Tipping Etiquette?

[fewwdragon]

Is it polite to tip the server at a hookah bar? Edited December 18, 2006 by fewwdragon

[Erica]

YES YES YES YES YES YES YESSSS!!

I used to work at a hookah bar.. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE Tip your hookahtress...

I would get so mad sometimes.. There were actually people that would say to my face, I would tip you but you don’t really do anything!!! I wish I could have smacked that girl. I then sat there and told her that, yes we do a number of things to make your hookah session enjoyable. Would you go out to eat and not tip your server? It’s the same thing. I don’t know how it is at your hookah bar, but at the one I worked at we had to make the bowl, clean the hookahs, serve that hookahs, get drinks, ring up customers, seat customers, give coals, pack refills.. and what ever else needed to be done. Not only that but we got paid $hit. And really, tips would either make us or break us.

[SanguineSolitude]

depends on the bar but generally yes. its never impolite to tip, but sometiems impolite not to. If the server brings drinks, the hookah, maybe food, and coals regularly then by all means tip.

if its like some places ive gone to where you order at the counter, bring your own drinks/food to the table, and at some point they might plop an unlit 3kings on top of the one youre already smoking... then no i dont tip. or tip very little.

[yashman19]

YES YES YES YES YES YES YESSSS!!

I used to work at a hookah bar.. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE Tip your hookahtress...

I would get so mad sometimes.. There were actually people that would say to my face, I would tip you but you don’t really do anything!!! I wish I could have smacked that girl. I then sat there and told her that, yes we do a number of things to make your hookah session enjoyable. Would you go out to eat and not tip your server? It’s the same thing. I don’t know how it is at your hookah bar, but at the one I worked at we had to make the bowl, clean the hookahs, serve that hookahs, get drinks, ring up customers, seat customers, give coals, pack refills.. and what ever else needed to be done. Not only that but we got paid $hit. And really, tips would either make us or break us.

/rant eh?

I'm with SS. The lounges I've been to, of course I tip if they actually do things, but some of the bars I've been to, they seat you and take your hookah order, but don't pack it themselves or even bring it out. No need to tip in these occasions, but whenever they are serving drinks, food, coals etc, then to me its just like eating at a resturant, and I tip.

[fewwdragon]

Thanks for the input. I know in some cultures it is actually impolite to tip and I know very little about middle eastern customs.

[Glottis]

I don’t know how it is at your hookah bar, but at the one I worked at we had to make the bowl, clean the hookahs, serve that hookahs, get drinks, ring up customers, seat customers, give coals, pack refills.. and what ever else needed to be done. Not only that but we got paid $hit. And really, tips would either make us or break us.

I'm honestly not trying to be mean or anything, but you are getting paid to do that stuff by your employer. A tip is a special bonus that should be given to workers who are especially helpful / courteous, not just those who do the job they are expected to do as an employee in their current job position. Expecting a tip in any position other than being a sever at a restaurant (where is it's simply expected as a cultural thing) is rude, in my opinion, and if the job doesn't pay enough without it... perhaps you should find another job. However, if you were being super nice and helpful and maybe really understanding of each customer's needs (which you may very well have been) then I think that the customer should probably tip you- but at the same time I still don't think you should expect it. It's sort of against the entire nature of a tip.

[Macho555]

If its against the nature of a tip, then severs wouldnt get paid 3 bucks an hour under the expectation of both the employee and the employer, that they would make more from the customers.

Of course you tip people that give you good service, wether they are hookah servers, or food servers. If they went through their paces to give you a good time, than honestly, they should expect it. Its the nature of most businesses today. I've made a habit of asking hookah waitresses how much money they make, not to mention normal waitresses. The average answer is usually around 3 dollars if they are lucky. Even the businesses expect you to tip them.

Edit: HEY HEY, 1000 posts! Edited December 19, 2006 by Macho555

[Zerodynamic]

I always tip. The way i see it, if i have to pack my own bowl with their stuff, there is a lot of work going on behind the scenes trying to make sure my hookah experience is enjoyable.

As far as I know min wage is 6.75 here in cali, and that's before tax. Tips now are taxed as well, so I understand the need to tip servers if they provide the kind of service that I expect..... now if you put an unlit 3k on my bowl.... well my tip went from about 20% of the bill to about 5%... but I still leave something.

[CaliforniaRose]

I always tip. The way i see it, if i have to pack my own bowl with their stuff, there is a lot of work going on behind the scenes trying to make sure my hookah experience is enjoyable.

As far as I know min wage is 6.75 here in cali, and that's before tax. Tips now are taxed as well, so I understand the need to tip servers if they provide the kind of service that I expect..... now if you put an unlit 3k on my bowl.... well my tip went from about 20% of the bill to about 5%... but I still leave something.

$7.50 January First!!! (in California)

Totally agreed amount of tip is totally dependent on service level, 20% down to 5% if service is incredibly poor.

