Is Frugal Eating Acceptable in Public?

The wait staff have been spoiled by the era of disposable income. It's like the car dealerships in the Silicon Valley after the dot com bust (dot bomb). If you wanted to finance a car, they wouldn't even talk to you. But eventually they realized that the days of cash purchases of high end cars are over and they need to concentrate of inexpensive cars and financing. The industry will reset and the people who will not change with the times will be left behind.

Order what you want, you are afterall paying for it. Tip accordingly but if the service was better than anticipated, leave a little extra. That waiter may remember you next time and go out of his/her way to serve you again. My husband and I based services against the bill. One night we went to a well known restuarant, received excellent service and we tipped well. the next time, we were given a waiter who didn't check how we were or if we needed anything. He walked by our table several times, didn't pay any attention. My husband was upset, and the waiter who had served us on our prior visit, went out of his way to see that we had things we needed. When it was time to leave, my husband handed the prior waiter the tip, and asked to speak to the manager. he said he didn't leave our new waiter a financial tip but would leave a verbal one with the manager to pass on. he told the manager that he understands everyone has bad days but this is a job. If he expected a well deserved tip, he should have seen to his customers better than doing the ignore or glance and run thing. The manager spoke to the young man. The next time we went, the waiter remembered us and even though we were not in section but in the prior waiters section, we observed his mannerism andadditude was better toward his customers. Our waiter said the manager had spoken to everyone, and now they have additude training weekly. Waiters and waitresses are pressed to sell high off the menus but it is still your money and your right to order exactly what you, the customer, wants.

I find that I have started to tip based on what I feel is fair vs what the bill is. If we order less and the bill is small, but the server was great, they get a tip based on service, not just 20% of what the bill was. It just seems like the right thing to do - these folks are trying to earn a living too.

Having been a server, a hostess, a bar-back and a pizzeria owner's wife who cleaned the bathrooms and worked doubles in blizzards and designed the logo and sponge painted the dining room walls-but I digress...What was the question? Oh yes, a food service worker should NEVER have a negative attitude, regardless. If you have the guest or group from Hell, I don' care. Smile and bring them what they asked for, within reason (I'm not counting your croutons, sorry. Smile.). That's it. There is nothing more rotten or awful than servers with attitudes.
Yes, times are tough and it's to be expected that people will order off the app. menu. They're cutting back and so we're all cutting back. It's then the servers job to make their time out to eat that much better because people aren't able to go out as often. And yes, people will show up with entitled behaviors because they're angry that they can't come as often or spend as much, so have some compassion-even if they're being jerky. Kill them with kindness; they might just surprise you. And if they don't surprise you, you might just surprise yourself.
So no, being frugal in public is not a sin. Sharing is caring and there is more than enough to go around. :)

Coming from a waitress who has been in the hospitality business a long time, I can see both points of view. On one hand, you are a paying customer who has every right to order whtever you want and expect the same service whether you order a $5 meal or a $100 meal. The waiter/waitress shouldn't make you feel bad because it is YOUR money,that being said I can also understand where the waiter is coming from. I can't tell you how many times I worked my a** off for someone hoping that they would see how hard I'm working for them even though they were only spending $30 at the time and take care of me. Nope. Alot of people tip on the tab and I think this could be resolved if most people tipped on the service. If you have a really friendly waitress and then you have an ok waitress most people would leave 15% either way based off the tab. I say if you got great service whats an extra $5 bucks? You could make someones day

While waitstaff are required to upsell, it is still YOUR dollars being spent. Why put up with being be bullied into ordering something you don't want...it is your decision, so don't blame a waiter. Just say no and complain to the manager if the waitstaff persists. You are responsible for what goes into your mouth as well as comes out of it.

Keep in mind that waitstaff are still in sales, so they will always try to upsell you on food. Granted, any good salesperson should remain cordial and pleasant when you decline, and should always be honest (for example lie about the size of a dish to make you think you need more). Remember that they are victims of the recession, just like everyone else (perhaps even more so) and are just trying to get by.

I wish the fu(% I would let some waiter tell me how much food to order. You don't have to tell them anything or make excuses! This is one of the reasons why people are overweight.

Always remember that you are under no obligation to "break the bank" when you dine out. Of course the wait staff wants you to spend more, they probably are under direct orders to do so from the owner. Should they be overbearing and rude it is not a bad thing to inform them you have lost your appetite and are going someplace that wants you as a customer. You are the one who pays, that makes you the boss...Don't forget that!

A joint in Sun Set Beach,Ca..served hugh Omlets,,also,hugh prices,,many would take half of it home, for lunch,,some would order one, with two plates and share,,but soon there was a $1.00 charge for the extra plate,,this joint, has had visitors,like Jack Kelly,of Marvick,Hasselhoff,Mike Mc Guire,,William Shatner,Bill Burred,,and many more who lived on boats in the harbor,and near by Hunnington Beach,,the owner got wise when everyone began to orde coffee only,,and abandoned the $1.00 charge for the xtra plate,,back to norm,,,

I found some creative ways to save money and make money (and pay off my credit card debt!) from home in this article online:
http://www.amazines.com/article_detail.cfm/810356?articleid=810356&title=work%2Cfrom%2Chome%2Csaving%2Cmoney%2Cmaking%2Cmoney%2Cfocus%2Cgroups%2Csurvey%2Cpanels%2Cpaid%2Csurvey%2Cpanels%2Cmystery%2Cshopping%2Ccoupons%2Cproduct%2Ctesting


it refers to a blog that is GREAT! Everything from bread recipes, homemade laundry detergent recipes, mystery shopping for Longhorns, participating in focus groups for Subway and Lenscrafters, getting free samples from Walmart I have not had to buy shampoo in months!), online coupons, etc. It is like having your own economic bailout! Our family has been trying all of the ideas on this blog one by one. Go to the article above and the blog is in there. Hope it helps others like it has helped us!

