40% of what though? The meal? Like how does the math work. I don’t understand 
Say you get a meal for idk, 30 dollars, so when you tip…
2 Likes
What did you see? 
I’d love to go to Egypt some day
1 Like
40% of the total 
granted even my then-boyfriend was absolutely surprised, he said he would’ve given 30% and not 40%. When we were alone he laughed and gave me headpats for tipping that much 
But that was only because my aunt and her friend were being super annoying customers 
while the server was taking our order, they were asking a bunch of questions—some of which could have been answered by simply reading the menu—and they made some remarks as well. And they complained nonstop during the entire meal 
I was getting mad and I wasn’t even the waitress
3 Likes
Sounds like the perfect time to become a ninja and vanish
I don’t like how tipping isn’t just about something percent of a meal, but also you have to think about if you liked them or about being a nice human, but then you might not have enough money to tip…
3 Likes
Honestly I have no idea what an iced chocolate is I think I may have had one once, from like a specialty cocoa/chocolate shop in the UK, but it’s not something I’ve commonly seen even while travelling 
But, to be fair, I also very rarely consume even hot chocolate, so 
2 Likes
At a hotel I stayed in at the end of August. Everyone was so lovely. They clocked that I was lowkey a mess & stressed as hell so they checked me in early free of charge, moved my bags for me, let me extend my stay at a nicer room and complimentary turndown service?! It wasn’t even a fancy hotel! Well it was kind of a fancy hotel but not that fancy. And breakfast service was so smooth despite the bajillion guests.
2 Likes
Pretty much everything except the Valley of the Whales and the Valley of the Queens Did the Pyramids and Sphinx in Giza, Abydos, Aswan and the dam’s island and temples, Dandarah, Valley of the Kings and surrounding areas, Minya, Alexandria, Cairo, Abu Simbel, Saqqara, Luxor, Edfu, Lake Nassar and it’s islands and temples, a lot of museums, a few churches and mosques, a bunch of wadis and some places that only the locals would know about heehee. I’ve probably missed a few places in the list tbh I’d have to check my instagram
It’s super cool. The problem is there are places you can only go to when the terrorism threat is low. That’s why we couldn’t do Jordan as well (plus other reasons). But yeah it’s a great place. The people are super nice, the food is incredible. Ya just gotta watch your purse in the markets and prepare for harassment because they will chase you to get you to buy stuff. It’s actually pretty fun once you know how to play the game And make sure you AVOID the loud, obnoxious, very obviously stereotypical American tourists. The hotels are incredible (we stayed in one with a chocolate fountain), everything is actually AFFORDABLE (the irony), and despite what people will tell you, they’re actually very accommodating to physically disabled tourists.
Unlike people in western countries who tell you to eff off, stop pretending, hurry up and get better from your incurable illness, stop being an attention-seeking b-word, you should just get over it, get out of the way, stop making a big deal, you’re just a druggie and the world isn’t accommodating to “people like you” (yes that is generally how I’ve been treated by customer service here at home except for a few nice people but those were BEFORE Egypt). So, yeah, Egypt was the last time I received good customer service, let alone great 
1 Like
when it comes to customer service in the united states you have to remember that very few people are trying to make careers out of it.
like all of this is considered poor service in the states as well. It is just tolerated because its understood most people in the restaurant service aren’t having it as a career- it is just a temporary job or side gig or transitional employment.
due to this they are really just catering to the restaurant owner’s wishes- which is most likely going to be get customers in and out as quickly as possible without upsetting them + because they are not passionate about it; do as little as possible to achieve that - customer’s understand this so they go in expecting that and because waiters (depending on region may only be paid in tipped or mostly in tips, or even if paid minimum wage or higher) Americans tip not out of good service but out of either ethics or not wanting to seem like a bad person or social taboo. and then after they have felt they have met the quota for that- then they tip additional based on the service.
it varies from country to country I imagine but in Europe and Asia its more common for countries to have service included in the bill even if its labeled as such ie either a separate service or gratuity charge OR it is included in with the price of the food. so like if I were to order chicken in the states my options for pricing would be
- price of chicken alone not including service cost + optional tips
- price of chicken alone, separate line item for service cost + optional tips
whereas in europe and or asia it would be
- price of chicken alone not including service cost + separate line item for gratuity/service expressed as percentage of bill
- price of chicken + the cost of serving the chicken
in the states the cost of serving an item is never included in the item whereas that is standard in Europe and Asia. so when Europeans and Asians come to the states in their mind when they purchase an item off the menu they are paying for both the item and the service of getting the item but they are not.
instead you are choosing how much you believe the service is worth which is what the tip is. but instead it is misunderstood as did they exceed the value of the service already included in the bill and if so by how much and i am going to tip that amount.
so different states have different ways of dealing with that. in some states the cost of service is the responsibility of the owner soley.
in other states the cost of service is soley the responsibility of the customers
and in others it is a hybrid. in Massachusetts currently waiters get paid the national minimum wage but not the state minimum wage. If they earn the state minimum wage or higher in tips the owner does not need to pay them state minimum wage. but if they do not then owner needs to make up the difference. the legislation which did not pass- was that owners would be fully responsible for paying full minimum wage. the main group opposed to this change was the Masachusetts Restaurant Association. service workers are split in terms of it they voted for or against the measure.
