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I've worked in greasy spoons where hot dogs sold for 85 cents and coin transactions were the norm; I hardly expect a customer to charge a quarter cup of coffee. But in nicer restaurants, where servers don't bark orders across the room and salads don't arrive to the table encased in plastic wrap, coins are nothing but trouble -- any server who's picked up a check presenter and immediately showered their feet with the coins tucked inside it knows exactly what I mean.
Some of the blame clearly lies with the coin-fearing credit-card companies that issue said presenters, designed to accommodate only plastic. But there's really no reason for most restaurant customers to use change in the first place. What's the harm in leaving $72 when the bill's $71.88? Can a server not be trusted for a moment with an extra 12 cents?
I find coins so messy that I typically ignore them, even if it means I end up shouldering a portion of a table's bill. If a guest gives me three twenties to cover a $58.43 bill, I'll return $2 – knowing most guests will leave me both singles. While some of my fellow servers are far more punctilious, I still haven't figured out a good way to sort coins in my apron or rationalize the dead weight of a few rolls of dimes.
The worst offenders on the coinage front aren't the exact-change givers, who I'll assume are trying to be helpful. It's the folks who treat the check presenter like a collection plate, emptying their pockets instead of working out a proper tip. "Oh, I'm sure she'll want this," guests say as they drop dozens of grubby nickels on the table.
While few servers are so wealthy they can afford to refuse tips, a general guideline is: If you don't want your handful of spare change, your server probably doesn't want it either. There's something very Scrooge-y about showing one's gratitude in pennies, no matter how many.
Do you think there's anything inherently wrong with paying in coins?
| Sure, why not? | |
|---|---|
| No way. |
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10-13-2009 @4:29PM Gary said... Can't you just take a night's worth of coins and cash them in at the register for paper money?
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10-13-2009 @4:37PM LinC said... Some of us leave change as our tip because that's all we have.
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10-13-2009 @4:36PM Marumm said... fyi coins are money
don't you like money
why do you hate america
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10-13-2009 @4:44PM Cha-Ching said... The only coins I leave are those that are returned in change from the bill.
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10-13-2009 @5:06PM Dana said... If it's no big deal for a customer to leave 12 cents instead of asking for the change, why is it a big deal for the resturant to charge 12 cents and not round it down to the nearest dollar to make things more convenient for the customer? Some of us watch our pennies because they add up... I don't see why we should let them go for the convenience of the person who is being paid to take our money in the first place.
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10-13-2009 @5:19PM M. said... If you are tipping in change because 'that's all you have', don't go out to eat somewhere that tipping is the expected norm. There are more and more 'nicer' places to eat (Panera comes to mind) that don't require tipping; you're not stuck choosing between McDonald's and Hardees.
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10-13-2009 @5:47PM Megan said... Dang, you *are* lazy. Consider another industry
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10-13-2009 @5:59PM Lorenzo said... The topic of the post is reasonable. The tone, however, is well-tuned to offend. If you want to change behavior, this is not the way to go.
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10-13-2009 @6:09PM Julie said... What is this world coming to, I actually have a friend that throws pennies away saying they are worthless. Talk about an oxymoron, saving pennies got me a great many things in my life and I still save them to this day!
http://www.noshtalgia.blogspot.com/
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10-13-2009 @8:48PM wheatpenny said... I used to love getting coins as tips at a coffee shop where I was a barista. The boss would only let us turn quarters in for paper cash, so I would just take the rest home and put it in a jar on my dressed. Every month or so I would go to the bank, turn it into cash, and go on a mini spending spree! It was like found money to me, I guess, more so then direct tipping.
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10-13-2009 @7:21PM the bus said... I've worked in restaurants in my youth. At shift end all the wait staff exchanged their coins for paper. This helped them and the restaurant with change as well.
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10-13-2009 @8:16PM Multi said... Ever worked at a Pho place? I do, and it's not just pho and vermicelli, but they also serve all sorts of other pan asian dishes like stir fries and stuff you'd find at panda express, but made from scratch and tastier. EASILY 19 out of 20 parties than come in, do not tip. We take the order and cash up front at the register, so maybe this is why the mindset is like this, and we also don't have designated servers, however we generally have 3-4 people on shift, while 1 remains on register, the other 2-3 are making smoothies, spring rolls, taking out food, busing tables, and listening to customer requests about extra plates/bowls, silverware, and to go boxes (even though the later 2 are in plain view and placed where customers can get them on their own.) I might also say, it's pretty appalling how filthy and demanding people can be, and still not tip just because they paid up front and/or have to get their own drinks.
The only real difference between our food runners from a waiter is that they don't take your order/check because that's done up front, they don't refill your drinks, and they get paid minimum wage. Other than that, people treat them the same way, with about 2 people taking care of around 25 tables, while also making spring rolls and smoothies.
While I think leaving change sure makes you look cheap as hell, for not getting anything at all over 90% of the time, I can somewhat appreciate getting a few coins, even if it's only left as unwanted change.
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10-13-2009 @9:04PM Kwijybo said... If you short me the change, I short the tip. Sorry, that's just the way it is. Don't short me the change, and suddenly you find out I'm pretty good tipper (20% min).
