Tipping, this came up in one of the other forums...

[Zhoen]

Ok, budget gurus... question for you...

-How much do YOU tip at a buffet. To clarify... (1) how much do you tip at a "Hometown Buffet"-type place, where you pay at the door and everything is completely self-service, the closest thing to waiters is the bussers that come around and take the old plates away (2)how much do you tip at a buffet where a server does your drink and clears the dishes and brings you a bill at the end, and (3)how much do/would you tip at a Disney buffet... is it different, and if so, why?

There was a british neighbor asking this on the UK board, and I suggested that it was not necessary to tip 18-20% for a buffet, and my goodness, you'd think I'd cancelled Christmas! So then I asked around my office, and most of them don't tip at buffets at all, at least not the type where you do everything yourself, including pouring your own drink... I usually leave a small tip for the bussers. Now, to be fair, one guy in our office tips 20% EVERYWHERE... it's just his thing, and that's ok...

Then at places like Golden Corral, where they bring rolls and fill your drinks, I usually leave a tip of about $5 for me and my two kids, most of them either didn't tip or tipped about $1-2 per person at the table, except for the 20% guy...

And then someone mentioned that for parties of 6 or more, at Disney, 18% is automatically added *even for the buffets*. Is that right???? Exactly what would they be doing at our dinner buffet to warrant a $54 tip???? (especially considering we'll be there less than an hour, so that works out to a $1+/minute surcharge...)

Now, one lady on the other board with special diet concerns said her waiter usually walks them through the buffet and sometimes even brings out the chef to help them figure out what is safe... now see, that's more than a normal buffet server would do, so that deserves a special tip, definitely, but I'm talking about for those of us who just get our plates and take care of ourselves, or whatever is the deal at that particular buffet...

In the end, our british neighbor seems perfectly content to tip 15% or more at a buffet, and that's his affair, but this has just caught my curiosity. Yes, I know that waiters only get paid 50% of minimum wage and that pretty much is to cover their taxes, and they live on tips... but if the "party of 6" rule really does apply at the Disney buffets, I'll be booking my parents at a separate table, for sure! I tip based on service, not based on what someone somewhere decided waiters are "entitled" to... It's very un-vacationish to me to have to feel that if I don't hand out $50's to everyone I meet I'm somehow a grinch... but tipping $50 for a buffet just feels crazy to me.

How about y'all?

 

[Nanu57v]

We pretty much always tip 18%, but I can't think of any strictly buffets like you speak of around here. I remember when I was younger eating at a buffet place (like Country Buffet) and only tipping a few dollars...I mean, yeah, they just bring drinks and cover a much larger area than a table-service restaurant.

 

[Marionnette]

The suggested tip is printed at the bottom of your bill. Tipping is always at your discretion. I have tipped 20% at buffets when the wait staff has been particularly attentive with extra napkins, drink refills, clearing finished plates, etc.

I've also tipped as little as 10% when the wait staff did nothing more than clear the table after we left.

 

[lizabu]

I tend to tip 10% at a buffet rather than my usual 20% because all they do is show you your seat, bring you drinks and take away dirty dishes. I think they should get something but not as much as a full service restaurant

 

[Diegosmom]

We don't do buffets often but when we do things like pizza inn I will give $1-$2 a person. If we left a big mess (sometimes happen when I go with my friend and between us we have 5 kids) we will leave a bit more. Hubby and I (and our son) have done mothers day buffets where the bring the drinks and clear your plates and it is a bit more service and the place is more expensive we will leave more cuase it is not a typical buffet aand the servers usually get the 15-20% standard and I don't thing they get more because it is a special buffet. We have never done disney but I was surprised to read that people left 15-20%. I am also curious to hear how much "face time" you get with your server? In a typical place I would assume a server has about 3 tables but at a buffet I would assume they have more, maybe 6 cause they are only getting drinks and stuff. So should we be able to tip half as much cause they have twice as many tables?

 

[BBandDisney]

 

[kamik86]

When I went to Crystal Palace as a party of 9 they did add the automatic tip. I had no problem with this though. We were all drinking different things and he still kept up with them. He gave both my nieces that had birthday buttons signed cards and cupcakes (oh and they were 15 and 16 not kids that you would expect this for) He was hilarious playing a game with the girls relighting the candles as soon as they were blown out as if they were "trick candles"...

