10 | BOROMAG.COM | JANUARY 2015 FOOD & DRINK Tipping Point s For the first issue of 2015, BORO took a survey of some of the neighborhood service staff to collect their thoughts, anecdotes, and perspectives on tipping. New York’s minimum wage is at $8.75 beginning the first of the year--$7.25 is the federal minimum wage— and for food service workers in New York, that minimum wage is only $5 per hour. For a server working forty hours a week, the restaurant only has to pay her/him $200 a week—before taxes. And we all know New York City demands rent and living expenses that by far exceed the national norm. So is tipping really an option? Here’s what several servers and bartenders had to say. “If a guest chooses not to tip me, it is the same as charging me an actual fee to have served them. The IRS expects my tips to fall somewhere around 11% of my total sales. That means every table needs to leave at least that much in a tip. So anyone who leaves less is asking me to pay on my own to make my wages meet the government’s requirements. Not only did they not pay me, but I end up paying to have served them.” “I get taxed on tips and wages. The tips may come home with me, but they are entered in each night. When I get taxed on the total, my paycheck is almost always zero. Tips are the only payment I receive.” “A lot of guests use the tip as a bribe, and it pisses me off. ‘Make the drink strong, and you’ll get a good tip’ or ‘don’t charge me for the extra fries, and I will take care of you.’ First of all, you are asking me to break a policy someone else has put in place, and then you are telling me my income depends on it.” “Please don’t tip with a handful of coins. I am carrying the cash from every table I have served tonight, and I can get laundry money when I’m not working.” “I think a lot of people forget that time really is money. As a server, I have a set section. If you want to sit and sip coffee for two hours, I am going to take care of you. But just realize that is one of my tables that has been out of commission, and throw a little extra in the tip to say thank you.” “I think our chef is one of the most talented in Astoria—so I also think you should trust him. If you ask for modifications and are displeased with the result, please remember it wasn’t the chef ’s suggestion.” “I love a nice note. And sure, it’s flattering when a guy leaves me his number. But unless it’s a note asking my landlord to charge me less, make sure you leave a cash tip as well.” “I don’t really care if they do it this way where you live. If you don’t follow this cultural standard, my kid won’t be able to eat.” “Don’t just count cash to see if you have enough to eat. At a restaurant, you are paying for the service, the atmosphere, everything. So make sure you enough to leave a proper tip.” “The other night, a couple was upset I had been slammed the whole time. A server had called out of her shift, and I was left covering the whole floor. I worked my butt off. When the couple left, they left a note on the table saying service was poor, and then I watched them tip the busboy instead. I don’t think people realize I have to tip the busboy, also—and the bartender, bar back, and the expeditor. That dollar you gave me might come home as fifty cents.” “People gripe about tipping, but could you imagine if everyone got paid in their paychecks for service, and they were guaranteed it automatically? Where would the incentive be to go above and beyond?” “If you can see your server is trying their best, then give them a great tip. If they are lackluster and just standing around, give them a great tip. You don’t know what kind of day they have had, the table that yelled at them right before you came in, or the text message the received moments before. We expect 15 to 20% for service. If you think I am worth less than that, then ask for a manager. That low tip reflects more on you than me. Otherwise, I’ll just think you are being cheap.” “You have to love the power of the bill. A whole table may have laughed harder, been better fed, served more graciously than ever before. But that final gawking at the tab you knew was coming, that final buck you leave—that’s all that will be remembered if it’s less than what is deserved.”
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