Tipping @ Brewpubs

And let me know what type of service you get at the same bar next time after tipping $1 on a $100 bottle. I hope they spit in it too

 

Burning time at a table also costs the waiter/waitress. They could have other patrons waiting that are actually willing to tip.

 

I've gotten bad service before thats why restaurants have managers one waitress who cursed me out and refused to serve me since she got a "unfair" tip last time got fired all servers need to remember tipping is OPTIONAL if they don't like what the restaurant pays and relying on people tipping alot then their free to work somewhere else. Finally I can tell you if someone spit in my drink or food there would be a lawsuit against the restaurant and whoever did the spitting can actually get jail time some guy did this at a pizza place and made a video I think it was Dominoes.

 

You are correct in one respect --- the waitress shouldn't have cursed you out (at least not to your face) and probably should have been fired. On the other hand, the manager should have stepped up and told you that you're not welcome at their establishment. They don't have to serve you and, if you're not tipping appropriately and you're camping at their tables, they're within their purview to not serve you.

P.S. I added capitalization and punctuation and correct spelling to your nearly incoherent post. You're welcome.

 

Personally I think tipping has gotten out of control the past decade or so but as mentioned by others $1 per beer would be standard. I hate change so when people tip me 50 cents I just leave it and it honestly irritates me, it's not that I'm ungrateful it's more that I'm an asshole. Since you are new to bars here is some advice, you gave the bartender no tip and he remembered you for it, right? Try the opposite, whenever I have a new bartender or go to a new bar, I leave a big tip, this will assure they remember you for the right reasons and you shall receive better service going forward.

 

I do agree that a server should earn their tips. That's why we have the freedom of deciding how much to tip. I do agree on no tip for horrible or rude service. I just hate when people don't even tip for good service. I like to tip well to servers who really made an effort to make sure I was having a good time and happy. And by the way I don't actually think a server should ever spit or do anything nasty to a customers food)

 

How about tipping for take-out growlers at a brewpub? What do bartenders expect in that situation?

 

I tip 20% pretty much everywhere I sit down. If I occupy a table and am drinking a nice beer, I tip 20%. A $9 beer shouldn't warrant an 11% tip.

If I'm standing around at a bar, it's usually the case that the beer isn't my first priority. Also, it means I'm probably drinking a Gansett or something way cheaper than if I were to sit down. This means that a $1/beer is actually pretty fair or, on a $4 beer, is actually generous.

Oh, and not tipping is never cool. If the service is terrible, 5-10%. If I am openly disrespected, I simply leave.

 

Here's how I look at tipping. An extra $3 isn't diddly squat out of my hide, no matter how you cut it. However an extra $3 on a tip is downright nice, and if you are a regular or even plan on coming back, it should be enough that you are remembered as a decent tipper. If I go to a bar and spend $25 on 3 beers and and an appetizer, $5 would be a 20% tip. Three bucks more gets me to to a solid tip of $8 and I'm spening $33 instead of $30, big deal. If I'm chafing, it's because I have an expensive hobby I have trouble controlling, not because bartenders are greedy demanding a-holes.

Yes $1 a beer is an ok round figure if you want, but to me, that's a BMC tip. If you are drinking craft, at least around my town, you are in a place that cares enough to cater to people with good taste and do things right. Fair to say a person serving craft posesses more knowledge and provides a signicicantly higher evel of service than somebody serving BMC in a dive with a lame cover band.

 

20% tip from me on pretty much anything whether it be a bottle/glass of beer or a gourmet meal. That said, my minimum tip is $1, so if I order one $3 beer for some reason, they will still get at least a dollar.

To the OP, even if you had never stepped in a bar in your life I find it impossible that you made it twenty one years through life and didn't know you had to tip a bartender.

 

Servers judging customers by their supposed social or financial status is not cool. It's kind of ironic actually. Where I drink, there are plenty of students who lay down more cash than I do and I have a pretty solid job. Maybe a student only comes in once every couple of weeks on payday, but it's the one thing they really splurge on. If I have a business, and someone who does not have a lot of money chooses to have thier one big night out in my establishment, that to me is a big deal, and certainly that customer deserves as much or more respect as any other customer.

Being openly insulted by a bartender? I think I might be inclined to report that to the owner.

Not specifically to the OP, just generally... Being called out because you are openly insecure about whether or not you can afford to be there - and closing the deal by not tipping? I'd have to think about that one.

 

I always tip at least $1 on every beer I get, regardless of what it is. $2 PBR at happy hour or $10 tulip of Cantillon at the fancy Belgian bar. I'll tip extra if the service exceeds opening a can or bottle from the cold case or pouring a beer off the tap, i.e. Large format bottles, pitchers, something that's in the basement, etc. I think $1 is fair for most beers. If you get crappy service or the bartender makes a snide comment when they give you the beer, I'd just walk out. I wouldn't patronize the bar. Then I'd email the manager to tell them about my experience and try to be as accurate as possible and see what they will do to fix it. Usually an apology is good enough for me, but if they want to buy me a beer I'd take it. If they don't respond or are nasty, I'd post negative Yelp!, tripadvisor, BA, etc reviews just so other people know. That usually gets their attention.

