Here in America, our food service people are generally underpaid…officially. Like, their official paychecks are bulls–t and they live on tips. Which is why Americans generally have strong feelings about tipping, and that’s why the rest of world is always like “why are Americans obsessed with tipping?” Because we’re worried about our poor food service peeps! It’s something of a weird gossip subset too, to discuss which celebrities are generous tippers and which celebrities are tipping Scrooges. But here’s a new angle, an angle which there is no real consensus: how much does one tip, if anything, on a takeout order? My rule is that a tip is necessary if your food is being delivered. Of course. But what if you pick up your own food? Do you tip? And if you do, how much? As it turns out, Mariah and her team did a takeout order of nearly $500 worth of food. And they didn’t tip.
Mariah Carey and her team worked up quite an appetite when the diva played the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City, NJ, on her “All I Want for Christmas Is You” tour. Spies said a production assistant from her tour was dispatched to Robert’s Steakhouse in the hotel to pick up nearly $500 in takeout the same night Carey performed.
Said a spy, “Chef Will Savarese prepared the meal with extra attention to make sure that everything was perfect for the notoriously finicky pop star, who performed her Christmas show at the Hard Rock where the top-tier restaurant is located.”
According to a receipt, the order included lobster tail, strip steak, roast chicken, salmon, crab cakes, pasta dishes, salads and spinach. But a source said some servers rolled their eyes when the staffer handed over $500 in cash for the meal totaling $493.67 — but took back the $6.33 in change and didn’t leave a tip.
Yeah… I would have tipped, just because of the size of the order and it seems like the restaurant was given special instructions about what Mariah (and her team?) needed and wanted. So yes, in this particular case, a tip was needed and Mariah’s people look super-cheap and tacky for not leaving a tip. But what if Mariah had just called in a relatively simple $30 order and picked it up? Would you tip for a $30 carryout?
Photos courtesy of WENN.
I tip 20 percent, always, carryout or sitdown.
Carryout takes more effort than people think. If you’re a server who has to stop everything to help someone with carryout, it messes up your tables. If you’re working at a counter, you’re making minimum wage which isn’t enough for anyone to live on.
The discussion of tipping on carryout is always helpful in illuminating who has actually worked food service before and who hasn’t…
I do too, at this point. I didn’t use to tip as much for carry out but given how underpaid most of the service industry is I do now.
Exactly!!! People who don’t tip, clearly have no experience in the restaurant industry or customer service. Most of the time, carry-out orders in a restaurant requires servers/or other staff to take time away from their other duties to get the order ready. Some fast food places, of course, it is different, obviously. That food doesn’t magically package itself.
Thank you!
I don’t know why people don’t tip carryout or delivery. They must think their orders are magically taken, prepared, and packaged. Often servers and bartenders have to take turns from tables to prepare these orders and it’s a lot of extra work. They make less than minimum wage on their paychecks, and taking orders takes focus from their ability to take more tables. Plus they have to tip out on their delivery orders they take, so when you order to go and don’t tip, that server paid someone when they took your order and you didn’t tip
I’ve worked in food service and never received (or expected) a tip on takeout orders.
I second this. Waited tables for 10 years on and off and never considered packing up food as nearly close to serving a whole meal with refills and everything else. When you pay 15-20% for a tip, I expect either delivery or an entire meal’s service.
Packing up a to go order never required nearly that amount of time or effort. It was more like, “close the boxes and put the food in a bag” which, sorry, just doesn’t warrant a tip for me.
that’s too bad. you should be tipped.
Good for you, Starkille and Tracy. For me, tips on takeout could have made the difference between having gas in my car and not.
But if you’re ok with your labor not being fairly compensated, that’s your prerogative.
In the UberEats-Foodtopia culture, no on tips for take-out anymore. The only person who gets tipped is the actual delivery person. To compensate, restaurants charge a premium price when ordering through these delivery companies. The CBC (on a show called Marketplace) did a study which showed that for many Canadian restaurants, the prices are 10% to 15% higher when ordering through these apps.
Why are you putting the onus of fair compensation on the consumer instead of the employer who gets away with paying $2.65 an hour?
Who says that’s what I’m doing? I happen to do quite a bit of activist work for several issues and fair wages are one of them. But till a mandated pay increase occurs – if you don’t want to tip, make your own food.
I worked in food service and got used to the fact that people don’t tip on carryout, but it did have a pretty major impact on my service to tables, so I would have appreciated a couple of bucks.
Yes! Tip for carryout!! I’m ashamed to say I’ve only started doing so a couple of years ago. I didn’t realize that you were supposed to, but it still requires preparation and packaging, etc. Just because no one’s bussing your table doesn’t mean you shouldn’t tip!
I do too. Just think what would happen if one night, almost nobody dined in but took carryout instead — all the “less than minimum wage” workers will be hurt. I think we need to get rid of tipping altogether and raise wages instead, but as long as tipping is needed to make up for the low wages, I will tip even on carry-out.
@mrs….
Thats a terrific point
I work in food service and I only tip on carryout if it’s a larger order or during peak hours. At one place I worked, they only did carryout and actually didn’t accept tips (but we were paid way above minimum wage and got a lot of free expensive food so it was fine). There are def some places where you should ALWAYS tip on carryout, though. In this situation, a tip is definitely warranted.
