Tipping in USA/Canada
in [Airline Travel]
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From: Tchiowa on 11 Nov 2007 04:59 On Nov 11, 3:32 pm, "JohnT" <johnSPAMNO...(a)fastmail.fm> wrote: > "John L" <jo...(a)iecc.com> wrote in message > > news:fh5lks$1j06$1(a)gal.iecc.com... > > > >So the customer has to pay his/her server's minimum wage in addition > >>to paying for the food and the tax. > > > Yeah. Think of it as an implicitly itemized bill. > > > When I was in England earlier this year, I noted the the prices in > > restaurants in the UK were about the same as in the US, except that > > the prices were in pounds, so something that cost 20 dollars in the US > > would cost 20 pounds in the UK. Even after you leave a tip, I think > > you'll find that restaurant prices in the US are not out of line with > > prices in other developed countries. > > I don't argue that often prices in the UK are much higher than in the USA. > Prices in London are obscenely high, but tend to be more reasonable > throughout much of the rest of the UK. But I do find it very strange that in > a highly-developed Society such as the USA whoever serves a meal may well be > paid much less than the minimum legal wage. Actually I think it's a better system. Everyone should get paid in tips. Doctors, lawyers, accountants, every one. Pay people according to the quality of the service they provide rather than everyone getting the same pay regardless of their performance. > And surely the USA (plus, > perhaps, Canada) is the only territory where taxes are not included in the > quoted cost. So, in New York for example, a meal nominally costing $25 would > actually cost $25 + 8.25% + 15%, which is more than $31. Apparently you've never been out of Europe or US. In most places of the world, prices are quoted ++ which means service and taxes additional.
From: Mr Travel on 11 Nov 2007 05:58 Robert Cohen wrote: > re: the economics of restaurant patronage and everything else in an > often depressing reality > > a few days ago, an olive garden (owned by darden) had people waiting > for a table for lunch, and that estimated 30 minutes of waiting around > would be to me a sort of torture > > other nearby restaurants, including the somewhat more expensive > darden's red lobster where we ended up. were not seemingly as crowded > (one can also estimate from the number of cars in an eatery's parking > lot if too lazy to go inside the bldg) > > buyers certainly do tend to be price conscious, and it doesn't take > einstein (or the "hungrygarian" teller) to perceive a basic simple > phenomenon that the "too busy" olive garden is simply perceived as > "better value" or considered "relatively cheaper" You could also perceived 1. Food at Olive Garden tastes better 2. Americans would rather eat pasta at lunch than seafood 3. The waitresses at OG are better than RL 4. OG has the biggest sign or the best location. 5. Perhaps RL has bad odors You could base it on a lot of things Why assume it was price?
From: Mr Travel on 11 Nov 2007 05:59 Craig Welch wrote: > > Wendy's is a fast food outlet. It does not serve quality, tasty > food. Period. > You've obviously haven't been there.
From: DaveM on 11 Nov 2007 06:33 On Sun, 11 Nov 2007 01:59:28 -0800, Tchiowa <tchiowa2(a)hotmail.com> wrote: >Actually I think it's a better system. Everyone should get paid in >tips. Doctors, lawyers, accountants, every one. Pay people according >to the quality of the service they provide rather than everyone >getting the same pay regardless of their performance. Yup, it's irrational the system is only applied to some service industries and not others. In fact, if it's such a good system why shouldn't it be applied to _all_ goods and services - why just the waiter and not the meal, the ambience, the facilities? In fact, tipping is a lousy system. Sure, it benefits the restaurateur as he can transfer wage costs onto the customers; it benefits the wait staff as they can hide their income from the tax authorities, and it benefits the "stiffer" as they can transfer part of their meal cost onto their fellow customer. But the honest, tipping patrons ends up making up the missing tax, and subsidising the restaurateur and other patrons, which doesn't sound like a good deal to me. Even worse than the voluntary tipping system is the compulsory tip (aka "service charge"), which is rarely, if ever, displayed prominently in the hope the customer will be stupid enough to tip twice. It's a particularly invidious scam because it's generally set at 5-10% below the normal tip level, making regular tippers feel they're not giving enough. They are, of course, because this time everyone's paying and it shows how much they subsidise the non-tipper's meal normally. DaveM
From: Rog' on 11 Nov 2007 07:42
> Craig Welch wrote: >> Wendy's is a fast food outlet. It does not serve >> quality, tasty food. Period. Of all the fast food joints out there, I've found its food to be fresher and higher quality than the others, and for similar menu items, it compares favorably to some sit-down restaurants, i.e. Chili's, TGI Friday's, Ruby Tuesday or Benngan's. What Wendy's lacks are the more ambitious menu items, ambienence and alcohol. |