Please give me a tip.

The restaurant owner is making cool money at the cost of poor waiter or waitress. They collect those charges and pay them their pay, while such charges are also included in the food charges. I think that is rotten. But if you go there, you haven't got a choice. Do not deny the poor man his pay. But if you can, make others aware of such things so that they do not frequent that restaurant.

In the UK, very few restaurants automatically add a service charge to the bill (and if any tax, such as Value Added Tax, is due, it is automatically included in the total but stated as a separate amount for those who are able to claim it back, as some companies can. I believe that every worker should be paid a fair wage, agreed beforehand when he/she takes the employment. This may not, of course, be a 'living wage' but it should not be lower than the statutory amount set by the Government. I know that, in some countries, there is no 'minimum wage' agreement as there is here, but that is a separate issue. I don't think that it is right that any worker should be forced to rely on gratuities from the customer. They are not employed by the customer and it is up to their employers, not the customer, to see that they are paid fairly. That being said, I do nearly always leave a tip (usually no more than 10% of the bill) and I hope that it will go to the person concerned and not be shared out between all the workers (some of whom may well not have given as good a service as my waiter). A problem with tips in cash is that they should be declared as income though I know that they very often are not. It is illegal to not declare income and so I am sometimes reluctant to leave a tip because I don't want to feel that I am encouraging fraud in this way. If I ever come across any bill with a service charge automatically added without my previous consent, I immediately cross it out and refuse to pay it. If I ever met with any objection to this (and I don't think I ever have), I would dispute the entire bill and the owner would have to take me to court to recover the amount owed.

That is up to you. I wouldn't. And I don't like it when they do that. I only give a tip if it is warranted. If they do good service.

I dont go to posh restaurants - the Three+ Star ones. I go out to smaller eateries. And we know how things are at these places. Service tax or no No Service Tax, I do give the waiters some tip only when I am satisfied with their service and how they attend me. There have been instances when I have simply walked out because the food was not tasty or even the service (attending) was not satisfactory.

I always leave a tip that is proportional to the total amount. I am also checking what I am paying for so I would definitely notice. About the tip included in the bill, I'm afraid that if it becomes compulsory the salary of the waiters will be decreased and the tips will become part of it. I like it the way it works now, with seperate tips that are additional eanings for the person who provides the service.

If the service is good, why not. It's just a sign of gratitude, I guess. I don't do it because I feel like I have to or because it's a custom.

Deepak, many of these employees are paid very meager salaries , so they look forward to getting some tip from the customer.If we can afford to give them a little something without it pinching us , I guess it is ok to do so..

I always tip the waiter or waitress. Even if the tip is included in the bill. I feel that is the right thing to do.

I would leave it up to this..if you are extra pleased with your server, yes by all means, leave a bit extra if you can afford it.

I give a separator tip since in the USA a waitress is paid less than minuem wage.

I just like to tip someone if I've really enjoyed the service. Bosses should pay enough to their waiters and waitresses and not wait for us to pay them.

Tips are expected. When you think about it tips should be given for good service, not because it's expected.

Well, it actually depends.... If the waiter/waitress paid attention to my needs during my meal (i.e. noticed my glass was almost empty and brought a refill, whether I actually wanted it or not, brought an extra napkin if I dropped mine) then yes, I do add a separate tip to my server because s/he went above their actual job to make sure my meal was beyond my expectations... (In the U.S. a waiter/waitress does not make minimum wage doing their job. The difference between minimum wage and what that person earns is normally made up by the tips customers give for services rendered. If you already knew this, I apologize. I am simply trying to be clear on your thread.) If I had to ask repeatedly for a refill of my drink or ask more than once for a replacement napkin if I dropped mine, then no, I would not tip the waitstaff because I can get service like that at a place that doesn't have waitstaff and does not charge for them... I do not penalize the waitstaff if my meal is under/over cooked or is not as flavorful as it should be because that is not his/her fault. As long as s/he performs their function satisfactorily, I do tip. (The better my service, the larger the tip I give to my server.)

When service taxes are involved, I don't pay tips. Those taxes already imposes a whole lot of money on the bill, and I don't feel the need to pay any extra. However when there's no service charge, then I've no objection.

I have never worked as a waitress/ as waitstaff, but i recently was chatting with a good friend of mine who is one (and loves it). She was telling me about an instance her and her fellow waitstaff ran into this past summer with a large group of teenagers/young adults who were working as counselors at a near by summer camp. This camp brings in high school/college aged kids from all over the world and kind of creates a "global community" where they can learn from each other and about each others cultures in a hands on, personal way. Anyhow, back to the topic on hand, the group would come in once a week, order a lot of food and drinks, stay and hang out for a long while, (often make a mess) and never once leave a tip. The waitstaff of this restaurant eventually got to the point where they HATED seeing the group come in, and would do anything possible to NOT be the one to have to service their table. See, here, waiters and waitresses do not even make minimal wage, as they are expected to make up the rest of their salary through tips (and the better service you provide, the better tips you make, so it is considered incentive to provide the best service you can). One night my friend "drew the short straw" and got their table. Somehow a comment was made that allowed her to tactfully question why they never left a tip. It was then that both parties were enlightened. The patrons were under the impression that the tip was already added onto their bill and/or that waitstaff was adequately paid and leaving a tip was actually insulting, as that was the normal procedure in their culture. My friend (and her staff) were enlightened that these "kids" were not just being rude, but were just not aware of this aspect of American culture. Needless to say, she got an awesome tip from the large group that night, and they also promised to bring up this information at the next staff meeting so they could inform the rest of the camp. From what i hear, the rest of the summer the waitstaff at this restaurant fought to GET this table when they came in, instead of trying to pawn it off on someone else. I guess if you are going to be traveling, looking into the issue of whether to tip/look for a service charge etc. should be on your to-do list.

would be great if in my country we worked like that but here people only give a tip if they want and the money they want. for example i work as a receptionist and i rarely receive a tip and my salary is very low. would be great if all clients gave at least 0.50 cents. in the end of the day even i earned only like 2 or 3 dollars would be great. i receive like 15 euros payment for work 8 hours and in my country thats very low

Giving a tip has never been mandatory in our country because it isn't our culture. However, due to the influence of the western culture so many years ago, it has become customary for us to give a tip. Still, not mandatory though. In my family's case, when we have enjoyed the service that was given to us, then we give a tip to the server because we believed he or she deserved that. So our gauge of giving tips depends on how nice the service is.

We always take a look at the bill if there is a service charge . When there is , then we don't give a tip anymore . But we do always leave a tip when there's no indication of a service charge .

I always give a tip even if they have a built in one in the bill

IF the restaurant owner is honest and he truly distributes the service charge to his staff that is good however we hear that many pocket this money for themselves. The staff should be paid a decent wage in the first place and if someone has served you exceptionally well they deserve a tip. I actually prefer giving it to the waiter/waitress in their hands to make sure they get it. I do not like to be reminded to tip as happens sometimes in the USA. That makes my blood boil and feel like not tipping them but offering them the verbal tip of not being so damned rude!