I’m sorta meh on tipping culture because yes, people need to make a living, but it lets employers pay people way less than they should and often times results in kitchen staff being underpaid for their labour (this has recently changed for the better in a lot of places though).
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It can also result in pay discrimination: pretty young white girls almost always get the best tips/customer perks. At my current job (not a tipping environment but still food service), I’ve randomly gotten a lot of free stuff from customers. Off the top of my head, people have given me expensive cigars, books, and booze. That doesn’t really happen to male coworkers/POC coworkers. The same is true for tipping. From my experience and the experiences of many coworkers & friends, people of colour, less conventionally attractive people, people with larger bodies, older people, and (in some places) men get fewer tips. Pay equity is a HUGE issue when it comes to tipping.
Additionally, there’s the tax evasion issue and the harm tipping culture does to service industry work environments (shitty customers can make it harder to pay the bills, which shouldn’t be a thing).
Barring something really bad and even then I’ll probably tip Something, I consistently tip between 25-30 percent with more if service was excellent or the waitor was particularly nice and attentive. Tipping system or not, this is how people in the service industry pay their bills in America. It’s usually a shitty, thankless job as it is and I won’t even dine out with a person who won’t treat wait staff with respect. It shows their true nature. Maybe Mariah doesn’t pay HER staff well so they don’t bother being gratuitous. Lord knows she doesn’t pick her own food up. She doesn’t even pick her own legs up, just gets carried everywhere like an infant. They just don’t care.
I never understand this pass Mariah gets because she’s a diva blah blah blah. A God given singing voice doesn’t leave you exempt from being a decent human being. That latter, she can control. Shitty people never get a pass and eff this entitled bitch and her entitled staff.
Eta you know What? Why does HER food deserve SPECIAL attention. We’re all particular about wanting a great meal. The difference is, I’ll tip great and these people who can afford it won’t. No ONE deserves better attention than anyone else and if you continue pandering to these people, you get what you get. Zero.
Raina, I couldn’t agree more. I applaud your comment.
I’ve never tipped 20% for carry out and never will. 20% or more for for dine in and 20% for delivery and 0-10% for carry out depending
I just paid $4500 out on roulette here in Tahoe, got $35! Old days? Maybe? $ 100-500!! Tip
I would tip because it sounds like this was an actual restaurant – like they were taking people away from the running of the restaurant – and it sounds like a huge order. That’s time consuming for the staff to put that together.
Exactly! It wasn’t some fast food restaurant that could throw together an order in a matter of minutes. I have been in the fine dining restaurant business for years, as a server/manager. I always over tip b/c of my understanding of the business and I tip for carry out/delivery orders (though perhaps not as much as when in a restaurant). But a $500 order that had special instructions? YES? Tip! Especially when you obviously have the money!!!
There’s no excuse not to tip on a $500 order from a restaurant. This isn’t the local chicken and rice or pizza takeout place that only does take out (I throw money into the tip jar there, too). This is a restaurant. I was a waitress during school and I remember having to take time away from my tables to assist in packing an order.
Totally agree @Becks1
I don’t tip for carryout like I do for table service.
But when I pick up dinner for the nice man and myself, and spend $25-45, I leave a buck or two. More at Christmastime.
For table service, always 20%+, unless the service is really terrible.
Edit: Also, do you think this was really her decision, or someone on her team in finance said stop tipping, or whoever sent the person to pick it up undervalued what they were getting? I mean, she seems like a person who believes other people just LIVE to serve her and love doing it- but this seems out of the wheelhouse of stuff she deals with.
I had the exact same thought as you had in the last paragraph. I don’t picture Mariah answering the door… She picked what she wanted and had someone order for her. That’s about the max input I see.
This is what I do too – always 20% for sit-down and a few bucks for carryout. I don’t think carryout is quite the same effort as sit-down, but they deserve something. And I’ll leave my change or a buck at the doughnut or ice cream place or whatever.
For a $500 carryout order and considering she’s in the 1% though, she needed to do better. Whether it was her team or her, that’s just a jerk move.
A tip for what? There is no service. You pay for the food, that’s it.
Exactly!
Yes, the food magically packaged itself and presented itself to you.
LMAO – exactly!!!
No, it was packaged and presented by someone who was already paid for that job. Americans…omfg.
Regardless of the time it takes, the server usually tips out the kitchen. So if you tip nothing, I am paying to pack up your food. 10% minimum.
She’s rich, and the people bagged and boxed up a lot of food for her. She really should have left a tip.
You tip on an order of that magnitude from a restaurant. I doubt they have dedicated take out packers.
Normally for my regular, measly orders from the local spots that serve takeout/carryout all the time, hell no. I’m not tipping for that. It’s usually the cashier who packs it up anyway and no waitress is taking time out to pack it up.
But to be fair, this was a pretty big order, at a high end restaurant. If they paid $500.00 for the meal, they could have at least left 10%.
But it’s a high end restaurant so $500 might have not even been a huge order.
I agree. I wouldnt tip. Its not my job to subsidize your salary. There are lots of underpaid jobs out there. Why is the service industry different. Sometimes I work for free (I just called that an unbilled work hour).
I can assure you the employees will remember you, and not fondly.
