Let them keep the change or not (San Antonio fast food places)? (Howe: minimum wage, sales tax)

[Texan in Virginia]

Originally Posted by sapphire

Don't most Sonics have a drive-thru now? We eat ice cream from Sonic about once every 6 months--someone must be eating there a lot though, because there is a new one every half mile or so, it seems. But I never tip at Sonic. Never have, and it never dawned on me to until once when the girl tried to keep my change. I was like, But that sealed the deal--no tip for you!! I've paid tabs in restaurants--like a $20 ticket with a $50 bill and they've had the audacity to ask if I wanted my change. Ooops, too bad for you, your tip just decreased massively. Seriously, we are great tippers, but we have our own set of criteria that must be met first. Breathing, walking, and talking are sort of a given, so you need to do a tad bit more to earn that tip.

You hit the nail on the head! To assume the "change" is the tip really irks me and leads to a decreased tip everytime - even when I had planned to give a bigger tip than I was to receive in change! Paying by credit or debit card is a great idea, too, LovinSA!

I do tip at Sonics and have never had anyone there assume the change was the tip. We don't have Sonics near us in Virginia so, whenever I'm in Texas, I tend to eat at Sonic way too much! I hope that I'll get my fill soon after we retire or I'll add to the obesity factor in my new home state!

Lori

[texscot]

They get to you every way. What I don't like are the River Walk places that add a $10 tip to your debit card after you all ready give them a tip. Be sure and check out your slip before you sign. Lots of scams going on.

[Bo]

Originally Posted by slaleman

On another note, what's with the delivery charge for pizza around here? When I was in college, there was never a delivery charge, and I would always tip well...where does that delivery charge go? Do they pay part of it to the driver for gas? I ordered a pizza last night and it was almost $2 for delivery!

Pizza delivery drivers get paid for the miles they drive. They're probably getting paid more now that gas costs $3/gallon. The delivery charge is likely passing along the higher mileage rates.

I almost always pick up my pizzas. I would rather save the delivery charge/tip and gain the certainty of knowing that it will arrive hot.

[majormadmax]

Sorry, I don't tip at fast food places. Yes, at sit-down restaurants with wait staff I will; but not at Wendy's or Chic Filet (I don't eat at Sonic). I sympathize with the young kids that work there, but I think most of us has low-paying, suck jobs when we were teenagers and they should serve as a motivation to get an education and a better paying job! No one was giving me tips when I was sitting hungry and soaking wet in the middle of Bosnia wondering where in the heck the helicopter that was suppose to take us home went, so I don't have much sympathy for the overly-spoiled youth of today who are just the current line of those having to "pay their dues."

I am a generous tipper, usually 25% and sometimes more if the service is really good; but some kid handing me a burger over a counter hasn't done anything that I feel constitutes a tip. Do any of you tip your doctor? Dentist? Your kids' teachers? Your mechanic? What's so special about the fast food guy?

Some days I wish the whole concept of tipping would just go away. Much like adding sales tax, why don't they just include it all in the price of an item and leave it like that?

Just a quick anecdote, tipping is usually a lot lower in Europe. One afternoon in Slovakia, our lunch host tipped the waitress the equivelent of 1.5¢. Yes, one-and-a-half cents! This is one reason Americans had the reputation of being big spenders/flaunting their wealth...if you tip overseas like you do in the States, it is a major faux pas...

Cheers! M2

[Bo]

Originally Posted by majormadmax

Just a quick anecdote, tipping is usually a lot lower in Europe. One afternoon in Slovakia, our lunch host tipped the waitress the equivelent of 1.5¢. Yes, one-and-a-half cents! This is one reason Americans had the reputation of being big spenders/flaunting their wealth...if you tip overseas like you do in the States, it is a major faux pas...

Small tips are the norm in Europe because wages for waitstaff aren't artificially lowered to include tips like they are in the US. In the US, the minimum wage for waitstaff who get tips is $2.13/hour.

[RecovringKrspyKremeAddict]

Hi All....
Well, I live in the Westover area and I've noticed that MY neighborhood Sonics have been keeping my change as well. I hate that. It should be MY choice what I do with my change and I can't stand some kid trying to slip it past me as if I'd never notice!

[sapphire]

And seriously--is Sonic's food good enough to have one on every corner? Maybe the kids are instructed to keep the change and split it with Sonic just so they can keep building the dang places. Even their commercials are lame.

[Dwangle]

Originally Posted by sapphire

Don't most Sonics have a drive-thru now? We eat ice cream from Sonic about once every 6 months--someone must be eating there a lot though, because there is a new one every half mile or so, it seems. But I never tip at Sonic. Never have, and it never dawned on me to until once when the girl tried to keep my change. I was like, But that sealed the deal--no tip for you!! I've paid tabs in restaurants--like a $20 ticket with a $50 bill and they've had the audacity to ask if I wanted my change. Ooops, too bad for you, your tip just decreased massively. Seriously, we are great tippers, but we have our own set of criteria that must be met first. Breathing, walking, and talking are sort of a given, so you need to do a tad bit more to earn that tip.

The Sonic in Lytle is so pushy about tipping that I usually go to the Dairy Queen across the street. I like Sonic but I don't like the bother of trying to figure out the tip thing. I Go to the Sonic on Potranco because they have a drive through. I understand restaurant tipping. I don't understand fast food tipping.

[Lee W.]

Keeping the change is a no-no! I wouldn't ever go back if anybody tried that. I do tip at Sonic because they come out with the food, therefore it's like a waiter or waitress. But tipping is purely up to the tipper...not the tippee. If it's stated clearly at some restuarant that a certain percent will be charged for a tip. well, then you're forewarmed.

[datacity]

Originally Posted by Bo

Small tips are the norm in Europe because wages for waitstaff aren't artificially lowered to include tips like they are in the US. In the US, the minimum wage for waitstaff who get tips is $2.13/hour.

However, note that there are several states in the US (i.e. Alaska, California, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada,Washington and Oregon) that do not allow a tip credit against paying minimum wage. Some of these states do have a slightly lower min wage, but it is still much higher than the $2.13 we are talking about here.

Originally Posted by Dwangle

The Sonic in Lytle is so pushy about tipping that I usually go to the Dairy Queen across the street.

Unfortunately, there no longer is a Dairy Queen in Lytle. The building was razed and a new HEB gas station and Whataburger are opening there soon.

Originally Posted by majormadmax

Just a quick anecdote, tipping is usually a lot lower in Europe. One afternoon in Slovakia, our lunch host tipped the waitress the equivelent of 1.5¢. Yes, one-and-a-half cents! This is one reason Americans had the reputation of being big spenders/flaunting their wealth...if you tip overseas like you do in the States, it is a major faux pas...

Cheers! M2

A slightly different anecdote: I was in India a few years ago with family and stopped at a fairly large (for the area) and always busy roadside restaurant located about half-way between New Delhi and Rishikesh in the north. This wasn't a high end place in a large city that caters to tourists.

On the way to Rishikesh, we stopped there and I think I left the waiter about 10-12% tip -- which is low compared to here, but higher than the usually 2-3% what many locals do in India. The service and food was good and the price very reasonable so I didn't think twice.

On the way back to New Delhi several days later, we stopped there again and had barely stepped in the place when the same waiter recognized me, and before I could get close, he had tables set up for our group and the service this time was even better. I went ahead and left a similar tip as the previous time and you could see the smile on his face.

I am pretty sure that the pay there was nowhere close to any min wage here, so I was happy to unknowingly flaunt in this case and receive great service for it.