Tipping at buffets vs. being waited on??

[Pumbaa_]

Last chance for this thread. Please abide by the DIS guidelines or this thread will be closed.

 

[TiggerandBelleFanMom]

I think that tips should be between 15-30% of the bill (more if you are super-generous), regardless of whether it is a buffet or a menu-oriented restaurant. Less than 15% is making a statement.

There are additional challenges for servers at Disney character buffets, namely the character-child interaction. It cannot be easy to bring drinks and clear plates while trying to avoid and manipulate around characters, esp. the larger, non-face characters (I'm guessing that Eeyore, for example, has very little peripheral vision) and extremely excited kids. Even assuming excellent parental supervision in terms of the actual buffet, kids are going to be up out of their seats angling for a better view of a favorite character.

Also, I don't know how the tips are distributed, but someone is up there replenishing and constantly cleaning up the buffet. (People do not always manage to convey food from chaffing dish to plate with zero spillage. I find salad bars esp challenging, for some reason.) That person is doing yeoman's labor, as far as I am concerned. I hope they see a piece of the action!

 

[dqpowell]

Last chance for this thread. Please abide by the DIS guidelines or this thread will be closed.

??? I'm not sure which posts aren't abiding by the guidelines.

David

 

[dqpowell]

But there have been posts that said "well if you don't like your job quit".

I'm sorry, but I just skimmed through the entire thread again, and nobody said this. I think you're getting defensive over nothing. I appreciate the work that servers do -- especially those that provide excellent service in a hectic environment. I just disagree with some who believe tipping percentage at a buffet should match that at non-buffet restaurants.

I realize that Disney makes alot more money then me, but does that mean they don't deserve it?

I'm not criticizing your decision to work at IHOP. I mentioned that because Disney charges so much more for food in their restaurants than IHOP, the servers make a lot more money in tips even if guests don't leave a higher tip percentage. But it seems to me a lot of people are saying that Disney servers deserve a higher tip percentage than the servers at restaurants outside of WDW. I say they're already getting more money even at the same percentage just because people are tipping on higher-cost meals. Adding to the percentage as well seems like overkill.

Typical meal for 5 guests at an outside-WDW buffet restaurant: $75. 10% tip = $7.50. Typical meal for 5 guests at a Disney buffet restaurant: $150. 10% tip = $15. So the tip is already double; even if the Disney buffet server is more attentive than the outside-Disney buffet server, they're still already making double. Tip them 20% instead of 10% and they're making $30, quadruple what the outside-WDW buffet server gets.

If others want to tip this way, that's fine... it's a free country. But I don't like others telling me I'm being unfair to Disney buffet servers if I tip "only" 10%.

David

 

[scrump]

We've been lucky to have really great CMs for our Disney buffet experiences. They always clear the plates, refill our drinks and make the time very memorable. Seems like they work just as hard as sit-down, so we've felt that 20% has always been justified.

 

[Peter Pirate 2]

If others want to tip this way, that's fine... it's a free country. But I don't like others telling me I'm being unfair to Disney buffet servers if I tip "only" 10%.

David

See, this is a problem. The subject has been broached and certainly it within your right to tip whatever you feel (until those automatic tips are in effect in your situation) but it is my personal opinion that, which being a free Country and a disney information board that allows me to express them, you are being unfair to the Disney CM who serves your drinks and cleans up after you at the buffet if you leave anything less than 15%.

These servers are still living off the tips and as has been said ad nauseum and do much more than the Bonanza or generic off site buffet.

We're talking about an extra $5.00 - $10.00 (+/-) for a family of 4 at Boma for example. I can't believe that anyone can justify that these servers do less work than the Signature servers. Sure they (the Signature servers) take your order and deliver your food and they do have the time chat more but the buffet servers have to clear the tables (for most folks) more than once and in a timely fashion (i.e. before you're back with the next course).

We ALL work hard for our money and no one wants to waste it which is exactly why people should live within their means and their own personal confort zones, IMO.

 

[fla4fun]

In an effort to lighten the mood, I'd like to tell a buffet/full service story from a few years ago.

Myself and two friends had planned a day at the theater near Christmas time, as the Nutcracker Ballet and A Christmas Carol were being performed at neighboring performing arts centers on the same day. It was a sunny Sunday. We saw the first performance, and decided we wanted a bite to eat, since it was a few hours until the second show. The only place nearby was a restaurant in a hotel located between the theaters. So we went in. The restaurant was due to open in about 30 minutes. We waited. When it opened, we went in. There was our group of three, a couple, and a table of about 7 people. No one else came in during our entire meal.

