There are some stories we’re sick of hearing about frequently — consumers behaving badly, data breaches and scummy scammers — and then there are those that only increase in delight the more often we encounter them. In yet another example of the generosity of strangers, a Florida couple tipped their waiter $1,500 and bought a few cases of beer for the entire staff to share. [More]
waiters
Waiter Praised For Refusing To Serve Family Who Insults Child With Down Syndrome
By 1.18.13 — Updated: 4.3.13
When a story about a waiter refusing to serve customers starts picking up steam online, it usually involves people rushing to insult the server and his employer. But this story is getting quite the opposite response from the public. [More]
Man’s Family Determined To Carry Out A Last Request: Order A Pizza & Tip The Server $500
By 7.13.12 — Updated: 7.8.13
When Aaron passed away at the age of 30, he left his family with a will with all the usual instructions, including that any debt he owed his parents be repaid if he had money in the bank when he died. But he also had another request, one that his family has succeeded in thanks to the generosity of strangers: Order a meal and leave the server a really awesome tip. [More]
Amazing Waiter Pours Nearly A Dozen Cups Of Tea One-Handed
By 9.13.11
No question about it, this guy deserves at least a 20% tip. [More]
Waiter Thwarts Dine And Dashers By Leaping Onto Their Speeding Car
By 1.25.11
A brave waiter threw himself onto a customer’s SUV as it sped away from the restaurant. They had tried to run out without paying their $51 bill. The 24-year old jumped on as the car pulled out of the parking lot, grabbing onto the roofrack and planting his feet on the running board. Listen, you just don’t mess with a waiter’s tips. [More]
Waiter: Parents Of Bratty Kids Should Tip More At Restaurants
By 1.11.11
Taking young children out to eat at a restaurant is an expensive — and sometimes messy — prospect for parents. One waiter also claims it’s actually a costly experience for the restaurant’s staff — and that the parents should be willing to dish out bigger tips to make up for it. [More]
Secrets Of Waiters
By 12.1.09
Michelle Crouch at Reader’s Digest has compiled another list of secrets that your waiter won’t tell you. Some are just going to make you annoyed, like the waitress who lies for sympathy tips. But there are plenty of useful secrets on the list that might improve your experience the next time you go out to eat. [More]
What To Do When You Discover You've Been Overcharged At A Restaurant
By 7.17.09
James discovered that the waiter at a steakhouse he and his wife ate at padded his bill by 4 extra dollars, but also ran through the charge a second time with no tip at all. Now he’s wondering what to do next.
Is It Ever Acceptable Not To Tip At A Restaurant?
By 10.12.08
Society has determined that service at a restaurant is worth between 15%-20% of the final bill, but is it ever acceptable not to tip?
Japan Introduces Monkey Waiters; Blogger Scratches Another Business Plan Off His List
By 10.9.08
A Japanese sake house near Tokyo has stolen one of my ideas and employed monkeys as waiters—one brings hot towels to customers when they sit down, and another takes orders and delivers bottles of sake. They’re tipped in edamame, which U.S. waitstaff should seriously consider since you don’t have to report it, and since the dollar will soon be worth about the same anyway. Our favorite quote from the article: “‘The monkeys are actually better waiters than some really bad human ones,’ customer Takayoshi Soeno said.” Hold on to your hats, there’s video footage below!
Are Female Diners Second-Class Citizens At Fancy Restaurants?
By 10.8.08
The New York Times has an article today about gender and dining-out. They interviewed Steve Dublanica, author of “Waiter Rant,” and he had some unpleasant things to say about how groups of female diners are treated at restaurants.
Court Rules "World Yacht" Can Be Sued For Not Distributing Gratuities To Its Servers
By 2.19.08
“Hold on,” you say to yourself—”If it’s a gratuity, doesn’t that by definition mean it goes to the wait staff?” Not if you’re a server for World Yacht, a “luxury dining fleet” in Manhattan that will now be sued by its employees for slapping automatic gratuities on diners’ bills, then keeping the extra money for itself. New York labor laws require “employers to pass on to workers any payments that customers understand to be tips,” but World Yacht argued that the banquet industry was exempt, and its servers should get nothing. Thanks to last week’s ruling, the employees can move forward with their suit.
Waiters Lobby for 20% Mandatory Tips
By 9.18.06
Anyone who’s ever waited tables knows the agony of the crappy tip. But should diners be forced to pay mandatory 20% tips?
The Waiting Is the Hardest Part
By 1.27.06
Lest you think that we get pleasure out of bad service at restaurants, let’s get one thing straight: There’s nothing that pleases us more than to be able to immediately reward someone for doing a great job. Gratuity-based jobs are not without their faults, but as a customer it’s got a lot going for it.
Commentors Speak: Responsible Ways To Get Your Waiter Fired
We love you guys. When we launched, there was a concern that our comments section would be filled with one-noted, petulant griping — after all, that’s pretty much all we post. But we think you guys are pretty much on the same ball we are — at heart, we aren’t commune hippies with irrational hatred of capitalism, but avid consumers who love buying enough to try to remain unblinkered, who try to remain reasonable beyond both irrational hatred or the empty titillation of some savvy PR temptress.