KING GEORGE WAS A LOUSY TIPPER

There are many reasons why we fought the Revolutionary War … the old favorite from history, “no taxation without representation”… which, although not mentioned in our history books referred to England’s heavy handed Acts issued to wrest control of the colonist’s lucrative rum trade. Those Acts: the Molasses Act, the Sugar Act and (the final and most egregious) the Improved Molasses Act which set the British soldiers loose on the colonial public to search and seize whatever they pleased and eventually initiated the formation of the Continental Congress and the Continental Army!

 

We (Americans) were quite fed up with the ruling class versus the serving class and that is why a large number of early immigrants traveled here in the first place – to achieve personal freedoms.  Subsequently, when a colonist found himself or herself in the service of another colonist, for example serving food and drink in a tavern or inn, in order to communicate that they were all equals the service was compensated in the form of a small gratuity.  The gratuity silently stated that the server and customer were equals in the interaction.

 

To this day, in the United Kingdom the notion of tipping a service person is a foreign and uncomfortable act; the historical role models of the serving class and the ruling class still linger in the British bar and restaurant world.

 

But having said all that, there must be a quid pro quo, there must be a real service rendered to the customer to justify a gratuity anywhere. The gratuity from the modern perspective gives the patron an opportunity to recognize a level of skill and hospitality exhibited by the bar or restaurant server. I believe that a minimum of 15% of the total charge is an appropriate amount of compensation for that skill and hospitality.

 

During my seminars I point out to the bartenders and servers that a guest who does not tip or tips an inadequate amount should not justify anger or rudeness. However, the owners of the establishments have every right to develop their own service standards and responses to consumer behavior. In my years behind the bar I learned to let these episodes go by without comment, knowing that I had customers whose gratuities would more than make up the difference. In one instance, I became very good friends with an elderly couple at the Hotel Bel Air in California. They stayed at the hotel every year on their anniversary, sometimes even more than once a year, and never in all the years I knew them did they once leave a gratuity. I never questioned them about it and we became very good friends over the years.

 

Some tips for your tips:

If the owner decides to be expansive and buy your party a bottle of wine or round of desserts or whatever it may be, it is correct to add the associated amount that would have been charged for those additional treats when calculating your final payment so that you may tip the server appropriately. Reason being, the server still has to service the table for the additional gratis/complimentary items so they should be tipped as if it was part of the regular check.

 

Cheers

See you next week …enjoy your drinks responsibly and don’t forget to turn the lights out when you leave.

Dale aka kingcocktail