Having been in the food and beverage business for as many years as I have, I've always felt it important to tip well. I've been on the other side of the proverbial table and I know how much work it is to serve your fellow man on a daily basis. I read a great column about this very issue the other day in Bon Appetit, by The BA Foodist, Andrew Knowlton, and by the way, is he ever easy on the eyes! You may have seen him as a guest judge on Iron Chef America.
How many times have you been out to dinner with a friend or family member who insisted on picking up the tab, only to give the wait staff a measly ten percent tip? And for whatever reason, you couldn't add more money to the tab, for fear of major hurt feelings and permanent relationship damage. (That friend or family member, you know who I'm talking about!)
The best part of Knowlton's piece had to do with whether or not doubling the tax would be sufficient. Nope. A big nope. According to him, that's just being cheap. I know a number of people who like to use this method and I'm mostly embarrassed when I'm dining out with them.
Me, I try to stick to tipping about twenty percent. I figure, the people who are working the hardest are the wait staff, including bussers and sommeliers and a little bit extra in the tip goes directly to these deserving folks. If they're really friendly and professional, I go higher. Befriend your servers, especially at restaurants you frequent often. They'll remember you, they'll go out of their way to accommodate you, they'll occasionally comp you drinks or dessert, you can't go wrong by taking care of these guys.
And finally, if you bring your own bottle of wine to the restaurant, remember to tip on the value of the wine. The theory is that the restaurant offers this service as a favor, but the wait person is the one to lose out sometimes. They're opening the bottle for you, serving it to you, occasionally decanting, and chilling it if it's a white, it's common courtesy to make sure they're taken care of, since the cost of the beverage is not on the tab.
I know a few friends and family members I'll run Andrew Knowlton's column by, I'm sure everyone has a few friends they'd like to give it to as well.
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