When it comes to shoes, as in many professions, servers spend many many hours on their feet. One big difference however, is that at a busy restaurant, a server may not get a break. Not one chance to sit and take a load off. Waiters, waitresses and bartenders often have to keep running to meet the needs and expectations of their tables.

In addition to the shear length of time on their feet, the surfaces of the flooring can range greatly and be often tough to navigate, surfaces such as wet tile, hard wood, wharfs, and carpet. It is imperative that a server has a good quality, pair of slip resistant work shoes.

Prolonged use of the wrong shoes can lead to foot and back problems such as, stress fractures, tendonitis, plantar fasciitis, and acute and chronic osteoarthritis. This can be debilitating, and lead to time away from work and worse, permanent and recurring damage to the body.

While shopping for good quality shoes, keep in mind the following tips:

• Look for a light weight pair of shoes. You may be walking literally thousands of steps on any given shift. Each step you take can add up. The lighter the shoe, the less lifting you will be doing.

• Be sure to get slip resistant shoes, aside from wet areas, kitchen floors can have grease and oil on them. You may not always fall to the ground, but even something as simple as a twisted ankle can cause forced time away from work.

• A great fit, the right size and propped arch support. Shoes that are to big can slip, rub and chafe causing painfully sores and abrasions. Shoes that are to small can cause toe pain and overall achy feet.

When you have made the proper selection of shoe, the comfort and proper arch support should be built in, so you won’t feel compelled to purchase insoles or other slip in foot support.

Most online shoe retailers such as Shoes for Crews or zappos.com have very good return policies so that you don’t have to be stuck with a pair of work shoes that just aren’t right. There have been great strides (no pun intended) in the service shoe industry as well. Slip resistant shoes no longer need to look like something for a retirement home. Service and hospitality shoes now have great current styles available for men and women from conservative fine dining dress shoes to ultra-casual tennis shoe styles.

If you are on your feet for long tireless shifts, do yourself a favor and get a pair of good, high quality comfortable slip resistant work shoes. Your body will thank you and with that smile on your face longer, you’re destined to improve your tips!

Special Deal from Shoes for Crews:

Sybil Presley

Lifetime waitress Sybil Presley of Memphis, Tennessee has made it her mission to get a month recognized nationally as “Be Kind to Food Servers Awareness Month”

January is the proposed month and Sybil has been looking to join the National Restaurant Association and garner their support in getting a resolution passed. Congressman Steve Cohen is helping Sybil to get Be Kind To Food Servers Month nationally recognized through Congress. Also being sought is a concurrent request of proclamation from the President for the Be Kind to Food Servers Awareness Month.

Sybil explains; “Be Kind To Food Servers Month was created to elevate the status of waitresses and waiters and to establish a positive relationship between food servers and the dining public. To bring public awareness to what a food server goes through to get the customer’s food to their table. An on-going campaign to shine the spotlight on the pet peeves from both sides of the tray-food servers and customers,making both parties aware of areas that can be improved upon for better service for the customers and generate more tips for the waiter and waitress. Be Kind To Food Servers Month will help to gain more respect, patience and appreciation for the food servers of America!”

Sybil has also created the Be Kind To Food Servers Social Network and Support Group., Info can be found on Facebook.
She is looking for suggestions from food servers and anyone who has ideas on how they would like to celebrate the Be Kind To Food Servers Awareness Month in January. In August Ms. Presley hosted city-wide blood drives. The Life Blood mobile units came to area churches and there was a festival atmosphere with food vendors and entertainment. She invited food servers to volunteer and donate blood, and plans on keeping the blood drives as one of the annual events.

If the Bill is passed while she is trying to raise money to get to DC, She will still go and thank Congress and publicize the cause. Sybil points out “This is more than just a month, it paves the way for year-long projects that will benefit Food Servers.” Sybil has also started an on-going Be Kind To Food Servers Social Network. Sybil is accepting donations in any amount to help realize the goals of her movement.