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10-13-2009 @9:09PM Amber said... And yet another woe is me post. It's like watching (or reading, I guess) a train wreck. I wonder what she's going to complain about and blame customers for next week?
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10-13-2009 @11:30PM Spring1 said... Kwijybo
"If you short me the change, I short the tip. Sorry, that's just the way it is. Don't short me the change, and suddenly you find out I'm pretty good tipper (20% min)."
WHY not STIFF? They STOLE, so WHY don't you feel you should STEAL from them? My husband and I have once. We always pay with credit cards generally, but once in 2004, we paid with gift CERTIFICATES(not electronic gift cards like most places have now). What happened was the bill was $34.69, gave the waiter (2) $20 gift certificates. Instead of giving us back $5.31 as the change was, he decided to KEEP the 31 cents and just give us a $5 bill. STIFF is what he got. HE STOLE, WE STOLE!!! If he didn't want to deal with lots of change, he should have given us 2 quarters or even shorted himself a dollar(which it would have only been 69 cents really out of his own money). I couldn't believe when I asked him where the 31 cents was at, he didn't even fix it right away and he truly only returned exactly 31 cents instead of giving us 50 cents(a little bit extra for our hassle and longer wait to leave, which is really not much to ask for really). He only said a sorry, not a "SO SORRY" as anyone that took their TIP AHEAD OF TIME should have.
In Hanna Raskin's example, this server shorts themself as to how it should be if they want to be that lazy to get the change from the bar or don't want to bring any from home to keep on themselves. Hopefully Hanna doesn't SHORT customers, because it's just morally wrong to take your tip ahead of time. At the point of before we either leave or so "keep the change" it's still THE CUSTOMER'S MONEY. Just as you get change everywhere else without them trying to keep it, WHY because someone makes tips they think it's OK to STEAL?
If I would have been owed $4.69 and the waiter would have given a $5 bill to me, he would have gotten EXTRA TIP for not giving me coins and actually showing me he would have RISKED LOSING MONEY on a customer. I think the servers should just give back EXACT TO THE PENNY change everytime, but if they don't want to give back exact change, PLEASE DON'T SHORT THE CUSTOMER!! I don't care if it's a just a penny, if you short me a penny, you get STIFFED!! You stole, I STEAL FROM YOU!! It's only fair!! If you don't want to deal with pennies, give me a nickle or a dime or a quarter more back, but don't take MY CHANGE!! If you want to short yourself, that's you, but don't short the customer!! It's the principle of it. Do you think I wanted that 31 cents? OF COURSE NOT, it's the fact that he STOLE IT ON PURPOSE, because he was TOO LAZY to go to the bar to get some coins and he also thought he'd get a tip instead of SEEING if he would, he ASSUMED he would automatically as if TIPPING is an AUTOMATIC THING instead of something **EARNED** as it should be!! PART of service is GETTING THE CHANGE OR RINGING UP THE CREDIT CARD, unless you are at a restaurant such as Waffle House or Denny's where you pay upfront.
Kwijybo, I honestly cannot believe you left a tip at all for someone shorting you. WHY? Do you think it's right for them to take their tip ahead of time or PRESUME it's theirs? Don't you think your server should **EARN** their tip by GETTING YOUR COIN CHANGE?
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10-14-2009 @2:20AM Jon Davies said... I have to wonder if the writer of this piece was inspired by that waiter on YouTube (who teaches people how to be better customers). One of his recent vlogs (and most popular, reaching 7,000 views in a couple weeks) was EXACTLY on this subject. The writer uses many of his points.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxhbCLzOkvA
He goes into more detail than this writer. I've seen his page grow from 20 subscribers to almost 600! He's bitter, funny, cute, angry. Although, judging by some of the comments here, I'm not sure many of you will like him. Probably cause you (like me) never waited tables. Except, he makes sense and I (and many others) have learned a little about being a better customer. Check him out!
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10-14-2009 @7:02AM Gobo said... People who intentionally steal from restaurants or refuse to tip because they feel they're somehow entitled are terrible customers and terrible people.
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10-14-2009 @10:49AM Gordon said... goodness....I think I am genuinely afraid of you
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10-14-2009 @10:29AM Stephanie said... When I worked at a "pie shop" my apron jingled when I walked from all the nickels and dimes the octogenarians would leave tucked under their tea cups.
Later, at the "restaurante", if I didn't stock change there was a mad dash to beg the bartender so I could make change.
Anyway, my point is that when it comes to change there's always too much or too little for a single person to carry around. There's no winning for this one.
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10-14-2009 @10:46AM Amanda said... These comments are so frustrating. Everyone always says the same thing "this author must hate her job" or "this writer is such a whiner" I don't understand why you are all so mad at the author. You don't HAVE to read the post. No one is forcing you...just relax. Take the information in and let it inform your decisions at restaurants. Just b/c you are dining at a restaurant doesn't make YOU a more valuable individual than the person serving you.
That's the vibe I'm getting, and I don't like it.
And I'm not even a server, nor have I ever been. Just don't think they should be treated like lesser people.
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