[smiley]

Hello I own a Lounge we pay our employees Six dollars an hour plus tips. The normal wage for a server in Arizona is 2.15 hour. This just went up to 3.75 hour.I understand that people have problems or issues. But I too like good service. When I get good service. I will tip very well. When I have a server that is an ass. Then tip goes BYE BYE. Our servers do everything for you at Smiley's we even Rotate your coal. We have had people time and time again pull crap about tipping. I would like to know where or when these people learned that being rude and disrespectful was the way you treat some one who is working very hard for you... so that you can have a good time. Not cool at all. I don't care what excuse you have to say. It's Wrong. Now if the waiter is treating me with disrepect and being rude. It will depend on how I handle it. They either get a shitty tip. I never come back to that place. Or they get such a BIG TIP that they Choke on it. When I do that I useally come back to gloate. I always ask for the same server. Just to remind them who I am. We don't need to put up with either situation. Just need to understand the situation and handle it accordingly. So tip your wait staff the Majority don't make shit per hour. Give tham a happy year to come. If your a waiter or waiteress please remember that not everyone is RUDE or Disrepectful. Because your still angery with whom ever in your past was rude to you. Your looseing the battle of the Tip.So try not to take it out on the next person your waiting on.
Thanks
Smiley

[Glottis]

We have had people time and time again pull crap about tipping. I would like to know where or when these people learned that being rude and disrespectful was the way you treat some one who is working very hard for you... so that you can have a good time. Not cool at all. I don't care what excuse you have to say. It's Wrong.

See, I agree that it's not fair to refuse tipping just because you don't think people should be tipped. I think people should be open to tipping and should tip if the service is good. However, expecting people to donate money that is above the listed cost of whatever just because you think that they are supposed to (i.e. without earning it) is very rude, in my book.

[ghostofdavid]

Ever seen the tipping conversation from Reservoir Dogs ?

[mgcsinc]

I don’t know how it is at your hookah bar, but at the one I worked at we had to make the bowl, clean the hookahs, serve that hookahs, get drinks, ring up customers, seat customers, give coals, pack refills.. and what ever else needed to be done. Not only that but we got paid $hit. And really, tips would either make us or break us.

I'm honestly not trying to be mean or anything, but you are getting paid to do that stuff by your employer. A tip is a special bonus that should be given to workers who are especially helpful / courteous, not just those who do the job they are expected to do as an employee in their current job position. Expecting a tip in any position other than being a sever at a restaurant (where is it's simply expected as a cultural thing) is rude, in my opinion, and if the job doesn't pay enough without it... perhaps you should find another job. However, if you were being super nice and helpful and maybe really understanding of each customer's needs (which you may very well have been) then I think that the customer should probably tip you- but at the same time I still don't think you should expect it. It's sort of against the entire nature of a tip.

See, for me, a Hookah Lounge is somewhere between a restaurant (where you said tipping is culturally expected) and a bar (where it generally is also culturally expected in the US), so I don't see any reason to see it in some special third category where tipping isn't expected.

[sambookamax]

Ever seen the tipping conversation from Reservoir Dogs ?

I agree with that 100%!

If we as a society, didn't tip an automatic 15-20 percent for shitty service, and actually tipped on recognition of the "fine" job of the service provided, then we may be getting better service as a whole!

I can't tell you how many times I have had poor service, attitude, etc. and left them a very small tip (percentage wise)
I can tell you that I have had OUTSTANDING service, and tipped generously, even so much as speaking to the manager to praise the service I was provided.

just my 2 cents..

Ohhhh and one time, I had a waitress give me an attitude about a mistake she made on the bill, over charging me a drink, and not removing it...so on the receipt, I marked the "what your tip would have been" $6 and what it is minus the drink you screwed me on $2

[Lakemonster]

I've only been to a hookah lounge once............. I did tip. the service was good.

I sustain a the idea that if I end up with shitty service or get attitude or passed over at a restaurant, no tip. period. ( and I usually dont go back , either.)

For one, I stay out of trendy spots where the big tipping is expected as a rule. I prefer to eat at small mom and pop cafe's, where my bill for everything only warrants tossing out a couple of "ones".

[Buford]

If it's somewhere you go frequently and have the same server a lot, you can look at tipping as a way to get preferential treatment in the future. At a bar I used to go to, I always left the bartender $5 even if I only had one or two pints. He was a good bartender anyway, but I got extra special service after that, like already having a beer poured before I sat down if he saw me come in the door (I always ordered a Beamish Stout) and occasionally he'd give me other stuff to try free of charge. Edited December 19, 2006 by Buford

[NorthEastSmoker]

Yes, if the server is going out of their way to do things for you (drinks, coals, packing your bowl, etc, etc), then hell yes tip them. It's a part of the service industry, in which thier income reflects (or SHOULD) directly upon their customers' perception of their service.