@mercury oh boy, not that dumb argument. if you feel that you shouldn’t have to subsidize the salaries of people working service jobs, you should stop patronizing any business like that – like no more going out to eat at restaurants. you shouldn’t take out your anger at the system on the workers by not tipping them.
@mercury – then don’t go out to eat. Not your job to subsidize their salary? yes it is when people surive on tips! These people make $2.83/hr and survive on the tips of their patrons.
If you don’t know this – shame on you. And yes, the service industry is different. If you can’t tip, don’t go out.
I want to make a note that in big cities in states like CA the minimum is $15 no matter if they receive tips or not so things in CA are different!
I know this happened in NJ but my note is regarding the mention that servers live off tips only.
If you disagree with the law, take it up with elected officials, don’t take it out on people just trying to earn a living. It’s not fair, but it is what it is right now, so tip.
Diego, I think NJ is still in the $2.13/hour range, but I’m not 100% sure. Regular minimum wage is $10/hour as of this summer. Both of which are impossible, this is an expensive state to live in.
I’m pretty sure Ohio and Oregon mandate hourly pay for servers, but could be wrong.
I don’t like tipping, to be honest, and would prefer everyone just made a decent salary they could live off of, but as it stands now, that’s not the case with restaurant workers so I always tip 20% (if not more, I actually find that I tip more when the service is bad, because I know that other people are probably going to tip less.)
Wow NO! if you live in a state where a living wage is not mandated you tip period! You, I am sure are not making $2.83 per hour. I get so angry at people who don’t tip or tip very little because “they have kids” “they are seniors” they are on a limited budget. THAN DON’T EAT OUT! If your funds are so limited cook something at home. I am all for voting to abolish the horrible wages for servers BUT I do believe I would still tip at least 10% why? Because most of the public suck and anyone who works directly with them deserves a little extra for their pain.
I agree with you.
But on such a large order why wasn’t the restuarant adding a tip percentage? If you eat in with 10 people and a minimum of 18% (or whatever) is added to the bill to cover the extra attention. This one is on the restuarant, not Mariah’s team.
THIS was my thought. Every expensive restaurant I’ve ever been to has (for large orders/parties) at the very least had a 10% tip minimum OR has a system where they actually pay their employees a living wage and make tipping optional. According to Yelp, this restaurant has neither of these policies.
I tip 10% for take out. Someone works on your order and is doing that instead of waiting on a table.
Until waitstaff is actually be paid a livable wage, then I’ll tip. I totally get the feeling of “Why should I tip for you doing the job you’re hired to do” but again…a lot of waitstaff actually heavily rely on those tips to make ends meet. And if you go into a restaurant or order carry out and expect that service of someone cooking your food and delivering it to you…KNOWING THIS, then you can take the time to tip extra. And if you can’t…then maybe you shouldnt be eating out.
I don’t generally tip for carry-out. But I also dont order $500 worth of food. And in this case I think she should have. Plus – when you’re a famous person YOU KNOW people will report if you dont. Which is exactly what happened.
Yep- especially since it said the chef specially focused on the order, meaning someone used her name when placing it.
Exactly.
Where I live the minimum wage is $11.55, though depending on the restaurant, they’re making more. There’s not nearly the reliance on tips in NS as there is in the states, though I still tip every dine-in meal. I’ll sometimes tip on takeout, but it’s rare.
But for $500 bucks worth of food and from a US restaurant where I KNOW tips are very important – and it’s freaking Mariah Carey – it’s outrageous that they didn’t at least slip then a $20 given the price of the food.
In the states if you’re a server you can get paid under minimum wage. For instance, when I was a waitress in PA 14 years ago my hourly wage was $2 even though minimum wage was somewhere between 5 and 7. That said, I don’t tip on carry out.
I will never understand that, Hmmm. The fact that people can work in a job in the US making $2 an hour is just mind blowing. When I started working at 15 in NS, I was making something like $5.75 at minimum wage. I know it’s Canadian, but STILL. I was an untrained teenager working at a Subway.
In Canada, waiters/waitresses are paid under minimum wage too. They’re meant to make up the difference in tips.
I mean, our untrained teenagers at Subway get minimum wage too, lol.
I’m not a MC defender, but this is to blame on her people, like a manger or assistant of hers. They should have sent the pick up person with $600 cash. Tacky and certainly doesn’t help her absurd diva image, even though it wasn’t her doing the pick up.
Agreed, this is the staff member’s fault. No idea if Mariah herself is a good tipper, but assigning her the blame in this case feels wrong.
I always tip, carry out, delivery, or sit down. People have to work to get the food to you, in whatever form it was ordered.
Me too. I generally tip 20% for sit down and 10-15% for pickup/carryout.
I do the same percentages.
Last night I got $20 worth of take-out, and tipped $3. Anywhere I know the person is not making minimum wage, I tip. And I try to leave cash whenever I can.
This is really lousy of her team (I doubt she has any clue about all that stuff) especially since it was so expensive and the kitchen gave extra attention to the order.
I do the same. Leave something to show acknowledgement of the labor that goes into everything, regardless of sit-down or take-out.
Bartender in chic Los Angeles steakhouse here: always tip. A runner or expo packaged your meal, a human had to punch your order in to get it to the kitchen and finally, someone had to take time away from tipping guests to take your money and double check your food. It doesn’t have to be 20% but 5-10% is appropriate.