The only other place similar was Ohana but they do bring you food and we did make some special requests there too (I didn't know everything was all together on one plate so we had to ask for a plate without meat for the vegetarian in the group) and my neice loved the juice so she asked for an extra cup to bring what was left on the table home (the waitress kept laughing at her because every time she came by the table the juice was half gone), well instead she brought her a full large cup of juice!

Since then even in smaller groups most of the disney buffets have had better service then "normal" buffets so I definitely tip more then I do at home. Generally around 10% unless like above they do something extra special.

 

[JB2K]

Here's my take on the matter (not saying it's right/wrong -- just what I do).

Standard rule of thumb for full-service restaurants is 15% for good service.

Now, in my case (myself/wife/youngster), if we go to one of the buffet places (Golden Corral, Old Country/Home Town Buffet), I will leave a couple of dollars to cover the refilling of drinks (since we are serving ourselves, otherwise).

As for WDW -- I would use the 15% rule at all Table Service places (to include venues like Chef Mickey's/Crystal Palace).

As for the PP's British friend, one has to keep in mind that tipping customs vary greatly around the world. For example, in Japan, gratuities are built-into the menu pricing, and to tip the server "above and beyond" what's already been paid-out can be perceived as an insult.

Also, though it's never been mentioned, never, ever offer a tip to a store worker at one of the big chain stores (Walmart, Target) for helping you with a piece of merchandise -- if the worker accepts it, that's grounds for termination.

And, no, I do not tip my housekeeper @ Shades of Green, but that's for another thread...

 

[Zhoen]

I thought Crystal palace is a Buffet? In fact that's the buffet I'm planning on going to. Is it TS?

And I'm told the British actually don't tip in their culture, so this is a foreigner trying to ascertain what is "right" in ours... I just hate to see them getting scammed... that said, if they want to spend their money here, I guess our economy could certainly use it!

 

[akcire]

We don't eat at a lot of buffets.

At Disney we just tip our standard 15-20% at buffets. If the server is really good they get 20%, not so good closer to 15%.

We eat at Sweet Tomatoes often, it is a salad bar buffet. There are no servers, but each section has a person assigned to clear. Typically my husband and I will leave $3, it depends on what we have in our wallet. One time neither one of us had andy cash, so the kid got $2.74 (change from my husband's car). The next time we saw him, we made it up to him---without giving him 5 lbs of change.

 

[chalee94]

from page 764 of miss manners' guide to excruciatingly correct behavior:

GENTLE READER:

Miss Manners would dearly love to help you save a buck, which is no doubt what you have in mind, but not by telling you that waiters...don't need the money. Tip [buffet waiters] as you would the help in an ordinary restaurant.

If it is so much work for you to fill your dinner plate yourself, why do you go back and do it so often? Miss Manners saw you. However, you may save by not asking the hostesses for favors, such as special tables. They should get bribes for such attentions, but do not get ordinary tips.

 

[kamik86]

I thought Crystal palace is a Buffet? In fact that's the buffet I'm planning on going to. Is it TS?

And I'm told the British actually don't tip in their culture, so this is a foreigner trying to ascertain what is "right" in ours... I just hate to see them getting scammed... that said, if they want to spend their money here, I guess our economy could certainly use it!

Yes Crystal Palace is a buffet, so if your post was in response to mine that is why I used it in my example. Parties of 6 or more do still get charged 18% at buffets, but I was ok with that as i felt he earned it.

 

[miralys]

I don't go to buffets often (actually, I rarely go out to eat at all!) but when I do, I always tip 20%, the same as any other place. The main reason I do is that I am lazy and it's easier to calculate 20 percent than 18 or some other number. Is it more than etiquette dictates? Maybe, but it's an amount I feel comfortable leaving.

If something happens to make me feel my standard tip is not applicable (either due to excellent service or poor service) I will speak with the manager first before adjusting what I leave.

 

[mjkacmom]

Whenever we go to the Chinese buffet (the only buffet by us, thank goodness, and I can't stand going there as it is), I always tip at least 15%. My kids get up several times, and judging by the size of most of the diners, others do as well. Sure, they don't bring out your food, but they bus tables a lot more than at a regular restaurant.