I certainly don't do an automatic 20%.. I've tipped anywhere from 0 up to 50+%, depending on service. In past occasions at restaurants, if the server has an attitude, I've actually given them a $.01 (one penny) tip, and wrote under my signature on the credit card slip "Crappy Service; change your attitude"

[Erica]

Well, For one, I went out of my way for that girl and packed her a bowl with like 7 differnt flavors in a standard sized mya bowl.... Which.. really is a pain in the ass, I could have said no but I didnt, on top of that she and her mother were pretty drunk and her mother sided with me...


Being a server at a hookah bar is just as much work if not more then going to Dennys and serving.

I was not even getting paid minimun wage, and yes I could have gotten a job somewhere else but I loved being able to go in the back and pick anything I wanted and come up with new mixes and what, It was a fun job... the pay just lacked... a lot... and that's why, I would rely on tips to pay my bills.... Of course I gave great serves... It's not like I was doing absolutely nothing and EXPECTING them to give me a tip...

[CaliforniaRose]

Yes, if the server is going out of their way to do things for you (drinks, coals, packing your bowl, etc, etc), then hell yes tip them. It's a part of the service industry, in which thier income reflects (or SHOULD) directly upon their customers' perception of their service.

I certainly don't do an automatic 20%.. I've tipped anywhere from 0 up to 50+%, depending on service. In past occasions at restaurants, if the server has an attitude, I've actually given them a $.01 (one penny) tip, and wrote under my signature on the credit card slip "Crappy Service; change your attitude"

My mom does the penny tip with note too. Only seen her use it a few times over 20+ years. I tend to just leave what ever literal change (coins) left if the service is really crappy with a note. But the service has to be really bad.

[ghostofdavid]

I think a good idea for raising kids is to prompt them into getting a job waiting tables, even for a short period of time, so that they can learn to appreciate the opposite side of the restuarant business (waiting tables) because nothing irritates me like treating people in the service industry like crap (even if they deserve it).

[NorthEastSmoker]

My mom does the penny tip with note too. Only seen her use it a few times over 20+ years. I tend to just leave what ever literal change (coins) left if the service is really crappy with a note. But the service has to be really bad.

yeah, I"ve only done that 2 or 3 times, and I have to be REALLY disappointed..

On the other hand, I've gone out of my way to give a 30-40% tip, and also stop and tell the manager what great service I received from the server. Nothing will make a server's day like a 40% tip, and a pat on the back from the manager at the end of the night..

[ASUSEAN1]

hmm.. i dont even pay at the local hookah bar and i still through down a couple dollars for a tip.. jus seemed like the right thing to do considering im gettin out of a 30 dollar bill atleast every time i go Edited December 19, 2006 by ASUSEAN1

[fewwdragon]

See, for me, a Hookah Lounge is somewhere between a restaurant (where you said tipping is culturally expected) and a bar (where it generally is also culturally expected in the US), so I don't see any reason to see it in some special third category where tipping isn't expected.

Just want to clarify on my behalf. I understand in America it is polite to tip. I didn't know about in the middle east (seeing as hookah is middle eastern in origin). And two I only ask because I felt stupid being the only one to tip last time I went to a hookah bar.

[Sonthert]

There was a time, not so long ago that it was considered rude to tip, in the US. There would be signs that said essentially, you try to give a tip and your ass is out. In Europe, predominantly, tipping is frowned on. I personally feel it is rude to tip if the owner is the one who serves you. Either way, I don't allow tipping at my place...of course, I am the owner. That rule will persist when I get big enough to have employees. Accepting a tip would be a firing offense at my place. We pay well, we charge a fair price and thats the person's job. If they aren't providing good service, they need to be fired or reprimanded, not withheld a tip. Tipping has gone from politeness to requirement...thats why taxes are now taken out of many server's checks. The owner should pay the server more and charge more for the goods/services and fire the server if they are doing a poor job.

I Went to restaurant with like 7 other people and the service was awful. They had a rule "18% gratuity charged on all parties 7 or more". I went to the manager and told her I was not going to give the server an 18% gratuity for such awful service. Whats to stop a server from practically ignoring a large party, since they are guaranteed an 18% tip??? Spend all their time at smaller parties trying to earn more of a tip from people who can do something about it. So I argued about it with the manager.
"The entrees were being served at the same time the salads and soup were."
"Thats not the server's fault, thats the kitchen's fault. You can't withhold a tip from the server if its the server's fault."
"You were out of almost every type of soda pop."
"Thats not the server's fault either, thats nobody's fault."
"Nobody's fault? If something is wrong, somebody must be accountable."
"The service was awful, a Tip is a reward for good service."
"Yes it is, and the server did their best. They deserve a tip"
"Well, it sucked and I'm not going to pay 18%."
The server came over and started in as well! Pretty embarassing, but I'm not going to be held for ransom and I'm not going to be told that a person who gets in my face is entitled to anything. I finally got the tip reversed and gave the server a 10% tip, which was my intention from the beginning. Thats my big issue, its talked about like entitlement. Why are certain working people entitled to a gratuity while others are not?