Kind of off topic:

I've worked food service and I tried my best for every customer. Sometimes I would forget something, not on purpose, but it happens when the restaurant is business. Sometimes if you have a table full of drunk people or children, you are disproportionately attentive to that table and the service to others suffer. For this reason, I try to tip well (~20%) for reasonably good service:

• Greeting us at the table shortly after we've been seated
• Explaining the menu/specials and taking drink orders within a couple minutes
• Refilling water and drinks at regular intervals
• Delivering food in a timely manner that is hot
• Checking on you shortly after the food has arrived to make sure you have the condiments, utensils you need need and everything was prepared as you wanted
• Giving you the check in a timely manner

If I get bad service, usually I'll ask the hostess to speak to a manager. I would never ask the server to the manager for me because they will usually lie to cover their asses. Then I would tell the manager what was wrong. Just leaving a shitty tip reflects more poorly on you than them, because then the server can tell the other staff that you were an ass, not the other way around. After you tell the manager what happens, if the manager tries to remedy the situation, even only an apology, great. Otherwise, I'd leave a poor tip 5-10% or no tip and never come back, telling everyone you know the same. I think it's bullshit to tip everyone 20% no matter what, because it doesn't reward good service and it's reenforces crap service. If someone can offer sufficient service, then they need to find another job. It's not my responsibility to subsidize their inadequacies.

 

I tip a dollar plus whatever change is needed to make it an even dollar amount. this is easy since I never carry cash so I can just write it down.

that is, until I am nice and drunk... then I make it rain like I am ballin' on a budget. and by make it rain, I mean 3 dollars!

 

Even if someone does stiff you, it's never ok as a service person to make a hit below the belt. Having dated and known a lot of bartenders, they do occasionally get short changed; it's part of the job. If you react to the bad tips, your only perpetuating the problem by reacting with a shitty attitude. Here in Washington servers actually make minimum wage plus tip. There is no excuse for bad service, period! ( not to mention the amount of out of work bartenders who would be happy to take a shitty servers place).
And for the record i typically tip anywhere from 20-25 percent ( except in instances where the service is abysmal, and I leave pocket change as a clear message and often talk to the manager).

 

$3-5 depending on how busy it is, how long I have to wait, the price of the growler fill, and how complicated the growler fill protocols are at the particular bar.

Highly carbonated Belgian beers capped with CO2 overflow are a pain to do, or so I'm told.

If they're just trading you a full growler for an empty one, $2.

 

Man, lots of surprising (cheap) answers in here. I always have a tab, so I simply tip 20%+ whether I eat or not. I'm not going to sit and split out the beers and pay a $1 each. That's ridiculous and my time is worth more than the few bucks I'm saving.

Also...you are RENTING the table for the time you are there. If the server is not turning the table (bar stool), they are not making money off your $1 tipping ass. If you are camping for a couple of hours, your tip should reflect that.

Sounds like a lot of you SHOULD stick to Mickey D's

 

Your not renting the table from the server its from the resturant which is why a beer at a bar costs more than at home.
Also Mcdonalds in Germany serves beer

 

If the server is the one on the clock taking care of you, you're renting it from the server. For the time that server is there, that is their table and it is their job to take care of it. They use those tables to make their living. Based on your lack of respect for people who serve you, I can only assume you have never worked in a restaurant?

Now having said that, I agree with you that tipping is 100% OPTIONAL...but rewarding good service should also a 100% POSSIBILITY. Based on what I've seen from you in this thread, servers either get a crappy tip or no tip and it never seems like you throw out a couple extra bucks to reward anybody (unless you get something for free).

And beer at McDonalds is awesome! What type of beer do they serve? Do they actually brew it?

 

No I haven't but what job you do at least in this country is a choice so if someone doesn't like being a server they should try to find other work. Also they aren't just serving me if I'm just sitting at the table not doing much or at the bar they can always go work another table in addition to me since at that point I won't need much. I have given more than $1 per for things other than getting something free if their a friend or I have a difficult request for example. What I don't like is how servers feel they should be paid based on how much what they serve costs please explain why you think this makes any sense. The waitress at the fancy steak house did just as much work as the one from Outback (the ones from Outback seem friendlier but thats besides the point) since they do the same job and amount of work why should one be paid more?

I dont remember all the different types of beer at Mcdonalds but if I remember right they had a pilsner and Oktoberfest .I don't remember if they brewed it themselves but have to say best Mcdonalds ever they have good meat and cheese for their burgers there too sadly it was one of the best burgers I had in Europe and the only one that was a normal American size the French need to learn from the USA I almost starved there

 

If I'm just grabbing a brew from the bar when I'm seated somewhere, or meandering about, I generally just round up. If it's an even amount I'll toss a dollar down usually.

If I'm sitting at a table and ONLY having a beer or 4, I generally leave a bit more. My wife spent a few years waitressing and now cuts hair so I/we appreciate the fact that $5.25/hr doesn't pay the bills unless it's supplemented by some unclaimed tips