You can read more about Sybil Presley at www.SybilPresley.com and she may also be contacted via email.

Deluxe Waiter Caddy™

There are a few tools that every server should have in their arsenal. A good cork screw, a crumber, a lighter, maybe a penlight and certainly a presentation book style organizer. Up until now all of these items have been old standards – unintuitive and generic. Enter the Waiter Caddy™

Developed by former server Katrina Degel, this innovative little organizer has 7 pockets: two of which can be utilized for concentrated sales improvement and up-selling tools. The unique clear, front pockets of the Waiter Caddy™ are the perfect size for standard POS paper or order pad paper. In each pocket, servers can slide the daily specials, menu notes, cocktail list, wine suggestions/pairings, and whatever else you may need quick access to.

Both available models, Original and Deluxe are sold individually to servers at www.TheWaiterDepot.com, and are also available in bulk to restaurants who want to provide a better sales tool to their servers, not only improving their bottom line, but improving the tips of their servers which is sure to boost morale.

The Waiter Caddy™ is a system, not simply an organizer.  It is very easy to use and is a much needed solution for servers to keep their menu and wine notes front and center. Conveniently, each book comes with a brochure discussing several “Cheat Sheet” ideas, as well as tips on how to make more money and pump up sales.

Katrina Degel, creator and owner of TheWaiterDepot.com and TheWaiterCaddy.com, offers free menu and training consultations for her clients on how to motivate staff and improve product knowledge while minimizing server mistakes. Check out the websites at www.TheWaiterDepot.com to view the product, as well as www.TheWaiterCaddy.com to view the ongoing server Learning Forum, and see the endless ideas that are being discovered for this innovative server book.

So throw away that ratty old American Express/Discover Card/Visa presentation book you have been fumbling around with and get your hands on a Waiter Caddy™!

It is a “no brainer” for Tip20! to endorse this fabulous product and we know much benefit servers and restaurants alike will see from it.

This is a paid endorsement. All opinions are 100% ours.

From the Tip20! Forum by ~anonymous~
Tip20! Forum Contributor

Please take a minute to read.
Tipping your server at a restaurant has been a long-standing American tradition. While tipping 15% of the total bill has been the standard for a long time, that tip can vary depending on the service you receive. Here are a few ways to determine how much you should tip.

1.) The friendliness and attitude of the server has got to be a top priority in determining a tip. The food could be wrong because of a chef’s mistake, the room temperature could be cold because the manager set it that way…but a server’s attitude is nobody’s responsibility but the server’s. Most people that go into restaurants are happy and looking forward to eating a nice meal and not having to do the dishes afterwards. If you get a server with a poor attitude who seems “put out” by having to serve you, a very small tip, if any, would definitely send him or her a message. You should never have to put up with that. By the same token, a server who is happy, smiles a lot, and seems to thoroughly enjoy waiting on you, should definitely get 20% or 25% for making your evening even more pleasant.

2.) The food is certainly a factor. If your order comes out wrong, it may have been a chef’s mistake, but it’s something the server should have noticed before it was set in front of you. The quickness in fixing your order is important. If they fix it in five minutes, I wouldn’t hold it against the server. If the server seems to be bothered by the fact that you’re complaining about the order being wrong (again, there’s the attitude factor) or takes another 20 minutes to get you the correct order, a deduction from that 15% standard is certainly justifiable.

3.) Is your glass filled in a timely manner? A good meal is often not a good meal if you don’t have anything to wash it down with. If you go more than a few minutes without a refill, a slight deduction of the tip would be in order. On the other hand, if your glass is constantly filled to the rim, a slight increase should be given.