When we go out, we split a meal and order water. We are lucky we get to go out at all. Everyone is struggling. Good or bad attitudes by servers will reflect the establishments reputation. Perhaps the idea of allowing smaller portions for smaller prices will entice more to come out to eat. Doing that for people will take you a long way in the long run.

I was very upset at Steak n shake, they no longer have platters from which you can choose. They raised prices to include fries with all burgers. If you want to substitute, it will cost you more.

I've noticed lately getting dirty looks from waitstaff when i say, "water is fine" when asked what i'll be having to drink. Thats going a bit far. I tip based on service and always have (to the detriment of my husband) And service with a smile goes a long way to how much they make. I don't work on tips but i do try to make every customer i help at the store i work at feel comfortable and taken care of, its part of the job, and waitstaff should see that more than anyone.

Not all owners pressure the service staff into overselling food to the customers, that makes no sense. I want you to enjoy the restaurant, the food and the service, so you come back. I would rather you spend $ 50 ten times over the course of the year than $100 or more once and then not come back because you felt uncomfortable. You also must remember that restaurants make about .04 cents on every dollar spent, it is not the millions of dollars the general consumer thinks, so when people say, " in these economic times restaurants should cut their prices" remember that our rent, food cost, labor costs, etc are not being cut so how can we cut prices? Also remember that not everyone is struggling so you may be lingering at a table for 2 or 3 hours after splitting one app. when the restaurant had to turn away people who want to spend some money. By the way the service staff lives on the tips they make, 18-20% is pretty standard now, not 10-15%. Figure your tip into your budget, and if you can't afford to tip properly go to a less expensive restaurant, it's not the server's fault you maybe can't afford to eat out.

With the decrease in restaurant traffic, waiters and waitresses are feeling the recession more than many service workers because most of their take home pay is based on tips. Minimum wage for waitstaff is about one-third of regular minimum wage.

I am usually generous with tips. My grandmother was a waitress for 35 years so I know how hard waitstaff works. I will never leave less than 10%. If the service is good, I leave 20%. If it is superb, I'll leave 30%. If I split something with somebody and that is all we get, I leave a 40% tip-- which is equivalent to what would have been left if we had gotten two of whatever we ate.

Lets look at two examples.

1. Splitting an entree, dessert, and appetizer.
The huge entree costs $15 to $17. Huge appetizer runs $7-$10. Huge dessert runs about $7. A meal for two consisting of a split appetizer, a split dessert, and a split entree will cost about $32. If you each got an entree without dessert or appetizer, you would spend about $30-$34. If you give a 20% tip, you're looking at a difference of 20 to 40 cents. So it's no big thing.

Example 2: Bigger tip for split entree
You should feel guilty if you're simply splitting a meal, getting nothing more than the entree, and tipping exclusively by the 15% to 20% rule. That is costing the waiter or waitress money because they are providing service for two people but taking home less money for more work. To avoid the issue, leave a tip based on 2 meals. So for a $17 entree that you split, leave a $6.80 tip (40%), bringing your bill to about $24. You're still saving about $17 because two entrees (17 x 2= 34) and a 20% tip ($6.80) would have been about $41. 41-24= $17 saved (about 42%).

If you are only getting a $7 dessert and splitting it, tip as though you got two desserts. Instead of a $1.40 tip, leave $2.80. You're still saving about $7 (about 45%) by not getting the second dessert.

The point is that you can leave a 40% tip on a less costly meal and still save 40% to 45% off the total bill by splitting whatever you order.

Don't penalize the help because you're trying to save money. You have to remember that the waiter/waitress is still serving two people even if they are bringing one meal/dessert/appetizer. Will that extra $3 kill you more than paying for 2 of whatever you're having? Will that extra $1.40 kill you more than paying for a second dessert? Probably not. But if everybody cheaps out on the tips, it will hurt the waitress/waiter.

I have waited many a table and found that the ones who wanted "only" dessert and coffee, took good care of their servers. Do not let the price of the food, exempli gratia, a steak costing $48.00 and the cost of a piece of chocolate cake costing $8.00 determine the tip.

The diner should be respectful of the fact that the restaurant expects a quicker turn over and not linger on.

Slainte !!!!!!!

After working as a server i could see how they would be disapointed, but in my opinion it's not approptiate to show it. I agree with many of the other comments though, if possible tip according to the service not the bill; and don't let a bad server ruin your night out.

I think it's bad if you go during peak hours, stay forever and a day, keep getting free refills or fill up on the free bread or chips, don't leave a decent tip and are extremely cheap about it. Then, yeah, it's a little rude. But, if you go after the rush, when the servers should be happy to see seats filled anyway, then no, being frugal is not obnoxious at that point.

Do what you think is best. No waiter or waitress should shame you into overeating.

Sometimes my boyfriend and I will go to a restaurant just to order dessert. I can't help but notice the looks of disappointment and the hints of condescension in a server's tone when we do that, but because the bill comes out so cheap we always tip at least 50% of it. I don't really appreciate it, though, when servers will judge someone right off the bat and assume that they're a cheapskate because of what they are/are not ordering. I've had some servers who looked like they wanted to smack me when I order water. Not cool.