> More than once I got home and realized I tipped on top of the total + service charge: "Why was that about $100 more than I thought it'd be?"
Assuming the service charge was even 15%, for it to be $100 more than you thought it would be, your bill would be $600+ (simplifying for taxes)...
I don't go out for $600 dinners that often, though I have.
And that being said, I do think tipping does bring out some less sensical practices - why should the server get five times more for serving me a single bottle of wine if the wine was $100, versus $20? It was still a single bottle of wine.
To be fair, by "more than once" I meant 2-3 times, not a regular occurrence. :)
The last time it happened was ~300 + 20% service charge + a tip that'd have been in the low-mid 20's. That works out to be a bit under $100. It started to bug me on the walk home, and I double checked the receipt. I don't like scrutinizing receipts but I've started to do it a bit more.
> why should the server get five times more for serving me a single bottle of wine if the wine was $100, versus $20? It was still a single bottle of wine.
The argument, which one can choose to agree with or not, is that the kind of place where one is buying a $100 bottle of wine has a higher degree of training, care, etc involved.
> The argument, which one can choose to agree with or not, is that the kind of place where one is buying a $100 bottle of wine has a higher degree of training, care, etc involved.
What if the restaurant serves both $20 and $100 bottles? Do they adjust the quality of service on the fly to make pouring the $20 bottle profitable? Offer extra labor-intensive services only available with the purchase of the $100 bottle?
Assuming the service charge was even 15%, for it to be $100 more than you thought it would be, your bill would be $600+ (simplifying for taxes)...
I don't go out for $600 dinners that often, though I have.
And that being said, I do think tipping does bring out some less sensical practices - why should the server get five times more for serving me a single bottle of wine if the wine was $100, versus $20? It was still a single bottle of wine.