Having served at Earl's for two years while going to university, I can tell you that there is alot that goes on behind the scenes that people who haven't worked in the restraunt business most likely don't understand.
- The rumor about tip out on take out is completely true, and it's the same for every single $$ that the server rings through. In our case the tip out was about 5.5%, which meant that if you only tipped 5-6% on your bill, your server got the priviledge of paying for you to eat at the restaurant.
- Bad service can come from a variety of different points. I will be the first to admit that I wasn't the greatest server in the world, and yes I did occasionally screw up orders and miss things, but I would usually try to do my best to make up for the mistake, over the course of the meal. (free drinks, free dessert, 10% off of the bill etc..). If it was my fault I would own up to it and try to make your experience as best as possible. However sometimes the service gets screwed up by something the server can't control (Kitchen, poor seating by the hostess, etc.) not to mention if you were a dick, you got poor service.
- I don't know if you guys are aware, but restaurant shifts are not like a normal job. You work 5 hours on, get an 90 minutes - 2 hours off, and then get to work another 5 hour shift. If you were a closing server like I was, then you would have to be running around sometimes without even the 90 minute break, for 10 hours straight. Lets just say that if you happened to be expecting amazing service after I had been on the job for 8.5 hours non stop with 10 tables, you came to the wrong restaurant.
The money can be great, but it can also be one of the most draining jobs you can do. So let's be honest, if you are ordering takeout from a restaurant, you can afford the 5-6% tip. Open up the vaults!
If service is poor, I agree don't tip. But be considerate and look around, sometimes if your server has 10 tables, you are lucky to get more than 2 minutes of face time.
