How to Tip at Restaurants

Most people eat out fairly often. It's become a staple of American life, to go out to restaurants now and then. Here are some tips on tipping that most servers, waiters, or waitresses would want you to know.

We make 2.13 an hour. Some restaurants pay higher, but that's the base legal minimum wage for tip-based jobs. We don't get breaks, and we're on our feet for a whole shift, so those tips are very important!

Do your math. 15 percent is really the base your tip should start with; 20% is preferable. In many restaurants, servers have to give part of their earnings to a tip pool for the host/hostess and maybe the bartender, too. That's not based on what you give them, it's based on their total sales. So if you stiff them? They will have to pay for you to eat. If you need help figuring out the percents, here's the easiest way. For 15%, move the decimal point of your total over one spot to the left. For 20.00 that would be 2.00. that's 10%. For 15%, just add half of that amount; for 20%, double it. If you're getting a bowl of soup, tipping less than a dollar isn't really appropriate, either - the server put as much effort into that as they would have into a burger, and if you don't leave anything that means they leave with less, too.

Is it their fault? Don't cut the tip for things like bad food, or the restaurant being out of products. That's not in the control of the server and you're not proving a point to the restaurant - they don't care about the tips! If you have a problem with your meal, ask to speak with a manager.

There are times you should tip more. If you're there with kids and the kids leave the table and under it a total disaster? Be aware of that and tip higher. That server's only making money when she's getting tipped, not while she's cleaning up after your kids. Also, if you send your server running for things every time he comes to your table, when it's not things he's forgotten? You might consider tipping him for it.

Break your stereotypes. There are servers who will take one look at your party and groan, knowing they won't get a tip that's worth anything, though you're going to work them hard. The blog Epi-Log has a great article on this, including YouTube videos that kicked up quite a stir in regards to tipping and race. A group of high school kids is a horror story for waitresses, while an older white couple or younger men on first dates get them skipping in their shoes. If you do your math, you'll know what's appropriate to tip - and it's not 10%.

If you can't afford the 15-20% tip wherever you're going out to eat, then consider going somewhere that might cost you less, so that you're not making someone else's work day harder. Respect the people who work to get you what you want!