4.) The overall pace of your meal is important. You shouldn’t be getting your main meal one minute after your appetizer arrives. You shouldn’t have to wait five minutes to get the Parmesan cheese or ketchup that you asked for. And after your plates are cleared and you’ve had dessert, you shouldn’t have to wait 15 minutes for the check. Your meal should flow smoothly, from the time you sit down to the time you leave. While tipping 15% is easy enough to do, the tip should mean more to you as a patron. Servers make very little salary ($2.13 / hour) , living mostly on the tips they make. If they’re do a standard job, 15% is fine. But tipping more for an exemplary job can be extremely rewarding. And tipping less for an inadequate job could send them a message that they need to work harder or change their attitude.

A little quiz for those of you who have never waited tables:
1. What is the average hourly wage of a server?
2. How much should you tip your server?
3. Is it OK to verbally abuse, throw your food, your drink, even your cigarettes, at your server?

• If your answer to the first question was minimum wage, or more, you’re not even close.
• If you said “as much as I think he deserves” for No. 2, again, not even close.
• And if you laughed at the third question, fine, but don’t think it doesn’t happen.

LESSON TIME
Here’s your first lesson in diners’ etiquette: Remember that your waiter is a person. She doesn’t live just to serve you. More than likely she waits on you so she can pay the bills while she puts herself through school.

DON’T GET CHEAP
Here’s your second lesson: Your server’s livelihood depends on your tip. Restaurant owners (in many states) are not required to pay their employees more than $2.13 an hour because tips can be considered part of wages.
Just ask server Kim Harris, who works at Awful Arthur’s at Towers Shopping Center in Roanoke. Harris recently received a $49 tip, which sounds pretty good until you find out the check totaled $520. In the land of 20 percent tips, this one should’ve been $104.
“They still stiffed me even though they told me the service was great,” Harris said. In restaurant lingo, that’s known as the “oral tip.” And you wonder why your server isn’t always as friendly as you expect.
When you have a bad day at work it most likely doesn’t affect your salary, but in the service industry, one off remark and you’re not getting a tip, or at least not a decent one. All because someone didn’t give you the benefit of the doubt.
While on the subject of tipping, here’s a rant on the forum site bitterwaitress.com written by an anonymous server in Roanoke: “They come in once a week, every week and only leave 50 cents per person. They get extra refills, extra dressings, to-go drinks and are always complaining about SOMETHING! Stop coming in if you don’t like the food OR service! I’ve gone out of my way to actually be RUDE to these b—–s and they keep coming back! Even if you’re polite … no difference in tip! If all you can afford is 50 cent tips, then go to McDonalds and buy an extra side of fries! I don’t need your pity change!”
If this is you, there’s your wake-up call.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T
Another good rule of thumb? The Golden one. Respect your server. Just to reiterate, he’s there to serve you, but he’s not your servant.
“I had a guy cuss me out about his tab because he thought he was paying more than he should,” said Awful Arthur’s bar manager Chad Skeens. “When I walked by him, he flicked a lit cigarette at me so I had to bar him from the restaurant.”
A lit cigarette? Come on. Talk about being a jerk.

MORE TIPS
• Once you’ve been seated, don’t take it upon yourself to switch tables. Restaurants have a seating chart and certain sections belong to certain servers. You just might move to a section that just got “sat” and you’ll mess up the flow. Oh, and along those lines, don’t move another table next to yours if more friends show up. That other table is a potential tip for your server. Ask what can be done to accommodate your party.
• Try to let your server know everything you might need ahead of time. If you want a side of ranch dressing and your drink refilled, tell him both at the same time so he doesn’t have to make extra trips.
• Sometimes it’s tough to decide what you want to order, but if you tell the server you’re ready, be ready. If it’s busy, she doesn’t have time to wait for you to decide when she could be helping other customers or helping her fellow servers. And if you have a small child, order for her if she can’t make a decision. Time is money.
• If you’re seated at a table, don’t go to the bar to order a drink. Then you must pay the bartender instead of your server. Your server will gladly get you a drink.
• Don’t name drop in an attempt to get something free if you’ve only met the owner once or twice.

