Tipping at Palo

[candiedoug]

We are going on 7 day Western cruise end of January. Will do both brunch and dinner at Palo. How much should we tip and do we tip when we eat or at the end of the cruise?

 

[ImTooExcitedToSleep]

I thought that the $10 was the tip. You can of course add on to that.

 

[eva]

This seems to be a hot topic here on the board. DH and I usually leave an extra $30 or $40. But I have no idea how much of the $10 fee they get. I just know that we would normally leave a lot more than a $20 tip for a meal like that at WDW. If they get the whole fee then $60 may seem a bit much for two, but remember a tip is shared over many people. A portion will also go to the host/hostess, the bartender, the bus staff, etc. Granted we have had nothing but exceptional service at Palo. If we ate at Bistro de Paris the bill would run over $200. A minimum tip for us would be $40 (20%). But more likely $50 or $60, if the service is exceptional.

The servers at Palo are my new best friends by the end of each meal. How could I not love a person who brings me such wonderful desserts? And a piece of each too! Yummy! Only 42 days till I will be eating there again!

 

[daisy112878]

I have to agree with eva. There's been much discussion on here about what the $10 covers. Some have been told it was the tip and others have been told that it wasn't. We tip based on what we feel the meal is worth to us. I definitely think like eva in that it ranks up there with Bistro.


edited: forgot the other part of your question - we tipped after brunch and dinner before we left Palo.

 

[Amy7979]

I have heard (from a friend who dined at Palo recently and talked with the waitress) that the wait staff doesn't see ANY of the $10 charge, that the $10 is simply the fee to dine there, not a gratuity of any kind. When he was talking to me about my upcoming cruise, he reminded me to tip the Palo server appropriately. It certainly sounds like they deserve it, from what I've heard of the exceptional service there.

 

[lillygator]

it's pretty much up to you. We figure that the meal we have would be well over $150 so we tip according to that and more usually for the service we receive.

 

[dursin]

We are going on 7 day Western cruise end of January. Will do both brunch and dinner at Palo. How much should we tip and do we tip when we eat or at the end of the cruise?

The suggested tips for your main servers if you add them all up are $7.50 per person per day ($3.75 main server, $2.75 assistant server and $1 head server). This gratuity is expected to cover their services at all 3 meals not just dinner...at least that's what I've seen posted here many times.

Given that $7.50 per person is split three ways for your regular servers and is supposed to cover service for an entire day, we feel that $7.50 per person (which is in addition to the service charge) for a SINGLE meal split between 2 people is more than adequate for the Palo servers.

This can also be adjusted slightly up or down depending on the meal/service. ie, $5pp for High Tea, $7.50pp for brunch and $10pp for dinner.

 

[paulcrsb]

I usually tip $30 - $40 depending on how good the server was.

 

[101DalmFan]

To answer your question, you do not tip Palo servers at the end of the cruise -- at the end of your meal you will be presented with a bill to sign, covering the $10 fee for dining there, any alcohol you order, and there is a spot to write in a tip. Hubby and I are always 20% tippers when we get great service, so on our upcoming trip we will calculate approximately what the meal would have cost us normally and tip accordingly. I can't remember what I left as a tip last year when my girlfriend and I dined (and brunched) at Palo, where we each had separate bills, but twenty bucks comes to mind. Worth every penny

 

[eva]

The suggested tips for your main servers if you add them all up are $7.50 per day ($3.75 main server, $2.75 assistant server and $1 head server). This gratuity is expected to cover their services at all 3 meals not just dinner...at least that's what I've seen posted here many times.

Given that $7.50 per person is split three ways for your regular servers and is supposed to cover service for an entire day, we feel that $7.50 per person (which is in addition to the service charge) for a SINGLE meal split between 2 people is more than adequate for the Palo servers.

This can also be adjusted slightly up or down depending on the meal/service. ie, $5pp for High Tea, $7.50pp for brunch and $10pp for dinner.

I guess this makes sense, if you believe that the tipping guidelines make sense to begin with. I think that the guidlines are way too low for good service. I would pay much more in tips for the same types of meals and service off the ship.

 

[cruisinluver]

DCL states that the service charge is the gratuity. We figure the meal to be about $75 a person and feel that $10 is more than adequate as a gratuity per person. We don't feel the need to leave more but know it is ok if others do. It is none of our business how much a server keeps of that $10, but we also know that a waiter in any restaurant does not keep their all of their tips either.

