UC Davis student bravely speaks out against American tipping culture
By Tara Romero — tcrome@ucdavis.edu
If you’re tired of the barista flipping their iPad around with a tip screen, this one’s for you.
Now, I get a coffee every morning as a cute, little start-of-the-day routine. Yet, every morning, they turn that iPad around and expect me to give them a dollar for their “can-do” attitude! I already spent $8 of my parent’s money on my very simple and reasonable drink order, and then I am socially obligated to give them another couple of dollars for “kind service.” How about you kindly keep your iPad on your side of the counter?
In fact, tipping culture has gotten utterly outrageous. Apparently pouring a cup of coffee is a service worth $2 in your pitiful tip jar. What’s next? Tipping the pizza delivery guy? The hotel maid? The tattoo artist? Absolutely not.
Don’t get me wrong, I respect food service workers very much. I have never once caused a scene (unless provoked). All I am saying is that most of them already make minimum wage. They already get $16 every hour, and those baristas want to take my money too! Don’t they know how expensive my groceries are?
Now servers, that’s a different story. Let the record show that I am very fair, and I do consider tipping when I dine in at a restaurant. However, just like every other job in the world, they have to earn their money. I simply decide whether or not they “earn” their 5% tip.
Let me walk you through a horror story from the last time I ate out. 14 of my closest friends and I went into a local restaurant for my boyfriend’s birthday brunch. They told us the wait time for a party of our size would be 10 minutes. 10 minutes? Can you believe that? I graciously pointed out that I saw some open tables so surely we wouldn’t have to wait. Yes, the place looked pretty packed, but after a bit of convincing, the host sat us.
This is where bad goes to worse. After sitting, our server did not come to greet us for 15 whole minutes! I don’t know what the hold-up was, but that was strike one.
Once our server finally appeared, we naturally ordered bottomless mimosas for the table. I’m not sure about you guys, but I was led to presume that these mimosas would in fact keep coming — given the term “bottomless.” However, our server clearly did not know the meaning of the word as my boyfriend was cut off after his 12th mimosa. Strike two. Not to mention, she took a bit too long bringing over pitcher No. 7 (which was strike three, if you’re following along).
Listen, I know this is not my server’s fault, but I do have reason to believe my boyfriend was experiencing a bit of food poisoning. By the end of the meal, he was slurring his words and could not stop throwing up in the bathroom. The server did one thing right that entire meal, and she thankfully called him a paramedic.
So, I went to pay for my boyfriend and I’s share of the split check — we had 11 separate checks of course. We told her at the end of the meal while my boyfriend was being stretchered out into the ambulance.
Here’s why I’m telling you all of this: After the horror show that unfolded before us, this server obviously did not earn my tip. I complained to my friends and showed them the frowny face I drew on the tip line. To my utter shock, all of them seemed really upset with me — saying something about her being the only server and her “saving my boyfriend’s life.”
This is why I turn to you, my fellow students. I cannot be the only person on campus who is over this whole “tipping” charade. I’m sure all of you, like me, are reasonable individuals who are fed up with tipping out.
Written by: Tara Romero— tcrome@ucdavis.edu
Disclaimer: (This article is humor and/or satire, and its content is purely fictional. The story and the names of “sources” are fictionalized.)