^ THIS ^ I always tip 20%+ if I’m sitting down and about 10% if I order something to-go & pick it up myself. It does take someone time to package the food plus ring you up and, while it’s not as much time as a sit down meal, they should be compensated on a scale for their service.
But who are you compensating? The host or cashier who rang it up? The runner who brought it to the front? The cooks who cooked it? Who actually gets the money? It seems very different to tipping your dedicated server for a sit down meal.
Another Anne – you are compensating everyone. Usually the server tips out her colleagues (expos, bartenders, bussers, cooks, etc) based on their shift’s earnings.
Alot of my friends are servers and I asked them this question years ago. Should I tip when I pick up an order? Answer is Yes. They explained it perfectly. There are still people in the back that are putting your order together and a person that needs to take the time to get it to you. I tip 10% (or more) on a pick up.
I get this. But the places I go to, the girls in front, who take the reservations are who you pay. I have been tipping them and I realize reading all of this, I should be handing the tip to the person who brings up my food from the back and hands it to me. I’m not tipping the right people.
Hopefully they are sharing it or giving it to the correct people. I don’t know if places still pool tips anymore or what.
Wow at all these people not tipping. 18% or more should be the norm, food service is incredibly difficult and criminally disrespected. At most restaurants, the tip you give to your server also gets shared with kitchen staff. $500.00 is a LOT of food for a kitchen to prepare for one order, and most of those cooks are being paid minimum wage or close to for a skilled trade. I cannot stress enough how stressful the job of a line cook is in a busy restaurant. Your tip is going towards ALL of the staff who helped serve you, including the server who took time from their tables to package your food. Eating out is a luxury. If you can’t afford to tip the people providing you with a service, you should not be going out to eat.
These days, a lot of restaurants pool their tips (which is awesome!) so tips get shared with the back. Just ask what the policy is for handing out tips and if it’s a pool you can hand it off to whoever gives you the food; if not, just tell the hostess/cashier who to give it to.
That said, cashiers/hostesses don’t generally just pocket the tips they get for quick interactions. Part of their job is taking tips and passing them along. As long as they don’t assume it’s for them, they’ll know that the tip is for whoever made/packaged the order.
I tip for everything, regardless of sit down or take out. I even tip at the coffee shop. It’s my one small way of being kind, appreciating how hard those jobs are, and generally trying to alleviate some of the crap. I’m fortunate that I can generally afford it (I know not everyone can. I was a single mom for awhile who often needed the convenience of take out but couldn’t always afford it). Obviously if service is truly terrible or something’s wrong with the order I might not tip. A $500 order from a celebrity with no tip is pure trash imo. I’m not shocked. She’s always seemed like the most vapid, shallow, self-involved person. I can’t stand her or her music. She can afford a tip for the people who worked hard to get her food ready.
Completely agree with you Lindy. I am kind of shocked at some of the stingy, classless comments on this post. Mariah Carey has no business not tipping. Defending massively wealthy people against struggling service workers is unbelievably gross, sorry.
Question though when people are talking about tipping for carryout:
What do we mean by “carryout” – like we ordered from the local Chinese place the other night, its not a “restaurant,” you can only carry out (or get it delivered.) Should we be tipping there? (My husband picks it up so I honestly don’t know if he tips or not, I should ask.)
If I am ordering from a sit-down restaurant (but as carry out) I do tip.
I still would tip.
I tip if there’s a tip jar at places that are strictly carryout. And I tip usually 10-15%
I appreciate this scenario,we often pick up from our local Chinese and our local pizza-we are excellent tippers at any sit down restaurant,and with delivery.I admit to not always tipping for pick up orders but do drop money into a tip jar if one is present.
I’m going to remember to tip for pick up from now on though because I honestly have been inconsiderate in not thinking about how that food ended up in those boxes/baggies.
Sometimes people just don’t know.A five hundred dollar order from a steakhouse though-begs for tipping no matter who you are.
Yeah, this is what I do for carryout (as a food service worker). I don’t do a specific tip unless there are special instructions, it’s a big order, or it’s peak hours but I’ll drop some coins in the tip jar.
It really depends on whether you’re ordering from a place where people work for tips or not. The place I currently work is a bit pricier and pays a living wage plus bonuses, so I don’t expect anyone to tip.
In my opinion as a food service worker, it depends on a several factors: order size/complexity, specifications/modifications, whether it’s during peak hours, and whether the people work for tips or are paid a living wage. If you’re ordering a basic meal for two on a Wednesday night from a family owned&run place that just does takeout, you’re honestly fine with a dollar or two in the jar. If you’re ordering takeout from a sit-down restaurant where prep cooks make minimum wage and servers make less, definitely tip.
If you’re a regular and really enjoy the place, it’s nice to do a real tip tho.
Tipping is an ancient stupid custom and we should get rid of it. It’s confusing and annoying. It feeds predatory behavior. Servers and everyone should just get paid a “normal” salary. The amount we now tip should be added to the prices.
Agree so hard. The responsibility shouldn’t be on the customer to calculate a living wage for the restaurant industry. Or put another way, a living wage for restaurant workers shouldn’t be at the whim of customers.
Oh, totally and completely agree! I just honestly worry that unless and until the system changes, if I opt out of tipping in protest, all I’m doing is screwing over the people who can least afford it. And I’m just not ok with that. I love that there are some restaurants experimenting with a no-tip, living wage system.