 

[Amy7979]

DCL states that the service charge is the gratuity. We figure the meal to be about $75 a person and feel that $10 is more than adequate as a gratuity per person. We don't feel the need to leave more but know it is ok if others do. It is none of our business how much a server keeps of that $10, but we also know that a waiter in any restaurant does not keep their all of their tips either.

I'm confused... $10 isn't even 15% of $75. I haven't cruised yet, but from everything I've heard, the service at Palo compares favorably to some of the fine dining establishments I'd experience here in Boston. I'd certainly expect to tip at least 15% there (and would expect my meal total to be more to be more than $75 pp, probably! )

I'm also really confused about the DCL statement that the service charge is the gratuity. Can you point out where this is stated? I ask only because my friend spoke with his Palo server last month and was told the $10 is not a gratuity, just the fee for dining there.

I am dining at Palo in less than a month and just want to make sure I get it right!

Thanks!

 

[2Princes_&_1Princess]

DCL states that the service charge is the gratuity. We figure the meal to be about $75 a person and feel that $10 is more than adequate as a gratuity per person. We don't feel the need to leave more but know it is ok if others do. It is none of our business how much a server keeps of that $10, but we also know that a waiter in any restaurant does not keep their all of their tips either.

Well, even going by that logic, which is good logic, we'd always tip at least 20% for good service - making it a $15/pp tip. I think we'll go with the assumption that the server doesn't see that $ and go ahead and leave at least $15pp as a gratuity.

 

[DCL Repeaters]

The $10 fee per person at Palo is split among many who work there. Your server will get very little out of that fee. Anything you leave above and beyond the $10 per person fee is kept 100% by your server.

 

[cruisinluver]

I'm also really confused about the DCL statement that the service charge is the gratuity. Can you point out where this is stated?

It is stated on Disneycruise.com.

We don't find PALO to even come close to fine dining establishments. To us, it doesn't even touch the experience you get at Victoria and Albert's in WDW.

I also stated that the meal is ABOUT $75 a person. 15% of 150 is $22.50. We NEVER tip 20% and don't know where or when that became the new 15%.

 

[cruisinluver]

The $10 fee per person at Palo is split among many who work there. Your server will get very little out of that fee. Anything you leave above and beyond the $10 per person fee is kept 100% by your server.

Please provide documentation for this information.

 

[eva]

Well, even going by that logic, which is good logic, we'd always tip at least 20% for good service - making it a $15/pp tip. I think we'll go with the assumption that the server doesn't see that $ and go ahead and leave at least $15pp as a gratuity.

I totally agree with you. Since there seems to be so much conflicting information on what they do with that $10, I would rather assume the server doesn't see any of the fee and tip appropriately. I would hate to think that there was even the slightest chance that I walked out the door without tipping the server at all. I also agree that $10 per person is a pretty small tip for the quality of the food and service that we have experienced at Palo. But as I said before, this is a hot topic. And there are going to be a lot of differing opinions. And that's what they are, opinions.

 

[2Princes_&_1Princess]

It is stated on Disneycruise.com.

We don't find PALO to even come close to fine dining establishments. To us, it doesn't even touch the experience you get at Victoria and Albert's in WDW.

I also stated that the meal is ABOUT $75 a person. 15% of 150 is $22.50. We NEVER tip 20% and don't know where or when that became the new 15%.

That's still more than $10 pp -- even at 15%. We tip 20% for exceptional service, which we are anticipating at Palo. We would never tip BELOW 15% for above standard service. Actually, we rarely tip below 15%, even for substandard service.

Also, Victoria and Albert's is certainly in a class by itself. I'd never expect to get that service anywhere else. We always tip about 25% for service like that.

Anyway, to each his own. As long as you are comfortable with your tip, it doesn't matter if your fellow passengers are.

 

[DCL Repeaters]

Please provide documentation for this information.

It came right from a Palo servers mouth who is a dear friend of mine. I think that's documentation enough.

 

[stina]

I calculate that our meal is about $100 worth of food, so we tip 20% which is usually $20 for the two of us per Palo meal. (In addition to our 2 $10 fees). Tipping is not required but the service there is exceptional so why not? For the record, I always tip 20% unless the server is very disappointing in which case I tip 15%. That's just me.