Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Do people generally give tips when they pick up their take-out food?
Are they supposed / expected to?
I never do, and I don't see a reason to. There's no server role thats performed that would necessitate a tip (ie, they're not refilling my glasses, they're not making recommendations or informing me of specials, they're not bringing me something I request, they're not clearing my plates, they're not bringing the food from the kitchen in a timely manner, etc). They're handing me food in a bag when I tell them my name and swiping my card through the machine. In that case, they're literally a fast-food cashier.
Quote:
Originally Posted by SteelCityRising
I've learned many people in Pittsburgh are actually quite ignorant when it comes to the topic of tipping service personnel, especially delivery drivers.
On the other hand now that I'm a restaurant delivery driver who only earns $3 per order---no hourly wage; no mileage reimbursement; no fuel reimbursement; etc.---I'm aghast at how many people don't tip because they think a "delivery fee" is "the driver's pay". No. No. No. A delivery fee is what the company charges to provide the service. The delivery fee isn't "the tip". I think Pizza Hut charges $2 per delivery, and that DOES go to the driver,
I also don't understand why most Pittsburghers tip servers 20% (or more) for good service at a restaurant and 10% (or less) for good service for delivery drivers. Because I'm an independent contractor there have been shifts I've made less than minimum wage once I accounted for gasoline, taxes, and mileage. The whole "take it up with your boss; not my responsibility to make sure to tip so you make minimum wage" argument is a cop-out used by selfish individuals who think everyone can just easily keep job-hopping UP the ladder, as they can. We're all born into different levels of intellectual privilege. Some on here earn six-figures and have never found it difficult to find lucrative work after college. Others have struggled for years and continue to do so.
The fact that some people in this thread think you shouldn't be expected to tip ANYTHING for a take-out order is mind-numbing. I'm going to go out on a limb and say I'm one of the poorest people who post on here due to my intellectual disability making me nearly unemployable, yet I always tip 20% to servers at restaurants, to food delivery drivers, and to whomever has prepared my take-out order. If you can't afford to tip 20% for good service, then you can't afford to dine out or order in. Period. End of discussion. It's not "cute" to fake ignorance about tipping if you've grown up in this country, where you should have been taught by your parents at a young age that tipping in the food/beverage/hospitality services industry is CUSTOMARY.
Also, tip your delivery a minimum of $5 for good service. I don't care if you just had a $7.99 meatball sub delivered from Oakland to your office in Bloomfield. Tipping $0.80 or $1.60 is insulting when gas prices in Pittsburgh are among the highest in the nation. The same policy goes for dining out. If we're at Ritter's and end up with a sub-$20 tab for breakfast, I still leave a $5 bill as tip for good service.
I didn't know Pizza Hut's delivery fee goes directly to the drivers. I thought that went to the business. I'll lower my tips accordingly as I'm not going to pay $2 delivery fee guaranteed to the driver and then tip another $2-3 for a trip of less than five blocks.
In all honesty, for what you're getting paid and for the hours that you put in - why don't you do something else with your driving? If you know the city so well, why don't you consider driving for Uber or Yellow Cab? You're obviously a sociable guy, you're very knowledgeable and opinionated about Pgh, you're in the loop from being so active on this board about new restaurants, bars, events, etc. I think you may do better professionally with that line of employment, as your knowledge and opinions may be valued by your customers. You complain of feeling mistreated and disrespected by your current customers - but on the very rare occasions that I order food I don't want to chat with the guy I just want to say thanks, sign the check, and start eating.
You gross more money than I do per year. And you're living with someone to help share costs. Be more proactive with improving your financial situation - move to a cheaper part of the area when your rent is continually raised, seek different employment that will have better compensation with lower out-of-pocket expenses, etc.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ferraris
You've got to be kidding. That's fine if that's your personal rule, but it's extreme for it to be a general rule for everyone for all orders. I figure $1 minimum for drinks (coffee, alcohol), $2 minimum for a <$10 lunch delivery (Jimmy John's for example, since they are also bringing orders for other people in the building), and $3 or 10-20% minimum for dinner bills above $10. On the rare occasion I order pizza or chinese delivery I tip between $3-$6, with the biggest factor honestly being how many ones I have in my wallet.
You really think a $8 sub should become a $15 sub after a tip and $2 delivery fee? If you think a $5 minimum should be seen as a requirement, then why not just add it as a required delivery fee that goes to the driver? Tipping customs in the US are an illogical pain in the rear.
I don't understand why I'd top for coffee. They just pour it in the cup for me. Nothing complicated. That's it - just regular coffee poured in the cup. I'll tip bartenders about $1 per drink, that's standard. And I don't order mixed drinks - either beer or whiskey, neat. The most complicated drink I order is Guinness.
I was raised that 10% is an average tip, 15% is a very good tip, and 20%+ is for absolutely exceptional service. I'm also from a fairly unique area (Lancaster County, Swiss-German heritage, raised with Mennonite background, etc) so that may skew things.
Quote:
Originally Posted by SteelCityRising
I hate to break it to you, but Pittsburgh isn't a "cheap" place to live anymore. We haven't been in at least a decade.
My partner makes less than I do and just tipped $8 for a pizza because it arrived in 15 minutes, and the driver was friendly. Otherwise $6 is our minimum tip for pizza delivery. I don't understand Pittsburghers' aversion to tipping appropriately.
At least a decade? You and I have been here for the same amount of time - about five years.
