a full hour from the time we sat down until the time we got our meals. She was horrible, sullen and rude and never even came by except to bring bread 50 minutes into our wait-and then it was not the type we had asked for.
We didn't have to speak to the manager, he came over to our table and told us that he was taking 30% off the bill because of the service. Same for the few tables around us where she had done the same thing.
She never apologized, never asked if we wanted refills, just dumped the plates on the table.
We did tip, but I believe it was about $1.