Agree,though I will tip until things change
this is true – BUT too many people use it as an excuse not to tip!
True, not saying you should use it as an excuse not to tip, when it is only the workers who will suffer.
It’s a difficult issue, because I heard that when some NYC restaurants tried to move to a no-tip but higher-wages-and-menu-prices model, it caused all sorts of unintended consequences, for example, good servers quit to go to traditional tip restaurants, where they could earn more money, and then kitchen staff complained that their salaries didn’t go up when server salaries and menu prices did. So I don’t know how to fix it.
At the same time, I hate the self righteousness and shaming that goes with tip culture. Can you imagine if customers were shamed into putting tips at the cash register when we shopped at some fast fashion clothing store that underpaid its factory workers or sales staff? Or at a grocery store that sold food that was picked by underpaid farm workers? That instead of blaming the industry, we blamed the shoppers? It’s not as simple as “if you don’t agree, then don’t patronize the business”. There are certain stores that I don’t shop at for my own personal political reasons, but I know it doesn’t affect that business at all.
(I DO still tip according to our American cultural norms, though, because it isn’t the worker’s fault. But it is frustrating, because what we do as “good” individuals doesn’t add up to be “good” for the industry as a whole.)
But until that changes, I think you’re kind of a d*** if you decide to eat out a place, knowing they are underpaying their employees and dont give the waitstaff a tip to help compensate. If you want that service, then pay for that service.
I live the way my Dad did and taught me. And throughout the years, I’ve had friends in food delivery, food prep, service, restaurant, etc. Anyone lifting a finger for you deserves your respect. And I can promise you, if they’re cooking, serving, delivering, attending, etc. they’re not being paid anything close to something they could live on. If you believe anything, put that nugget on top. I’ll never forget the graciousness my Dad offered anyone in his orbit, and he tipped a minimum of 20% decades ago. And he did it discreetly, also important. You’re not doing them any favors, you’re thanking them, and that should be your constant plane of existence.
I’ve never liked Mariah and her behavior, but this is flatout despicable considering how she forces her flash.
Second Mabs last statement on Maria Carey. A restaurant creating that large a take out order deserves a tip for the many staff that had to hustle to get it ready to all go at once while still satisfying the eat in customers. But I would expect this behavior from Maria Carey. Other than a great voice, she has nothing that recommends her to me. I think she is a spoiled narcissist who lives in a self created make believe world and treats everyone around her like serfs. Im sure the self proclaimed goddess things everyone who comes in contact with her should see it as the event of their lives. However, she is a business and as the “CEO” sets the rules and behavior from the top down. Probably, the person picking up the food was given the $500 and told to bring back the change.
This!I was imagining that she would have had a hissy fit over the $6.33 if she declared to bring back change.
(After all she was doing them a favor,you know,by ordering from them 🙄)
On the flip side, my dad has always been a terrible tipper & it taught me to tip. Who wants to be the person who leaves a party & someone else has to sneak back in, check the tab & make sure the server gets more than 10% when they deserved at least 20%?! Why on earth would someone want to live their life as a bad tipper- people do notice, it says a lot about you (not the service), it’s embarrassing & not worth it.
You and I are on the same page MC. Does everyone deserve a tip? Of course not, but most do. I always lean into the golden rule. Scratch that, the golden rule defines who I am. I’ve been in terrible situations, and kindness carries a lot of mileage. Tipping is a way to bridge gaps without embarrassment or guilt or charity. They fulfilled a service, and received a thank you. I like to imagine how it might have elevated their day just a tiny bit. Maybe I incrementally helped a college student, a family buy groceries or pay a bill, a single mom get her sick kid some cough medicine. It doesn’t matter. It’s their business, but I may have put a smile on someone’s face, and that’s worth more than dollars.
@ MABS-you brought a tear to my eye with your sweet, empathetic & compassionate post. I’m ashamed to admit that I sometimes base my tip on how I’m feeling or on some perceived ‘slight’ in my dining experience.
Don’t get me wrong; I’m a generous tipper because working in the food service field is so TOUGH (short waitressing stint in high school 40 years ago) & we’re all doing the best that we can…with that being said, I realized after reading your post that I don’t have the spirit of 🙏gratitude🙏for how very lucky I am and WHY WOULDN’T I WANT TO possibly help someone get gas, or medicine OR just make someone’s day a little easier?
A new ATTITUDE of GRATITUDE for the NEW YEAR 💕🤸♀️⭐🎶🤗
Thank you so very much ravy. I’d hoped I didn’t sound sanctimonious. I make mega blunders everyday. I’m sarcastic and cynical lol. But acknowledging others is something I do well. That and self-deprication. Nothing feels better than making someone smile.
Usually on large orders restaurants automatically add 20% tip. So dumb of them not to factor it in. Or call it a service fee for delivery.
But when you are famous you tip, YOU ALWAYS TIP. Whether it is you or your people representing you. $50 bucks is not worth the bad PR it brings with stories like these.
If I see a tip jar/canister, I tip. A fancy restaurant- I would leave a tip with the credit card payment, if that was on the slip. But I usually look for the tip jar.
I always tip for carry out. My mom was a waitress when I was growing up and I know how much hard work it is for little pay.
