Am I a soft touch or are my friends tight?

[badkitty]

I was out last night on my girls night out Christmas do. It was great fun, the food was great, and the service was exceptional.

The waiter was just brilliant, endlessly patient and the right kind of happy that makes such a difference to a meal. He was really busy, but never let that show whilst dealing with his customers.

The bill for all 4 of us came in at £108, so a 4 way split is £27 each. So I'm like, great, lets all chuck in £30 and we're done. But no! Apparently £12 is too much for a guy who worked his arse off for the 3 hours we were there! I reckon a quid an hour each was a pretty good deal,but the person who'd happily spends £120 on a monthly haircut, protested loudly this was waaaay too much! What? Considering how much the 2 complainants spend on alcohol, I couldn't believe it. Apparently there is some law I know nothing about which says that "the tip must be 5% of the bill", irrespective of how great the service!

So ensued some utterly embarrassing recalculation and shuffling of pennies about to ensure that the poor guy only got his £5 or so. Was mortified.

I suppose at least we got to leave him that - the other one wasn't going to bother leaving a tip at all!


So am I soft touch because I remember what a slog waiting on tables in a busy restaurant is from when I was young? Or are they just shockingly tight?

(they both have plenty of money, btw.)

 

[Baggy]

That sounds tight to me! Rounding it up to £30 each would have been easier...

 

[twentysix by twentyfive]

Shockingly Tight IMHO. Oh and IIRC tipping is usually 10% of the bill. So Tight and Doubly so.

I suppose you could have broken ranks and chucked your £30 in anyway.........

 

[Ravenbait]

That's appallingly tight.

Sam

 

[Night Train]

Sounds tight to me too.

I have very little disposable income but if the service is good, and the money definately goes to the staff, then I tip around 10% or a little more if I can.

I think your £30 each suggestion was fine.

 

[summerdays]

They were tight ... it annoys me when I go out for a works do meal and we end up splitting the bill ... but a couple of people will have left early leaving the "right money" ... without including service or a tip!!

I would certainly have gone for rounding it up ... and I obviously don't spend enough on my hair!!! Does she leave a tip then ... I do ... usually about 10% ... that would be £12 for her!!! (Granted her hair probably looks nicer than mine.... )

 

[ianrauk]

£30 is what I would have suggested too..

 

[Fab Foodie]

Yep, complete and utter tightwads. Dump 'em.

 

[badkitty]

Shockingly Tight IMHO. Oh and IIRC tipping is usually 10% of the bill. So Tight and Doubly so.

I suppose you could have broken ranks and chucked your £30 in anyway.........

Ha! Yep - would have done that but for the fact Mrs Moneybags was paying by card, so just would have deducted my tip from the amount she had to pay!


There was the occasion I went back to the Indian restaurant the next day with a card thanking our waiter, and enclosing the tip we should have left the night before but were too inebriated to add up...but thats another story...

 

[threebikesmcginty]

Tighter than a gnat's chuff. Lose 'em.

 

[ianrauk]

We are so strange about tipping in the UK. We seem to be confused and embarrassed by it. I suppose it's just not in our culture. Rounding up seems to be the norm.

Restaurants who give good service get 10%, unless there is a service charge then I will either pay that or ask them to remove it and pay my own tip.

Good think you weren't in a restaurant in new York... the waiter wouldn't have let you out of the place if you didn't cough up at least 20%.

That must have been a very embarrassing situation for you. Bloody tight wads.

 

[Arch]

Yep, complete and utter tightwads. Dump 'em.

+1

a measly 3 quid extra each? Jeez, I'm not well off, but I wouldn't think twice about it.

 

[Aperitif]

I would have had a kitty - but yes. + everything to what the others have said. Your ex- friends are well badly tight.

 

[Speicher]

For good cheerful service, ten per cent sounds about right. Would also make all the sums easy peasy.

 

[potsy]

We are so strange about tipping in the UK. We seem to be confused and embarrassed by it. I suppose it's just not in our culture. Rounding up seems to be the norm.

Restaurants who give good service get 10%, unless there is a service charge then I will either pay that or ask them to remove it and pay my own tip.

Good think you weren't in a restaurant in new York... the waiter wouldn't have let you out of the place if you didn't cough up at least 20%.

That must have been a very embarrassing situation for you. Bloody tight wads.

Remind me never to go to New York

No they were being tight wads, £30 would have been perfect imo, both as a nice round number to make it easy and well deserved by the sounds of it too.