Now pass this around to all your friends and family to read. I’m sure that this is something that we have all thought about at one time or another. I am a server myself. I found this on a web site. I have talked to a lot of people that don’t realize a lot of this information, or are unaware. Remember you should want us to be just as happy as you want us to make you during your visit. You will definitely find that a server who is in a good mood, will give you better service and be much happier to serve you. Saying I have done a good job, and tipping awful (oral tip) is worse than no tip. Table turns are very important for your server. When the restaurant is busy think before you hang out for a long time, or tip for your stay and not just the bill. When people come in and sit for 2-3 hours having conversation remember that the server could have had several tables for the one you are holding. And last but not least, I have never worked in a restaurant where a server only had one table. Please try to be considerate when your server has many customers and you see that person is very busy, and just take into consideration that you are not the only person in the restaurant. Thank you and don’t forget to pass this on.
~anonymous~

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From the “Best of Craigslist” Date: 2004-01-13, 2:13PM PST

Welcome to your neighborhood nudie bar! Come in, have a seat, check out all the pretty girls. Oh, look! Here comes one now. But why is she fully clothed? I’ll tell you: because she’s me, your nudie bar waitress–here to tell you about our two drink minimum’

‘Two drinks!’ you scream, ‘they didn’t tell us at the door!’

Let me explain, idiot:
They don’t tell you that at the door because they don’t want to scare you cheap bastards off. See, you come in, you see a naked dancing lady, chances are, even the cheap mofo’s want to stay. You’ll probably be too distracted by the live pussy to notice the signs on all the tables that say, ‘two drink minimum.’ So I’ve been hired at minimum wage to inform you.

I don’t tell you this. Instead, I smile, and in the sweetest, bubbliest voice minimum wage can buy, I say,
‘It’s not the doorman’s job to tell you about the two drink minimum, it’s MY job!’
I hold a little sign with all the drinks and prices on it in front of you and ask kindly, ‘What would you like?’

You ignore the sign and say, ‘I’ll have a Budweiser.’

This is where I change my tone to sad and empathetic.
‘We don’t serve alcohol,’ I explain, ‘It’s illegal in San Diego to have full nudity and alcohol.’
I feel you. I understand. You make me want to drink.
Other times, I think, good try, little under-21 punk. You only got in because it’s an 18 and up club.

You finally look at the sign I’ve patiently held in front of your face. This is where you exclaim loudly, ‘$4.25 for a COKE?!!’

Inwardly, I sigh. Outwardly, I correct,
‘$8.50. You have to buy two.’
I sense your confusion, (not too good at math, eh?) so I explain again,
‘It’s a TWO drink minimum.’

You’re speechless.

Let me explain: In America, when you have a business, you want it to make money. Say you have a nudie bar in a city/state where it’s illegal to have full nudity and booze under the same roof. Where the heck are you going to make your money? You gotta sell something. So you sell cokes and juices for $4.25. And you make it a two-drink minimum.

Now you’re really upset.
’8.50 for two cokes? I’m not paying $8.50 for two cokes!’

Here’s a reality check, idiot: First of all, I’m talking to you. I doubt women talk to you much, unless, like me, they’re in the service industry. That’s gotta be worth something. Secondly, have you been to the movies lately? They’re like $9, and you don’t even get cokes. What’s more, you have to leave after an hour and 50 minutes. In a strip club, the entertainment is live. Nudity, right in front of you, and you can stay longer than an hour and fifty minutes. Plus you get two nonalcoholic drinks. For a mere $8.50. It’s really a super bargain. So get off my ass. I didn’t set the prices.

The more I think about this, the more it bugs me. You aren’t paying $8.50 for cokes; you are paying $8.50 for the privilege of having many women take their clothes off and dance before you. Ask some random non-crack head woman outside to take her clothes off and dance for you for $8.50. See what happens. You might get slapped, you might get the police called on you. Now, with that same $8.50, you go try to get 15 women to do it. It ain’t gonna happen, buddy. So buy the drinks and realize it’s a bargain.