I didn’t used to tip on carry out orders and then my sister explained to me that it was a server, taking time away from their other tables to put my stuff together, and I was horrified! I didn’t realize. I thought it was someone receiving a decent hourly pay whose job it was to put carry out orders together, not someone who lived on tips. Now, I always tip. If I can’t afford to tip, I can’t afford to eat out.
Even if she isn’t responsible for the lack of tipping her name is still attached to the order and now this story. It’s inexcusable. She should be mortified by this and go out of her way to tip extra going forward. I am not inclined whatsoever to give her the benefit of the doubt because she has shown herself to be an unreasonable diva for years now. This seems very in line with her persona, and it’s a bad look.
I tip every chance I get. I am sad when I use debit/credit and the machines don’t have a tip option because I don’t carry cash.
In fact, I need to start carrying tip money for just those occasions.
I have been a server and also worked back of house. Tips were and are essential to keeping people employed in positions that are so necessary yet often underpaid, thankless and exhausting. If there’s an opportunity to show a little more appreciation than I take it.
You can usually add tips on the card machine! Just ask the cashier/hostess.
Service industry person here. I tip 10% for carry out, more if the joint seems super busy, over 20% for everything else.
When I was a PA picking up these kinds of orders, I wouldn’t have made a call about whether/how much to tip on my own with the petty cash I had. The restaurants typically added 20% anyway. It may have just been a miscommunication. I imagine production will follow up with a tip, especially after this story.
I agree that you should tip for takeout (for me I aim for 10-15%).
Delivery and sitdown (15-20% or more for excellent service)
However, I ran into an issue this holiday season with one I haven’t experienced before: buying gift cards for friends/family local restaurants — the hostess rang me up but should I really tip them $5 for $50 card? I did $2 as I figured the tip and main service would be on the giftee…
Any thoughts on this?
Why on earth would you feel obligated to add a tip for a gift card? The person literally had to just swipe the card and give it to you. That’s like typing every grocery store cashier. Why would you? Am I understanding this wrong or something? Your friends can use the gift card for tipping or add in some of their own money when using the gift card at a restaurant. I don’t know, I just think tipping is getting way out of hand. A lot of chain restaurants make good money and should pay their staff a fair wage.
I wouldn’t. If I’m buying a giftcard at a restaurant, I’m either running in and doing it during off hours when there’s only one or two people even eating in the entire place, or I’m doing it when I go to pay for a meal I’d just had at the restaurant – in either scenario the staff aren’t especially put out by doing it.
Not for gift cards. The tip will be given to the wait staff when the person uses the card and has their meal.
It’s a little weird sometimes, there’s always a tip line on credit card receipts at restaurants, but I just leave it blank if I’m buying a gift card.
Nope. No need to tip for gift cards. The gift cards will presumably be used to pay for a meal, which will presumably include a tip. Double tipping would be imo (as a food service worker) a pretty unreasonable expectation.
I tip when I order takeout from a restaurant that is also a dine in. I do it because 1) someone had to package it up, cook, cashier or waitress, and 2) those tips are also given to the kitchen staff that did work on my food and dishes, and would be tipped if I dined in. A couple bucks isn’t hurting me if I’m already paying for takeout food. I think it’s nice.
I worked as a server for many years when I was in school so I’m very conscientious about leaving 20%. It used to be 15% but somewhere along the line I increased it. Probably when they started taxing tips. I leave 10% for takeout. Tipping jars have gotten out of hand. They’re everywhere. Last week I went to a bakery and there was a tip jar. Why should I be tipping there? I do tip at a coffee place including Starbucks. But if I order via my app, I still tip in the store rather than via the app. (The app offers a tipping option.) I’m always suspicious that the online tip won’t actually make it to those specific baristas.)
The tipping jars at places like bakeries are a way for regulars to give some extra appreciation to the staff. There isn’t any expectation to tip.
I tip 20% whether it’s dine in, carry out, to go, delivery, whatever. I waited tables & did carry out prep in early jobs years ago. I know the hassle and definitely tip as the food doesn’t magically show up in carry out containers. It’s all hard work. Tip accordingly people.
I really wish we would get rid of tipping and pay living wages, but I think we, as Americans, like the idea of service. All that being said, on a $500 order, the kitchen and staff had to put some extra work into that and Marian’s staff should have tipped.
The thing is – we have a more livable wage in Canada. Servers still get tips. It’s certainly not an either, or situation.
We have a much more liveable wage in Australia and tipping is not done (and people have strong feelings about not letting it become a thing).
On a dinner we’d often leave the change but a certain percentage will never be part of our culture.
I’d leave a tip for any amount of takeout, small or large.
Waitressing, food prep, and catering helped pay for my High School (forced to go to and help pay for a catholic HS education, still getting over it,) and all of my college education. It’s hard work!
I also think the restaurant should have added an 18% – 20% gratuity charge – most restaurants do for bills totaling over a certain amount – especially at casinos. Team Miriah was given special treatment all the way around and took advantage.
ALWAYS tip for takeout. I generally do about 10%, less than full service, but never nothing.
I always tip for delivery and I always tip if I sit down but I don’t tip for take out if I pick it up and I don’t tip if I get things to-go unless I have above excellent services with the person at the register. Maybe I should rethink that but to me pick-up or to-go is not the same service as waitressing a table and/or driving and delivery. I’m also speaking as a former waitress.
wow! as someone who works in food service these comments are a real bummer!!