The server (we only saw one) went to the big table first, with a standing placard in one hand and a few menus in the other. He smacked the placard on the floor and said "We have an all you can eat buffet for $xx.xx" One of the adults said that sounded good because they were in a hurry - apparently one of the party was dancing in the Nutcracker later and had to get back. The server then picked up the placard and walked over to the couple, smacked the placard on the floor and said "We have an all you can eat buffet for $xx.xx.". They looked kind of surprised, but mumbled that they would have the buffet. Then he came to us. He went through the smack the placard and make the announcement routine. However, we are not now, nor have we ever been, buffet fans. (Personally, I think you can trace the Norovirus on cruise ships right back to the communal utensils in the buffets, but I digress). So he makes his announcement, and I said calmly, "We would like to see the menus please."

Now this is where it gets really funny, because he looks at us in disgust and says "Do you think you're the only people in this restaurant!"

Keep in mind, three tables of people, and he'd already taken care of the other two. I said again "We would like to order from the menu please." He threw the menus on the table and walked away. He did come back later to take the order, and the food was fine (fortunately there was an open kitchen so we could keep an eye on whether he messed with the food). But with that one sentence, he lost his tip from us for that night.

You see, it really all boils down to how you are treated, not whether it's a buffet, or full service. I've had servers be extremely attentive and helpful at buffets, and I've had some that made me get my own drinks and left the table piled with dishes. I've had servers at full service restaurants fall all over themselves to be helpful, and I've had some that I see twice - to order the drinks (and the food at the same time so they didn't have to come back) and to bring the check. If I get good service, they get a good tip. If I get mediocre service, they get a mediocre tip. If I get bad service, they get no tip, and probably a talk with their manager after we leave.

 

[Jubilee]

As a server, I think it's totally fine to tip about 15% at buffet and 18%-25% at sitdown meals (not considering "bad" service)

 

[dqpowell]

See, this is a problem. The subject has been broached and certainly it within your right to tip whatever you feel (until those automatic tips are in effect in your situation)

I explained on a different tipping thread already that "automatic tips" are not mandatory tips. The one time I ever paid zero tip was at a restaurant that automatically charged 18% for parties of 8 or more, and we had a party that applied to. I explained to the manager that the service was terrible, and that we wouldn't be leaving a tip. He tried to give me the "it's restaurant policy..." speech. I told him we would be paying exactly what we owed for the food and taxes but no tip, and that's what we paid.

but it is my personal opinion that, which being a free Country and a disney information board that allows me to express them, you are being unfair to the Disney CM who serves your drinks and cleans up after you at the buffet if you leave anything less than 15%.

Well, then you're wrong.

These servers are still living off the tips and as has been said ad nauseum and do much more than the Bonanza or generic off site buffet.

The biggest problem with the existence of multiple tipping threads is that the participants end up repeating themselves. Disney buffet servers already get a premium tip compared to their off-site buffet server counterparts by virtue of the fact that the Disney buffets cost 2-3X as much. So even without increasing the percentage at all, the 10% tip at a Disney buffet is more than double that at Golden Corral or Bonanza.

We're talking about an extra $5.00 - $10.00 (+/-) for a family of 4 at Boma for example.

Let's do the math.

Golden Corral, 4 adults, dinner and soft drinks: $45. 10% tip: $4.50.
Boma, 4 adults, dinner and soft drinks: $104. 10% tip: $10.40. That's more than double already, even without increasing the tip percentage. Increase to 20%, and the tip works out to $20.80. That's five times as much tip as the Golden Corral buffet server. If you want to pay more than double for the meal and five times as much for a tip, go ahead. But I don't think most people, however enamored of Disney they might be, would think Disney buffet servers deserve five times the tip of a Golden Corral server. Double? Sure. Maybe even triple. But five times just seems wacky to me.

I can't believe that anyone can justify that these servers do less work than the Signature servers.

Let me put this in different terms that might make it easier to follow.

At a regular table service or signature restaurant, I, the guest, have to do nothing other than order food. The server does everything for me. I pay a tip to that server in response to the work that was done for me. Good so far?

At a buffet restaurant, I wander from place to place gathering food and carrying it to my table. I assist my young children with assembling/carrying their plates of food, sometimes while my plate of food gets cold sitting at the table. I get my own desserts, and help the kids there as well. All of this stuff would be done by my server in a TS or signature restaurant.