But I don’t balk at your resistance to the $8.50. Instead, I make a cute little flirty face and purr, ‘It’s really worth it” (I’m a real fucking bargain at minimum wage, I tell you.)

Now what gets me is the sheer percentage of you who will—after all this—say,
‘Nah, I’m good. I don’t want anything.’

You look past me, at the naked dancing lady, verbally and non verbally telling me, ‘go away ”

I try to put it in even simpler terms. I say,
‘It’s a two drink MINIMUM. You HAVE to buy two drinks to be in here.’
Then pause, dumb it down more:
‘You HAVE TO BUY TWO DRINKS.’

You don’t want to tear your eyes away from the bent over ass a few yards in front of you. I know, it’s a joy to watch a pretty naked girl bent over slapping her own ass. But somewhere in your pea brain, it registers that you cannot fully enjoy the ass until you get the persistent waitress to leave.
‘Okay, okay,’ you grumble.
‘What would you like?’ I ask, slightly relieved. My smile is warmer.
You look back at the sign. On it, an assortment of non-alcoholic beverages. Coke, diet coke, Sprite. Orange juice. Cranberry juice. Etcetera.

You start reading it. Slowly.
Yessssssss, your waitress has allllllllllllllllll dayyyyyyyyyy…

After an eternity, you decide.

‘I’ll have coke.’
I turn to your friend, whose been standing next to you the entire time.
‘What would you like?’
‘Uh, nothing. I’m not thirsty.’

Part Two: I Bring the Drinks

‘Are you guys paying separately or together?’
‘Separate.’
‘That’ll be eight fifty,’ I say.
You see two cokes in front of you. You complain,
‘Ahh, you bring ‘em two at a time?’
‘Yes, you idiot. Like I would trust you to buy one now and one later?’
Actually I only say, ‘Yes. ‘

You hand me a twenty.
I make change, giving you eleven one-dollar bills and two quarters.
Why so many ones?
A. Because it’s a strip club! I’m hoping that once you see a big pile of ones, you’ll realize what they’re for, and give me one.
B. I know if I don’t give you a bunch of dollar bills now, you will be asking for them later when the stripper whose ass you’ve been staring at hits you up for money”’ And lastly,
C. Since you’re probably not going to tip me well on the drinks, you for sure aren’t going to tip me for a second trip if I have to bring you change later. I unload all my ones on you now to save myself the trouble.

But I do make it slightly inconvenient. I have learned not to hand you your change, which you will pocket. If I put your change on my tray, you have to pick it up. I’m counting on you being too lazy to pick up the quarters. That way, I’ll get at least fifty cents, (yeah, it’s pathetic what I gotta do for fifty cents). Fifty cents is more of an insult than a tip, but because I make so little, I figure it’s better than nothing.

So you pick up the bills. You look at the two quarters on my tray, decide it’s not worth it, and leave them. You didn’t tip me; you were just too lazy to pick up the quarters. You don’t say thank you. Neither do I.

I turn to your friend.
‘$8.50,’ I say.
He’s rifling thru his pockets. He’s scrounged up a five-dollar bill and three wadded ones. He drops them on my tray.
‘It’s $8.50,’ I say. ‘You’re short fifty cents.’
He looks at you.
‘You got fifty cent?’
You remember that fifty cents and nod at my tray. It’s already there. For a $17 order, I get nothing. And because I value/need my job, I don’t say anything.

Here’s a little rule: When you buy a drink, never tip less than a dollar. I live so far under the poverty level that I have to go to bars with $2 drink nights. I still tip a buck a drink.

If you ask your strip club waitress to go get someone because you want a lap dance, give me a dollar for my trouble. If you didn’t tip me for drinks, and don’t intend to tip me to go get her, get off your ass and get her yourself.

Lastly, don’t come in with a bunch of guys, have a big order, not tip me, then ask me to change $40 into ones to tip the dancers with.