20% always guys!!!
I know a lot of people think it’s fine to not leave a tip with take out, but as the person at the restaurant who takes the order and then checks it against the ticket so you don’t get the wrong one (while seating other guests and answering the phone and stocking the bathrooms and getting yelled at by other rich assholes who aren’t getting seated fast enough…) yeah it’s work, you should tip… you should always tip!
Think about it this way: leaving a good tip is a relatively easy way to totally make someone’s day better, so why wouldn’t you?
And celebrities should tip even more!! it would probably be thread-jacking to list all the celebrities I’ve waited on who don’t tip well, so I won’t do that but I will say, Ryan Gosling always tipped like a celebrity. He once left me $100 on a $130 meal… that’s what I would do if I was rich! and celebrities that don’t tip (Mariah) or tip poorly (I’m looking at you Jon Hamm) well, may they find hairs in all their food forever!!
So why can’t the food just cost more and nobody has to fuss with the tip? I still don’t get why we have this ancient system that a lot of other countries do not have.
I appreciate service people and I want everyone to get a good wage.
If you’re buying prepared food in a cafe, deli, restaurant, bistro, diner, WHATEVER, you tip. I might tip a little less if it’s carryout, but the bottom line is that these workers aren’t guaranteed a fair living wage, and it’s hardly appropriate to ask what each employee makes by the hour.
Not to mention, it helps to be known as a good tipper if you go to the same places regularly. I get paranoid about who is doing what to my food.
So you think people should leave tips at Starbucks or Burger King, etc? I tip very well if I’m eating at a restaurant. I don’t tip when I’m picking up pizza or any other food that is carry out. I always thought tips were about service. But then again, I live in a place where everyone gets at least minimum wage which is $14 an hour, including service workers. I guess it depends on where you live ? I mean think about it. When you leave a tip at a restaurant, the money goes to the waiter/waitress who served you, not the chef/cook. So when you get carry out and leave a tip, who are you tipping? No one “served” you. The tip goes to the person who simply handed you the food or rang up your purchase. The cooks don’t get any of that tip I believe.
Most restaurants these days pool their tips and share with the back. Definitely ask, but yes, the cooks do get a portion of the tips at most places.
@ Pepper
Thanks for the info ! Nice to know.
I don’t eat at fast food restaurants, but yes, I always tip at Starbucks because they’re often very busy and I think they deserve more than min/low wages. Also it’s just nice. Not sure fast food places even LET workers accept tips but that’s another issue.
From my experience with take out orders, the bartenders usually prepare everything. The food of course is done in the kitchen, but they bag it, put it in boxes, etc. In my mind I don’t see that as service. I might leave a couple of dollars, but never a tip that would amount what I would leave if I actually did dine in. $500 worth of food though is different because you’re taking up a lot of someone’s time. She’s the most famous diva though, so this doesn’t surprise me
For an order of that size? Yeah, I think there should be added compensation. That takes away attention from other tables, which likely decreased interest in leaving larger tip.
I tip most of the time, but it does drive me up a wall how many businesses still only do cash only tipping. I travel for a living, so carrying cash on me is a pain in the ass because of expense reporting, the bank fees for pulling money out outside my area, and just the general risk of theft I encounter all the time on my job.
As someone who has been a server many times, yes, people should tip on carry out. Not at like Little Caesars & places that ONLY do carry out orders and employees get at least minimum wage, but in real restaurants, a server has to be away from their tables to take your order, put it in with the kitchen, make sure it is correct AND correctly timed when it comes out, packaged and kept warm if needed until pick-up, with all cutlery and condiments bagged and ready. Keeping the precise-timed to-go orders ready & warm at the right time was always more difficult than waiting on tables.
At the very least leave a couple bucks for the trouble if you truly don’t feel the customary 20% (and yes, that’s been customary for decades now) was ‘earned’, but if you’re ordering $500 worth of lobster and similar, a proper tip would be expected whether you have PR to worry about or not. You know there would have been a scene if it was rubbery or anything missing. You’re still using their time and service. And anywhere you’re a regular that tips well, servers remember you and give any perks they can. I’m often given my favorite drink for free at my coffee shop or offered an order that someone made wrong.
I do tip 10% on take out but I tip more when dining in a restaurant. I appreciate the staff went through the trouble to pack up my food, but let’s be honest, take out is definitely less effort than serving me at a table, bringing my drinks, bringing my food, checking in on me, clearing my plates at the end of the meal. It would be sp much easier if we could just pay our service workers a living wage and dispense with tipping.
I always tip on take out even if it’s not the usual 20% I would leave if I was dining in. People have to put your order together and it does take time. I worked in the industry so I appreciate the hard work it takes to work in restaurants.
Now I am sure Mariah Carey’s people will fix this and make a big production out of it as well. You know she wouldn’t want this kind of bad publicity. Don’t be surprised if she shows up in person.
why isnt there legislation that customers dont have to subsidize servers and kitchen help? Their employers should pay a livable wage and tips should be a perk/bonus like it used to be…and for people who get bitter that waitstaff get paid more than they do in their professions….can just stfu or become a waiter/ess…
with that said…I initially want to tip 20% but if you suck or are super rude to me….no…you dont get 20…you get 10…all jobs suck at times and I dont need to hear your restaurant drama…..I might smile during my meal….but am totally judging you.
