Just had dinner with my family and I’m someone who served tables all through college so my floor is 20%. I hate that tip culture but know this is these peoples livelihood. To get 20% from me you don’t even have to be very good.
Insert my night. Told to sit wherever but with my 13 month old I need a high chair. None in the house. Okay fine. No where to sit that isn’t a high top either. Well shit okay. I’ll let him sit in the booster chair and hold my arm around him. Only table available is in the back of the house in their arcade room. Sigh… okay fine. Also the lights are off in the room so just the glow of the arcade games and the lights from the main dining room and my babies tablet is illuminating the room. It’s decently lit though.
So we’re waiting 5,10,15 minutes for the waitress finally she comes. She’s greeted by me with smiles. We have had plenty of time to look at the menu online so I ask for waters at the table a beer and an app. 10 minutes later she comes back with menus. I inquire about the beer. She asked me what beer. Sigh…. The beer I explain. She says oh right okay. We proceed with the rest of the order. She says she forgot to put in the app, do I still want it. “Yes please it can just come with the food.”
We wait 20 minutes no beer no app nothing. Eventually it all comes but still no beer. We request napkins and ketchup. That comes quick then my beer comes maybe 15 minutes after. We request a separate plate to cut up babies food that never came.
Baby is getting fussy we request the bill to pay. After getting it she never returned I never saw her again. I waited as long as the baby allowed then asked another waitress to pay. On my $60 ticket I left $9. Typically it would be 12-15 from me but I was so irate I dropped it down to 15%. The experience was horrible. My wife asked what I tipped and I said that and she was shocked as I never reduce. Just nothing felt like I got service and I was very frustrated, although the waitress got nothing but smiles and kindness from me.
So is it okay ever to reduce tip based on service. I know I’m this sub we support the workers as it’s their livelihood but can they completely ignore me and my family and not serve me and still be giving full tip? If I’m the ass tell me and I’ll go back to 20% even if they slap my son and wife in the face.