Tips for takeout: is $1 just too cheap nowadays? (Boston: sales, salons)

[msRB311]

Many restaurant owners do pretty well for themselves. Not all but many. Why should paying customers pick up the slack for them?

[bostongymjunkie]

I tip more for take-out when the take-out is from a restaurant and where the bartender is handling the transaction (or a waiter/waitress). I feel that the bartender makes their money primarily from tips and the take-out is a collateral duty. For regular over-the-counter take-out I don't often tip, although I may sometimes toss my change into a tip jar, depending on circumstances. If someone is actually making something for me I am more apt to tip than someone just selling me something. I don't like the establishments, such as some coffee shops, who turn the tablet toward you with the various tip options for you to choose before signing. Feels like a stick-up and I don't think it's right. I generally try to do what I think is fair and don't really care too much about what other people are doing. That said, I consider myself a pretty generous tipper if the service was decent.

[msRB311]

I also think every situation is different. A friend of ours owns a few restaurants on the cape a business he took over from his family. He does very well. He only hires waitresses who are young and good looking and they seem to have a mindset that they don't have to be that nice or quick because they're good looking. Most of them are college students from well to do families just there for a summer job. The people who probably need the tips are the cooks in the back. I think sometimes tipping requires common sense. We leave 20% regardless of whether we're at a high end place or chili's.

I still can't really get on board with tipping for take out.

[timberline742]

Originally Posted by msRB311

But when did tipping for take out ever become a thing ? Did you tip before the pandemic? Or the pandemic has just led to an expectation that people should leave tips when the drive themselves to retrieve food and leave more money for it on top of what they already purchased?

It was a thing at least by the late 80s when I worked food service jobs.

[msRB311]

For takeout?? Where have I been ? Delivery yes, we'd tip the driver but not going in to pick up food.

In the late 80s and the 90s for that matter take out wasn't nearly as common as it is today. People would get things like pizza and Chinese food. Subs. Growing up in Milton at this time we typically got our takeout from places in Milton, Quincy and Dorchester. No one had a tip jar next to the cashier and you didn't leave a tip for going to pick up food from a take out place.

So let's say I order take out food from the Cheesecake Factory and I go to pick it up. The place is usually packed and the food is sitting there waiting for me and I've already paid for it on the phone. Who the heck do I give a tip to if even wanted to give one ?

[timberline742]

Yes, for take out. I worked at a few places in Harvard Square. All had take out tip jars. All but one had take out tipping lines (that were often filled out) for credit card orders. One was cash only.

For pre pay credit cards and pick up, I can't recall seeing an option not to add a tip on the credit card payment.

[msRB311]

It's been a recent thing to me that I noticed a place to tip when getting take out. I just noticed it the past few years. Harvard sq was much different in the late 80s/90s or even now than take out places in Milton, dot and Quincy. Not sure why they are more or less deserving of tips than anyone else though.

And again who does the tip go to? Whoever answered the phone when I placed the order? Whoever handed me the bag? Or whoever cooked it or put it into the container ? This why i dont tip for take out and I really don't care what anyone has to say about it.

[bostongymjunkie]

I think most places divvy it up among all service employees. I think I recall seeing tip jars in some Dunkins around the mid 90's. I also recall thinking it was obnoxious.

[timberline742]

Originally Posted by msRB311

It's been a recent thing to me that I noticed a place to tip when getting take out. I just noticed it the past few years. Harvard sq was much different in the late 80s/90s or even now than take out places in Milton, dot and Quincy. Not sure why they are more or less deserving of tips than anyone else though.

And again who does the tip go to? Whoever answered the phone when I placed the order? Whoever handed me the bag? Or whoever cooked it or put it into the container ? This why i dont tip for take out and I really don't care what anyone has to say about it.

Depends on the model. Most places I worked at tips were pooled and split. For sit down heavy places the servers got table tips it but were expected to tip out cooks, dishwashers, buspeople.

I understand that because you can't be sure who gets it you'd rather no one to have it. I suspect even if you knew exactly who was getting it you'd still not tip them.

[BostonMike7]

Originally Posted by msRB311

I'm surprised. I guess it's people like this that are the reason tips are becoming more and more expecting for anything. I think it's also why there's a movement of people preparing more and more things at home from coffee to dinner.

I mean every situation is different. If I go to dunks and buy a $2 coffee and pay with my app, it’s hard to tip electronically and I rarely have cash on me. If I do have cash I’ll usually pay $3 and leave the change. However that is less and less these days due to mobile ordering. They don’t really make it easy to leave a non-cash tip.


Ordering $75 -100 of take-out from a traditionally sit-down restaurant where I leave with 3 bags full of stuff? I would be embarrassed not to tip. Someone took the order, packed it, verified it was complete, and added all the extra condiments and utensils. What’s the different from sit down? They didn’t bring me a couple drinks? I still tip here even if it’s less than the 20% I’d do sit-down.