I have spoken to several friends who are servers about raising the wage and getting ride of the tipping policy and they are all completely against it. Why? Because they would make way less money. I tip 20% for good service, more for great service, but I do sometimes resent the sense of entitlement from servers. You don’t get 20% for crappy service. Although I usually still give them at least 15.
They know going in how it works: low pay checks, big tips (depending on where they work). And much of it is tax free. Not a bad gig, really. Anyway, it’s a choice.
I said what I said.
I never tip on takeout, only delivery.
Some people on this post sound incredibly rude, entitled and tacky.
Be kind to others and maybe, as we are all making our way through this thing called life, people will be kind to you.
It depends on the carry-out. The other night we made a pit stop at Cheesecake Factory just to get a slice of cheesecake. I did not tip. But if I ordered like a full meal for take-out, I will tip but not 20% worth. For delivery & sit-down service I tip 15% to 20%.
For context, this is the restaurant’s menu with prices. $500 is a lot of food. Her staff def should’ve tipped. Unacceptable.
https://www.menuwithprice.com/menu/roberts-steakhouse/new-jersey/atlantic-city/578299/
Well she is a known asshole🤷🏻♀️
Queen of Christmas doesn’t have much Christmas spirit.
I’ve been in fine dining for 22 years and to all the folks upthread who think tipping is a way for an employer to pass on costs to the guest, you’re dead wrong. Dead wrong. If you want food to include the actual cost of paying the people who raise/grow it, prepare and serve it, you would be shocked at the cost of your meal. This is a nuanced profession (it’s a profession, dudes) and I guarantee that most people don’t even begin to know what it takes to do it well. It’s just like getting a haircut, or taking a cab. You want your hair to look good? You leave a tip. I doubt any of the people bitching about tipping on to go orders skimps on their hairdresser. It’s very true — if you can’t tip, don’t go out. We remember.
How is it that other countries manage to have service with no tipping? Food is not more expensive. Or haircuts, or taxis.
And if I were a hairdresser I’d cut the customer’s hair as well as possible, tip or no tip. Because I would not be a hairdresser unless I liked my job.
Funny you mention hair stylists — mine just flat increased her prices by 15% and no longer accepts tips. She calls it up front pricing so clients can budget accordingly. It has actually saved me money.
What about pizza? If I have pizza delivered, I always tip the delivery person. But if I pick the pizza up myself, I don’t tip because literally no extra work was done to prepare my order. It’s put in the same box, no bag, and I always pay for the order when I order via the app for the store. So they literally just hand me my pizza through the window at their drive-thru, and that’s that.
Lord, of course you tip for takeout. It takes time and effort to package food, just like serving you when you sit down. Don’t be a cheapskate!
I think they should have tipped. This story is weird to me though. Does anyone think that Mariah even knew that these people didn’t get tipped? Half the time she looks like she is on another planet.
Speaking from experience in working at restaurants in both NY and Ohio, the restaurants I worked for had a certain dollar amount that when it was exceeded for take out they would automatically charge a fee. IE over $250 for take out then they charged $50 service fee. This could be the why whoever picked up the food didn’t leave anything additional, since they were already be charged a service fee. Similar to when dining in a restaurant with more than 6 people, often you’re automatically charged a minimum tip. Just a thought…
10%-15% for delivery (e.g., pizza), 15%-20% for takeout, depending on the order size. 20-25% if I’m being waited on at restaurant.
If it’s a special occasion with a big group and are there for a long time, we’ll do 30% since were adding more work for the servers. Most restaurants will add gratuity/service anyways if it’s a big group, but it’s always nice to leave cash on the table for the server.
Also noting that I did delivery on the side for years and 20% tips were very rare! Most people just do $3-$5.
Always tip for carry out. Period.
I know this is probably a stupid question, so pardon me, but….
When you go to Dunkin Donuts for a cup of coffee, are you supposed to tip as well? I”m asking, because there is always a tip cup. In all honesty, I haven’t left a tip for a cup of coffee. Am I wrong?
People who don’t tip are awful.
And a wealthy non-tipper like MC truly sucks!
It’s Christmas time, she can afford to tip, IMO, $500 food = $500 tip.
They say Sinatra was a great tipper in his time, order a drink & tip $100.
Now, that’s classy. Multi-millionaires who tip well should be the norm.
Heck, I’ve been taking the Aunties out to lunch pretty often in December and on a $40 lunch, I tip $20. It is Christmas! C’mon. And I’m a working class person.
What does Christmas have to do with it? Not everyone celebrates Christmas. Also, not everyone can afford to give a 50% tip…that’s insane unless you got a lot of money to throw around.
I used to waitress and did not receive tips on take out orders. However this large of an order is different and likely warranted a gratuity of some kind to compensate the kitchen staff for the extra work and attention to detail.
Side note: I used to have these customers who would come in about once a week to order take out and then plop down at an empty table to eat it. It seemed like it was purely to avoid “having” to tip and they would leave such a mess with empty take out containers, napkins balled up and food smeared all over the table.
Wow those customers were jerks ! No need to make a damn mess like that.