restaurants that operate like this know they aren’t having good service.
so they make money either through
- the quality of the food
- the rarity of the food in the region like only idk Italian restaurant in the town for example (but could be like more niche or specific than that)
- being in a convenient location
- marketing; rotating customers
- franchising
if you have a waiter who is actually trying to make a career out of it, working at a restaurant where customer service is prioritized, amongst other factors you are more likely to get a higher quality of service
lol I imagine it varies from region to region. essentially their aim if they are trying for good service is to build a rapport with the customers so that the next time they come in the customer feels like the staff knows them. though what you described is just a script waiters are trained in to try to give that feeling without actually having to build the above skill. or so that owners don’t have to pay for the above skill.
@TheTigerWriter
you asked earlier how much do you tip in the states different people are going to give you different answers based on their own beliefs and agendas.
like some will say 10%= you were a horrible human being who shat on my food. 15%= shitty service 20%= standard 25%= good service. 30%+= great/ excellent service.
others will say 10%= standard, 15%= good, 20%= excellent 25%+= generous.
some won’t give an exact amount but they will say what percentage of your bill do you believe was the service regardless of quality tip that amount in percentage + whatever monetary value you believe the quality of the service is beyond that if any.
some won’t give an exact amount but they will say what percentage of your bill do you believe was the service regardless of quality tip that amount in percentage + what is needed to ensure a livable wage for 1-2 hours of work + /- whatever monetary value you believe the quality of the service is beyond that if any.
but really what it is however much you think the service is worth you pay for- and its really going to be dependent on how you personally determine value and if value is the sole determinant of cost for you - which will vary depending on if you are responsible for the cost or not.
lol you know whats wild they also have the option to tip at self checkout .
it exists for a few reasons. one its a way for owners to offset cost to customer. two its a way for employees to make up the difference between current wage (whether above minimum, minimum, or below minimum) to a living wage.
imo the best customer service is going to be flexible to the customer. any customer service that is standardized- whether thats through a script or otherwise is poor customer service that may appeal to a certain demographic.
the thing is providing customer service based on being flexible to the customer is a skill and not every person who works in customer service wants to build that skill and not every employer wants to train for that skill. its cheaper and easier to just train a standard and its even cheaper and easier to just train a script.
So
this is “poor” service
and yet there’s an expectation to tip a minimum of 15% or 20% in spite of that?
Live by the tip, die by the tip, baby.
So, I’m not hiring the employee, but I’m responsible for paying the employee, when I’m actually the client.
In all other industries this would be laughable.
So sink or swim.
I did a service job too, albeit an untipped one, and if I was simply bad at my job I would’ve been fired. But apparently servers can get away with bad service because…?
Still not my responsibility. I’m not hiring you, I’m not employer. Go negotiate with the one actually in charge of payroll.
yep exactly. cuz (note: this is in the mind of those who believe this) you are not paying for the quality of the product but for the cost of the labor + the cost to have livable wage + quality or at least contribuiting to it. thats the reasoning for the expectation. different people are going to agree/ disagree with it based on their own beliefs opinions
its wild lol.
because it depends on if the employer prioritizes decent to excellent service as a part of their business model. if they do then server will definitely get fired. if they don’t then they probably won’t.
so why wouldn’t an owner prioritize decent service because they don’t want to pay to train for that or pay for that skill. and instead want to get the most money from the most customers at the cheapest cost- so they hire whomever can do that for the cheapest.
imo since I haven’t really given mine just stated my understanding of the reality. people should be paid a livable wage and that should be the sole responsibility of the owner (whether thats through private ownership, public ownership (govt), or co-op employee based ownership) and not offset to the customer and or employee in any way. and then as the customer if I want to tip for whatever reason I can but no pressure to or not to.
The nuances in value…geesh 
Personally, I don’t want to stress about determining value when I want to eat in peace. As long as I get my food in a reasonable amount of time, and the waiter is doing their job, then I don’t care if they talk to me or not (I rather they don’t, but anyway, culture thing).
This is what my mom, who is American, taught me, but then again, I can’t do math, so I stress about how much of my bill that is 
I don’t want to stress about a tip when I want to just eat my food and go.
That’s why, when I was in the states, I tried to avoid going to restaurants alone as much as possible. I didn’t have many opportunities anyway, but I would opt out of a restaurant vs fast food or self-serve place.
1 Like
This is going to sound so weird, but I don’t really remember ever noticing either bad customer service or good customer service. I guess I view the interaction incredibly neutrally, so whether or not someone’s in a good or bad mood doesn’t really impact the transaction I’m thinking of making. I’ve received helpful customer service in the past, but for the most part, when I engage with it I’m thinking “neither of us want to be here interacting but I need this person’s help and their job is to help so here we are”. I’m never mean to anyone or anything, sometimes I’ll joke and laugh and have like human interaction, but I rarely ever think of whether something is good/bad service.
1 Like
a lot of bills now have the calculations done for you for 10%, 15%, 18%, 20%, 25% 30% so you just check off box or right it down- so no calculation needed.
2 Likes