 

[Zhoen]

Because this link is to CNN.com, quoting Emily Post, Miss Manner's competition...

http://money.cnn.com/pf/features/lists/tipping/

I was looking at this one also...

http://www.itipping.com/tip-guide-restaurant.htm

and for buffets it says nothing necessary for fast food (When's the last time anyone saw a KFC buffet????) so does that mean for the places where you pull your own cup out of a cafeteria-style cart and fill your own drink? $1-2pp for if they bring you drinks and check on you, and up to 20% for a "high-end hotel buffet brunch"-- so maybe that's where CP falls????

I'm still going to book my parents separately (so we're 4 and 2) and tip what feels right based on the service we get that day (not saying it WON'T be 18% or better... I once tipped 100%... but there was a reason, and it wasn't a $300 buffet...)

 

[Disneyliscious]

Im not going to lie here, I will never, under any circumstances pay a 20% tip on a meal in Disney. We ate at CM once and our bill was $170. It was a buffet. I don't think our waitress deserved $34 for bring us a few drinks for one hour. I did tip her $20 but not because I wanted to, I just felt "pressured". It wont be that way for me next time. Money is tighter.

If I'm at a buffet and am paying to eat and fix my own plate, that waiter/waitress will get between 5% and 10% from me. Just how it is. I understand they need money too, but so do I. I think that amount is VERY fair for someone walks by and see's your glass empty then brings a pitcher back to fill it.

If Im at a restaurant where I am totally waited on and catered to, its a whole other story of course. They are working for me at that point and deserve more.

Call me a tight wad, flame me, but Im just not going to pay someone an inflated tip "just because society tells me to".

My money comes in too hard for others to tell me how to spend it.

 

[TinkPirateMom]

I tip 20% or more at all table service restaurants. I do not go to buffets around here but in Disney I expect to give even servers at a character buffet meal a tip of 20% for greeting us, getting and refiling our drinks, describing how the character meal works, taking pics of our family with the characters, and clearing our dishes. To me that work warrants as much as table service.

That is what I plan on doing doesn't mean I expect everyone to do the same. In fact the reason I do it is because I was a server for 7 years and as such I know that one or two generous tips can really go a long way to make up for the tables that tipped little or nothing. Servers here make $2.00 to $3.00 an hour which all goes to taxes so their "paychecks" end up being not negotiable. So I feel the need to pay for their services.

 

[Zhoen]

I tip 20% or more at all table service restaurants. I do not go to buffets around here but in Disney I expect to give even servers at a character buffet meal a tip of 20% for greeting us, getting and refiling our drinks, describing how the character meal works, taking pics of our family with the characters, and clearing our dishes. To me that work warrants as much as table service.

That is what I plan on doing doesn't mean I expect everyone to do the same. In fact the reason I do it is because I was a server for 7 years and as such I know that one or two generous tips can really go a long way to make up for the tables that tipped little or nothing. Servers here make $2.00 to $3.00 an hour which all goes to taxes so their "paychecks" end up being not negotiable. So I feel the need to pay for their services.

Anybody know if the servers at Disney make the standard $7.35/hr or do they get the $2.12 or whatever that servers in normal restaurants get? Just curious...

 

[princessoftea]

I'm British and in the UK I usually tip around 10% for table service but not at all for a buffet. Our waiting staff are paid the minimum wage and tips aren't included in this.

I plan to tip differently when we visit WDW as I understand staff don't get minimum wage.

 

[cinabug]

So in Florida, wait staff gets less than minimum wage? That's ridiculous. In my state wait staff gets minimum wage, so it doesn't come down to customers to determine the actual wage. A tip is a tip, not required to get the server up to a decent wage. Disney charges enough to pay their employees fairly. Here I tip very minimally at buffets, since they are serving me no more than the typical retail clerk, who I do not tip at all. Both of those jobs are untrained, entry level positions, so I don't see why one is more entitled to money above minimum wage than the other. And, yes, I've worked at a bartender before, but it was in a very small town where people did not feel pressured to tip a certain percentage. Tips were all over the board, from nonexistent to excessive, and I did not vary my service depending on whether people tipped.

At a TS restaurant, I tip around 20%, rarely dependent on service quality. I just do it. I hate buffets, so I only go if someone else chooses the restaurant. I did not schedule any buffets into our Disney visit, so fortunately it will be a non issue there.