$8 for a pizza delivery tip? You and your partner may be very generous people, but that is very financially unwise. For what you paid for the tip and the price itself you probably could have gotten 3 DiGiornio's.
Maybe you think I'm cheap and cold-hearted and a bad person, but my frugality is why I have a mortgage and am building equity.
Location: About 10 miles north of Pittsburgh International
2,458 posts, read 4,203,610 times
Reputation: 2374
Question for SCR--If I order something to take out from somewhere, and your company delivers from the same place, do you deal with the same person at that place when you show up to pick up the food that I would when I show up to pick up the food?
SCR, I've been in the food service industry. I know a lot of restaurant owners who employ delivery people. I've even been a p/t delivery guy when times are slow.
I have never heard of a business model like yours. Every single food delivery person I know makes either at least minimum (on payroll) or $6/hour (under the table cash) and ends up averaging $13-$15/hour once tips are factored in. I've know of hourly pay as high as $9/hr for a Chinese place and hybrids like $7/hr plus $1 per order.
Instead of complaining to customers, I think you should look for another gig.
He said he can't do that because he's intellectually handicapped and unemployable. Seems strange since he claims to have finished college and had a professional job when he lived in Reston. Perhaps he has since suffered some kind of traumatic brain injury? In any event, he can't get another job because of his mental handicap.
I'm going to go out on a limb and say I'm one of the poorest people who post on here due to my intellectual disability making me nearly unemployable, yet I always tip 20% to servers at restaurants, to food delivery drivers, and to whomever has prepared my take-out order.
If it is an independently owned restaurant I tip 5-10% (depending on how busy the restaurant is) to make up for the time and the cartons. A place that does a lot of take out, like pizza, I assume the costs of boxes are already built into the price. Likewise a big chain like Applebee's--any place that has special 'take out' parking has likely built in these costs.
I rarely take out, though--I tend to eat out or c
(Can we not make this a thread about SCR for once?)
(Can we not make this a thread about SCR for once?)
Sorry. The issue of people thinking they shouldn't have to tip because employees who rely on tips for a living should "take it up with their boss" (i.e. get themselves fired) just struck a nerve with me. The "new Pittsburgh" is so ridiculously out-of-touch with working-class Pittsburgh that it's almost comical.
No more contributions from me in this thread. If BrassTracksGal, aw_now_what, and others who creepily follow me around on here to criticize me choose to continue, I won't take the bait.
Back on-topic it's egregious to NOT tip someone who has provided a service to you in an acceptable manner and who relies on tips to partially bring themselves up to minimum wage.
Weird isn't it? Someone who has a college degree and has worked as a professional, has a intellectual disability that makes him unemployable. Never heard of something like that. Perhaps it's the latest way to get SSDI payments, an 'intellectual handicap' that prevents one from working. Does that work? Is that why we have so many 9 million people on disability in the US? They're all just too dumb to work? Even those who have finished college? Who knew???
The carryout servers, especially at chain restaurants, usually get paid a little more than the servers waiting tables, but not much. At minimum it is good practice to leave a 10% tip for a carryout order. Roughly half of what is considered the norm for a dine in service. I often tip higher than that simply because after years of working in food service I have a lot of empathy for the servers who are often stiffed on the tips they count on to make ends meet. Regular customers, who tip well ,tend to get better service.
As for that server's role that she/he does not perform. The server fields many phone all at once and takes your order with a friendly attitude, usually after answering a dozen questions about what is on the menu. Then she has to communicate the information along with all of your changes and substitutions to the kitchen. Usually this young person has to face several hot and angry stressed out line cooks who will be rather PO'ed at your special requests which will mess up their rhythm and slow down the whole line. Once the food is ready she has to gather up each component of your meal and package it up neatly along with the appropriate sides, sauces and utensils that go along with it. All of this usually while dodging flying kitchen staff, other servers and taking still more phone calls from more customers. At the height of a lunch or dinner rush this can be a very chaotic and stressful job.
And after all of that she meets you at the front door, or even at your car, with a smile on her face to give you your food and send you on your way. If she has done her job well (and the kitchen has not gone totally down in the weeds) your food is ready when you get there and exactly as you ordered it. If she manages to accomplish this at a peak time... she deserves a bigger tip. IMHO
Last edited by shadowfax; 07-08-2015 at 04:40 PM..
I used to deliver pizzas and so I always tip delivery drivers well. I've also seen other drivers do lots of unsavory things to the pizza of non or low tipping customers, including being extra late, shaking the box so the cheese sticks to the lid, all the way up to actually spitting on the pizza. For that reason alone, I urge everyone to tip well if it's a place that you're going to use more than once.
As for SCR, that sounds like a horrible pay scale that you work for. You would make a lot more money delivering for pretty much any pizza place in the area.
I used to deliver pizzas and so I always tip delivery drivers well. I've also seen other drivers do lots of unsavory things to the pizza of non or low tipping customers, including being extra late, shaking the box so the cheese sticks to the lid, all the way up to actually spitting on the pizza. For that reason alone, I urge everyone to tip well if it's a place that you're going to use more than once.
As for SCR, that sounds like a horrible pay scale that you work for. You would make a lot more money delivering for pretty much any pizza place in the area.
Except that he has said he grosses about 35K/year, if I'm not mistaken. That sounds like a high yearly compensation for a pizza delivery guy.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
A delivery fee is what the company charges to provide the service. The delivery fee isn't "the tip". I think Pizza Hut charges $2 per delivery, and that DOES go to the driver,
