You have probably at least once encountered the fact that after ordering tea or coffee in a coffee shop, your receipt shows the amount of tea. At the same time, you weren’t served and you weren’t sitting in the room, but simply came to take a takeaway coffee. So the change came after the pandemic, when it became difficult to run a restaurant business and pay decent wages to the employees, among other things.
In addition, during the quarantine period, a lot of people don’t want to stay in the closed facilities, so most of them order food at home or just take it with them.
So how is it now that you have to pay for service that you don’t receive at all? After all, no one brings you napkins, takes the trash off the table, doesn’t serve the whole evening, and in general, maybe you don’t want to be served and therefore don’t see the point in giving tea for a simple takeout.
Read more below about how the restaurant business works nowadays, why they introduced such a format of teas, and whether it’s worth paying money for a simple coffee on the counter.
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Is there a specific rules on takeout tipping
There are no strict rules for tipping, but it is often customary in restaurants and cafes to leave a token of appreciation in the form of a certain amount or percentage of the order. Some people are sometimes even confused as to why they sometimes have to leave more tea than the coffee they ordered, and that if they don’t do so, they will get stares and therefore have to give guilt tips.
They don’t receive service as such, yes, but at the same time, the experts say that making the same coffee and arranging it at the delivery stage is also service.
That is, it’s a matter of opinion. However, the cost of coffee includes the preparation and even his paper cup, so why do you have to leave more and tea? Other experts believe that the problem lies in the fact that insufficient wages to employees in the pandemic is the reason for such a format.
Why you should tip for a pick-up
See, as mentioned above, when you order take-out food, you are still served by several people. Yes, it’s true that the restaurant industry’s compensation system is suffering and cannot meet the needs of workers, who are already very few in these difficult times. There are simply no other options right now than to help these services in any way possible but the tips.
And as was mentioned earlier, most people don’t sit at tables in restaurants, because no one is protected from the virus. It’s by giving tips when taking an order you thus support the institution and its employees, because the whole business is based on the latter.
Is it worth to give a tip for a pick-up
Although there’s a downside to such a format. For example, have you ever had to pay for an order before it arrived? And besides, this bill has already included tips, which, let’s say, you don’t agree to, because you don’t even know whether you like the coffee or not.
Plus, in some establishments, when paying, you can’t even refuse to give tips, you only need to confirm the payment and swipe a card. Moreover, there are also restaurants that don’t accept cash, and then it becomes quite unpleasant, as in this case, you aren’t insured from the poor quality of the product and at the end receive an unpleasant experience.
Again, this is all because of the restaurant industry’s imperfect compensation system and the conditions of the pandemic. It’s these things that cause such unpleasant consequences.
How to manage a request for tipping
Of course, with all this, you still have a choice. However, somehow, in these difficult times, the fact that you give tips means that you support other people and help them greatly in their work.
Even if you don’t feel you’ve been given enough attention, you’re still improving a particular place, café, restaurant in this way. Though if you can’t afford tips, look for something cheaper to allow the person taking care of you to receive a tip.
In addition, don’t forget about 20%. This is the standard, and you have to strive for it. However, even 10-15% already plays a big role, so don’t worry if you think you could have donated more. And by the way, some services may give you the opportunity to reduce the number of tips if something goes wrong.
And finally, if you are sure that the establishment doesn’t deserve a donation, or if you simply feel that you don’t want to thank the staff, choose the ‘no tip’ option and don’t hesitate. Think of your comfort first.