I’m not making a living wage. My paychecks do not even cover my share of rent. And guess what? In the tipping/service industry, the government assumes we are getting tipped, and taxes us accordingly. I lose money when you don’t tip. It costs me money out of my paycheck!

My favorite: I wish you were out there reading this, but I’m assuming you’re retarded and illiterate. You came in. You bought two drinks. You asked for all ones for change. You gave me nothing, explaining, ‘I need these for tips.’

Let me explain something: You’re telling me that the naked ladies are more important for you to tip than your server. Well guess what? Some of those naked ladies (deservedly) make over $500 per night. Your dollar, little man, doesn’t mean shit to her. You will only mean something to her if you get her in a private booth and let her do a string of lap dances for you at $15 a pop. Ten dances, she’ll remember you and smile at you next time you come in.

I’ve seen strippers pick up dollars time and time again and not say ‘Thank you.’ I will always say thank you for a dollar. That dollar will mean a lot more to your waitress.
I can’t believe you, saying, ‘I need these for tips.’ Then not tipping me, your server.

I hope all that jacking off gives you carpal tunnel.

Author: Josh Stone

Well, if you’re determined to pursue a waitress career, I’m certainly not going to stop you. So, just to make things easier, here’s a combined assortment of tips for coming through the experience in one piece.

Some skills

To survive in the waitressing game you need many skills that will help you during your time working on the food chain. These include, but are not limited to:

Lying: You take an order from customers and spend the next half hour serving other people in your section. Then you realize – whoops, you forgot to give the order to the kitchen! What do you do? First, tell the customers there was a slip-up in the kitchen. Make vague references to the hassled chef – they’re always so busy, you know! Promise it will be out soon. Give the order to the kitchen with the express direction to make the meal ASAP because it’s for two heart surgeons on their lunch break. Situation averted, and you’re cool.

Look busy at all times: Follow the George Costanza school of business and always look kind of annoyed and walk with a purpose. This works to put customers off-balance as you can get away with a lot more when a customer can clearly see you’ve run your feet off. And if you spend your free time doing menial tasks such as folding napkins and restocking the toothpick dispenser you won’t get asked to carry the plates to the kitchen or do the washing up. The boss sees that you’re using your initiative.

Suggest Sir or Madam tries the bread or a salad with their meal: If practiced often in a clear and ringing tone, your boss will notice that you’re up-selling the product. Good for you, you might get a raise or promotion. Plus the customers will be impressed by your superior menu knowledge and great ideas and you may get a tip as a result. Nothing wrong with tips, are there?

Get the bill to the table as soon as possible: The reason being that you want a tip included. Instead of letting the customer make their way to the register before getting the bill, take it to them. There are three things which may occur: Either they will leave an amount of money with the bill which is a little over the requested price, but they don’t bother waiting for the change so you can pocket it. Or they put some money with the bill then wait for their change at the table, giving them ample time to think about telling you how much of the change is yours to keep. And some will take the bill to the counter anyway. This is the worst choice as people will often forget they’re in a restaurant and think they’re just in a normal shop. Oh, well, you can’t win them all, and some people wouldn’t tip if their life depended on it.

No matter what, be polite: This will make you look like a saint and everyone who barks at you will appear mean-hearted and crazy.

General advice

In the United States, count on a minimum wage everywhere where there isn’t an exception to that law – such as so-called ‘right-to-work’ states where your wage will be well under minimum. This is true precisely because of tips – in other countries tips are considered a gratuity on top of your salary, something extra. In the United States, tips are used as an excuse to not pay you a living salary. Sadly, many customers don’t realize the fact that when they don’t tip you, you’re working virtually for free.

Weekends and evenings are the best times. Always try to find someplace which gets a lot of business at least at certain times – collage areas, conventions and travel destinations, in a hotel or casino, near a sports stadium, and so on. Never skip working on a Holiday if your restaurant’s open that day – Holidays are your most profitable time. Your shift is likely to consist of lingering periods of inactivity punctuated by rushed times when you can barely keep up.