Now given the fact that I am the person paying for the meal, and I had to do a lot more work in a buffet restaurant than I did in the regular TS restaurant, there is no way in any reasonable analysis of the situation could justify paying the same tip percentage in both restaurants. The dining experience for the guest -- the person paying the tip -- is definitely not equal between the two restaurants.

Understand?

10% is perfectly fair in buffet restaurants. The day I walk into a buffet restaurant and the servers do the work of gathering food for my family and I and delivering it to our table, is the day that I will tip them the same as I tip in a non-buffet restaurant.

David

 

[Peter Pirate 2]

And that's fine...But in my opinion you're wrong. !0% is doodly squat and If you can't cough up the x-tra five or ten bucks to help a fellow human being make a decent living for an honest (and above average) days work then perhaps counter service would be more to your liking but in the system as it is I wholly agree that you have the right to leave whatever You think is fair.

Oh and regarding the comparison of servers (Disney Vs. offsite Golden Corral) are you honestly saying the service quality is equivalent? That the Disney CM's are basically the same as an offsite buffet? If you are then Disney has bigger problems than we're discussing here.

 

[dqpowell]

!0% is doodly squat and If you can't cough up the x-tra five or ten bucks

Did you even read my last post? If 10% is "doodly squat" then tell your bank you want to pay 10% on your mortgage. Or ask them why they aren't paying 10% on your savings account.

to help a fellow human being make a decent living for an honest (and above average) days work

This would imply that buffet workers can't make a decent living on 10% tips at a Disney buffet, which is patently and demonstrably false.

Oh and regarding the comparison of servers (Disney Vs. offsite Golden Corral) are you honestly saying the service quality is equivalent?

And I will honestly ask again: did you even read my previous post? Particularly the part about how I'm perfectly willing to pay the Disney CM's a higher tip, based on the fact that even a 10% tip there is 2-3 times as large as the tip at Golden Corral, due to the 2-3X higher cost for the meal in the first place?

Servers don't collect "percentages" off of the table. They collect actual dollars. $15 in tip money is $15 whether it's 10% of $150 or 15% of $100.

Let me make one last attempt at explaining my position. This shouldn't really be necessary, as tipping guides published pretty much anywhere in the U.S. indicate that 10% is fair and reasonable for buffet service. But here's the attempt anyway.

Let's say my wife and I were to visit a spa, and that there were two kinds of spas. At the first spa, we walk in and tell the clerk we want a 40-minute full-body massage with a variety of massage oils. They have us lay down on massage tables, then go to work. Later we pay the bill and leave a 20% tip for the massage therapists.

At the second spa, we walk in and tell the clerk we want a 40-minute full-body massage with a variety of massage oils. "That's great!" responds the clerk. "We have dozens of massage oils to choose from, plus a wide variety of powders, towels, and hot washcloths. You'll love it!" They show us to a room containing all that stuff.

The only problem? "Oh, you have to massage your own arms, legs, hands and feet. We'll massage your back, which you can't reach yourself, and we'll make sure the oils, towels, and cloths are cleared away once they've been used, and keep new ones stocked." Do you honestly think it could be justified to pay a 20% tip to the staff in the second spa?

Now one might argue that the staff at the second spa works just as hard as the staff at the first spa. But that's irrelevant to the customer, who is the one paying the tip.

It's the same with the restaurants. In one case, I, the customer, am waited on completely. In the second case (at a buffet), I, the customer, am doing a lot of the work that would be done for me at the non-buffet restaurant. It simply does not make sense to tip the same at both restaurants.

David

 

[SandraVB79]

you people are amazing, counting the number of actions a waiter has to perform in order to calculate your tips! Maybe you all need balanced score cards, so you can calculate the correct percentage you want to tip, lol!

Anyway, I have never been to buffets at WDW but have been at DL and DLP, and there you enter, you pay, they seat you, and that's about it. No speech about what you can find where (ok with me, I have eyes, a high IQ so I can figure out for myself what is on the buffet), no drink refills because you had to get them yourself, ...

I also don't understand why people working at Disney are considered different from people working at another company. Disney is a COMPANY, not some sort of magicak pixie-dusted heaven, although they try to make us believe that. Someone working at Golden Corral (whatever that may be) is working just the same as someone at Disney in order to pay the bills.




Oh, and btw, to one person making a remark about foreigners having more plates than others at a buffet: I don't get that. We usually eat less than Americans. Although I don't like my food to touch, and I don't like to pile food high to fit huge amounts of food on one plate. So that's why I use an extra plate.