Ummm, it totally is a societal thing.
Europeans come over here and have a drink and they either don't tip at all because they don't understand that it's pretty much 'expected' or they try to fit in and tip whatever is the appropriate amount in this country even though they think it's stupid.

If you go over to a different country and start tipping the same amount for the same types of services that you do in the U.S. then you will get looked at like a weirdo a lot of the time.

It's totally a societal thing. If it weren't then when somebody tells me, "That'll be $3.50" then I would actually pay freaking $3.50 just like if I bought it at the 7-11 or the grocery store.

But I know how American society works. And when if the guy saying "That'll be $3.50" also happens to be a bartender then what he is really saying is "$3.50 to start plus it's pretty much expected that everybody who purchases a drink is supposed to leave a little something extra."

If it was based just on your own mood and not on societal standards at all then you would be pretty much tipping the dude at 7-11 or the grocery store or the fast-food restaurant as frequently as you do in other establishments. But you don't. Because you are pretty much following the standards that society has set.

In other words...if it was standard by everyone else to tip at the 7-11 then you would likely be doing that too. Just like you tip the bartender pretty much the same amount that everybody else in THIS country has already established is the norm. And also just like you shouldn't take that custom to certain other countries because it can even be considered insulting or inappropriate elsewhere.

Here is the deal.

No tip is a bad tip. Any tip you get is more than you had when you started the transaction.

You might get less that you would like from some people, but you'll get more than you expect from others. Be happy and gracious to get a tip of any kind on a beer purchase. Seriously, you open a bottle, or draw a beer from a keg into a glass. This isn't ****in rocket science. If you want a larger tip than the coins I get back from a purchase of a beer, you better brew that **** yourself and do some McGyver craziness in pouring or opening the bottle to give me a good show.

But as I said I rarely if ever drink when I go out, because I refuse to tip a bartender more money on top of an absurdly overpriced beer.

Seriously?

No one cares whether you think .50 is a bad tip, or whether someone haggling over spinach bothers you. I could say that I agree with some things, but I won't, because it doesn't matter.

If you're good at your job then in the long run you should be pulling in >17% and be happy, no matter what one single tip may be. There are many correlations to poker here. If you truly thought about the long run, and were doing the best for yourself here, than none of this **** matters.

I think its pretty obvious you don't, otherwise, with every 'this guy tipped me .50 on a beer' type whine, you would include a 'wow, this nice person left me $20 on a $70 check', and it all averages out. You've made it clear you don't think about it this way.

Yep.

Good luck OP, I'm out. If you want to further try to backpeddle and/or explain your lack of understanding, I'll check in later.

On the bit about drinks:
At the casino I usually tip $1 or $2 per drink.
The cost of the drink is $0.
I am tipping way more than 20% imo!!!!

Well, this thread's gotten 150 responses pretty fast for no one caring what I think a bad tip is. If it doesn't matter to you, then please stop posting. I'm personally having fun here.

I'm well aware that it evens out. And you seem to know a lot about what I think and am like and know. Especially for a guy WHO KEEPS MISSING THE POINT THAT I WASN'T COMPLAINING ABOUT THE 50 CENT THING, BUT POINTING IT OUT AS PART OF A SET OF, IMHO, POINTLESS CHEAP BEHAVIORS.

Thanks, it's been truly humbling and edifying talking to, you know, a guy who waited tables at a saveur top-20 restaurant.

THAT'S WAY OVER 14.3% CRAZY SINCE MY DORMMATE CAN MAKE MIXED DRINKS IMO

The place I go to charges $3.50 a drink.
If I drink they are getting the 50 cent tip no more.
How the **** can you complain about someone giving you free money OP?

Is a tip entitled to you???
Did you see a tip is required in the fine print when you filed for the job.
If someone does not tip you should treat them the same. If not you are not doing your job. Which last time I check, you are still getting paid hourly.

Not differently, less.

Agree with OP. Lots of nits in this thread whether they know it or not.

what a ****ty thread

OH HAY EVERYBODY HENRY TIPS A LOT

QF

"Also, I do not understand the $.50 tip. As in, someone comes to the bar, orders a $3.50 beer and pays with a 5, gets back $1.50, and leaves the two quarters. It's not exactly that I feel entitled to the $1, although it is standard, but I can't fathom the mentality of someone who wouldn't just throw down the buck, if for no other reason than not wanting to look cheap and douchey."

why would someone give you a $1.5 for handing them a beer?

the only lol was that IP is better than MGM

societal customs ldo

only in America.

yeah people working in Mcdonalds make $6/hr and he makes 1/4 of that for handing a guy a beer? why would people buy into something ******ed like that regardless if everyone else is doing it?

hahahahahaha oh these tipping threads, they make me vomit

You might want to reconsider how strong a convention a dollar/drink tip is. I'm not American and I've never worked as a waiter before but just reading through this thread suggests that whilst a dollar is standard, 50 cents isn't exactly unconventional.

IMO, you come accross as a douche. If your problem was that you needed the extra 50 cents then that would be understandable. Since your problem is with people who don't conform to this (overstated by you IMO, but even still) convention AND you consider it enough of a problem to post about it on an internet forum, this makes you a douche.

That 50 cents might mean something to someone should not be so difficult to grasp.

You do. You know these words you are typing, they are what says you have a ****ty attitude. Maybe if you learn some self reflection you won't be reliant on other people giving you tips to make your day slightly worth living.

I briefly dated a girl who was a bartender at some private, exclusive club at the top of some high-rise.
She described it as, "Rich guys who tip me $60 just to pour 3 glasses of some $100 per glass type of Brandy [or whatever it was they liked to drink]. Easiest money ever."

lol@ this thread. Happy is a pretty cool dude who would probably make a dining experience more enjoyable, and would reap the benefits of that. OP is a douche who shows why he receives 50c. tips. It's pretty obvious why.

Which last time you check, did you see it was $2.13? And yes, tbh servers and bartenders are entitled to decent tips. When you enter a restaurant or bar, you are basically entering a tacit pact that says if the service is good, you will tip like a normal human being. Of course, you're not required to by law, but neither are you required by law to hold the door for an old lady carrying groceries or to say "bless you" after someone sneezes: it's just something you do if you're not a complete assh**e.

And if you think I, or anyone else in the service industry, is going to treat someone who doesn't tip the same as someone who does, you're either 12 or insane. Enjoy the loogies in your salad and waiting 15 minutes for your Michelob Ultra.