The ideal schedule for a table is five visits at minimum. First you greet and perhaps seat them if there isn’t a hostess. Next, immediately bring menus, and ask initially if they’d like a beverage or would perhaps order right now. If they’re regular customers they may already have an idea what they want. Next return to take their order. Then of course bring their food. Check once about five to ten minutes into the meal to see if they need anything else. Then at last bring them their bill and close your interaction. Add more visits depending on whether you have to refill a beverage or check every ten minutes to see if they’re ready to order.

Tailor your service to the customer. The only way you’ll get good at this is by learning body language. When you recognize a business person rushing in at lunchtime who is obviously in a hurry, cut out as many steps and be as efficient as possible. When you recognize a couple on a date, give them some time alone and intrude at the minimum; possibly suggest a single dessert to share. Stay and chat an extra minute with a lone diner who’s not in a hurry if you have the time. When a lone diner arrives with a book, however, give them time to themselves; nobody who brings a book to dinner is ever in a hurry. Jump to serve a large party or family, and be extra warm and personal; large parties tip the best since they’re likely to be having a festive time with all the company.

Good luck with your job. Whether you’re waitressing to support yourself through school, just trying to work off your credit bills or you’ve got nowhere else to go, it’s a career move which is interesting. Like cab driving, it will teach you about people, and you’ll meet the most interesting varieties of them.

About the Author:
Freelance writer for over eleven years.

Waitress Aprons Restaurant Uniforms Medical Uniforms

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – So You Want to Be a Waitress

Author: Patti Farnham

When we go out to eat we often take the waitress for granted. We want her to be doing all she can to help us enjoy our meal. While we are visiting and eating though she is tending to many other people. She has her own method of keeping everyone on track. That is if she is a very good waitress. When you have one that isn’t organized it can be frustrating. At the very least it does interrupt the flow of your meal.

Many who do this type of work depend on waitress tips to help them pay the bills. The paycheck they take from such a job is very low. Depending on where they live it can be just a few dollars an hour to minimum wage. However, a very good waitress at a busy location can more than compensate for it with her tips.

Waitress tips are left by customers who have had a meal there. It isn’t mandatory part of the meal but one that is customary. You will find that some people don’t leave a tip if they are very unhappy with the food or the service. Yet most people will leave something if they feel the waitress made some type of effort to help them have a great dinner out of the house.

That amount can range from a few dollars to much more. It depends on the establishment and those who frequent there. A couple of dollars per person is standard but someone may leave a very nice tip just because they can afford it or they want to do something nice for the waitress.

You will find that waitress tips increase around the holidays too. I guess people just get into the spirit of the holiday. They want to make sure they are giving what they can for others to enjoy it as well. Many waitress tips go to pay for college and other things that can help a person move on to a better job. That means they really do rely on that money to help them make ends meet.

You will find that many restaurants have mandatory waitress tips for large parties. This is because they do consume so much of that waitresses time. Generally this is from 10% to 15% of the total check. Some people don’t think that waitress tips are fair but they leave one anyway. They don’t want to be viewed as being a cheap skate.

For those on the other end of it though, they really need those tips. It can be a long time between paychecks. Knowing you will have some money in your pocket at the end of the shift though can help you to pay for gas, food, and other necessities in between.

Knowing they have to work hard for waitress tips, most of them do their best to earn it. They go out of their way to make sure everyone dining at the restaurant gets the best possible service. This means that the restaurant often gets many return customers which keeps the owner happy as well.

About the Author:
Patti Farnham has a great deal of experience in the hospitality business. You can get more great information at waitress tips. Check out her website Gratuity-Ingenuity.com to learn more on how to make bigger tips.

Article Source: ArticlesBase.com – Waitress Tips Make a Difference