Posted on 02/26/2010 7:48:42 AM PST by dennisw
WINSTON-SALEM -- A woman who a local restaurant manager refused to serve claiming she is a habitually poor tipper told WXII Wednesday she is in the process of consulting an attorney.
Monica Covington was recently banned from the Kanpai Japanese Steak and Seafood House on Stratford Road after manager Michael Lam said servers and chefs refused to serve her because of her less-than-expected tipping history at the establishment.
Covington, who started a boycott petition against the restaurant, said the restaurant slandered her in the WXII report, which has set off a firestorm of opinions surrounding the issue of tipping.
"At this point, I am securing an attorney to address the slander against my name and character," Covington said in a statement to WXII. "I have always left a good tip at Kanpai Restaurant , even when I was given poor and less than honorable service."
Covington said her spat with the restaurant began in 2008 when she was told she would have to pay an 18 percent gratuity to dine.
"Yes, because we can't keep continuing to serve her anymore because the servers and chefs are not willing to serve her," Lam said Tuesday when asked if he refused Covington service.
On Wednesday, Lam said his establishment has never tacked an 18 percent gratuity on to her bill without her knowledge.
So far, 300 people have signed Covington's petition. Supporters of Lam's restaurant have also started an online petition.
Christianity is less of a marker than race/culture. Of “Christians” who do not tip, goes back to race/culture.. reread post 4 and 45.
“I make a special won-ton soup just for you”
At buffet.. chinese or Golden or even Ponderosa. Will get $1 just for my presence. If server is even Barely attentive, empty gone before I return, or asks if I need or want anything (napkins,etc), I’ve been know to leave up to $4, but I’ve found that $2 seems to be average for me.
But then, my worst complaint at a buffet... Called server told her something wasn’t cooked right, and “your manager should check it out, Before one of the Professional Complainers show up.”
Manager came to me... said that was the nicest complaint he ever had and gave me a coupon for free meal my next visit.
Exactly!
I’ve been to many places that have a tip added onto the bill at a ‘set’ amount.
Usually what I do is I pull over the waitress and I ask her if she would rather get 20 percent or the 10 percent on the machine? Then she usually gets embarrassed.
Hey restaurants, I’ll tip really well if I get a cute girl who smiles at me and treats me like a person. But the tip is for HER not the restaurant.
I did delivery as well, in a small honda. I agree with you, but I also agree with the folks about black people tipping especially to a white kid doing delivery. I had one encouter where a black chick ordered her KFC and passed me a hundred. If you know anything about delivery, you are supposed to call if we have to break anything over a 50, as we have a float. So I was a bit annoyed at that, but thankful that I usually carried more than most drivers. Anyways, I break their hundred and cash out the rest.
Then the lady starts arguing with me over how much I gave back, that she should get more. I told her, look. I have to pay to pick your order up at the store. This is how much they charged me. I’m not going to get less then what I’ve already paid.
Then her 300 pound linebacker bf comes down and accuses me of trying to scam them. I try to show them the math, but he picks me up by my collar. I just looked at him and told him to drop me or I’d take their food.
Thankfully he did so, and these folks are now blacklisted.
**would rather get 20 percent or the 10 percent on the machine?**
Did that once.. told server.. have that removed from the bill or that’s all the tip you’ll get. She did have it removed... she got that 10% PLUS the 25% I was planning to give her, anyway.
Now the entire STAFF fights to see who will serve ME.
**accuses me of trying to scam them**
I hear that at least HALF of those customers. I’ve taken to charging them UP FRONT so there’s no trouble, and a few, I WON”T pick up for ANY REASON.
That sounds like some independent delivery business.
I was working for the restaurant and was already being paid minimum wage to do deliver. As far as the 300 lb. hubby, I was 6’1” and 205 lbs. and carried a pistol my self, so I was alright in the neighborhood.
I agree that blacks usually didn’t tip and in Minneapolis the black men in the house would always call for the white woman to pay, even when there was a group of black males there.
Something that was odd was all the “attitude” I felt from them, they seemed to sneer at me for delivering the pizzas and at the white girl friends for paying for them. Sneering seemed to take the place of work for some of them.
The customer is stealing? Quite the opposite - the customer is bringing in revenues that allows the restaurant to exist. The restaurant owner and the employees should be darned thankful for customers coming through the door - they are not thieves. The customer has no obligation to pay but what is on the ticket. Waiter wages are an internal matter between the owner and employees, and are not the customer's problem. How can a restaurant pay less than minimum wages? If anyone is "stealing", it is the tightwad employer. No one put a gun to the waiter's head to work there either. Do you tip *everyone* you do business with? We don't ever receive tips where I work - first rate service is expected from us regardless. Why should restaurants be different? Tipping for excellent service, is great, but it is not mandatory. If the service is poor, I'll take my business elsewhere and the economic consequences of their poor attitudes can run their course.
Yeah it was, I enjoyed working for them, I did ok while I was there.
Made more then I would have if I were paid just minimums as the business was pretty brisk, but only because of tips. No deliveries, no money.
I don’t carry but I do Judo. I’m about 5’5’’ 140, so I’m used to punks throwing their weight around.
Heck I hated the folks I worked with far more then the customers. They backstabbed me and were the reason I left. I liked that job, it paid for my school.
One period when I was doing it, was when I lived in South Minneapolis and was partying hard every night, I could work Friday and Saturday nights only and still make enough to live on while being able to party every day of the week and after midnight on those two nights that I worked,it was almost like not working at all.
I worked in a restaurant for a few years and it’s true that AAs are the worst tippers. Also the worst for trying to scam free food and for running out on the bill. I never saw anyone else do either of those things the whole time I worked in a restaurant. Next is church ladies, I assume because most of them never worked much of a real job(?). Any big group generally is not going to leave a good tip. Every server in the restaurant would tell me not to seat “certain people” in their areas - even the AA servers would say this!
I have to say though, that I know AAs who tip generously because they are aware of the stereotype and hate it.
I also have to say - I saw AAs get bad service because a bad tip was expected. Sometimes it’s a self-fulfilling prophecy. The server has decided they won’t get a good tip, so why bother. The AA gets bad service, so they don’t tip or don’t tip well.
I make it a policy never to tick off the person who has control of my food.
I was one of the day shift folks. I did the 11-7 shift, though my boss would have me on often to ‘smooth’ out the shift change.
I got endless complaints from the night shift drivers that I was ‘cutting into’ their business. So one day my boss told all of us to leave early, at 4, when the night shift came on. They were killed, and I got called at 9pm that night to come on for one delivery, a beer run. I think I made 30 bucks on that tip, so it was worth the time to drive in and prove a point.
But they got me eventually. I booked out to take a nap in the afternoon when it was slow, but dispatch didn’t hear me and I crashed before dispatch responded. None of the other drivers bothered to inform my boss that I had booked out or where I was. Found out later that my boss fielded complaints pretty much every day. He decided to let me go to keep the rest of his staff, and his wife was very disappointed. I left and I haven’t driven since.
One can buy much better food ingredients at Costco and do it at home.
I can drink a premium beer at home for $1.00/bottle and enjoy my New York strip on the grill that costs me $4.50/pound.
When this become acceptable? It is vile...
Jerry: You’ve been the bad employee, the bad son, the bad friend...
George: Yes, yes...
Jerry: The bad fiancé‚ the bad dinner guest, the bad credit risk...
George: Okay, the point is made.
Jerry: The bad date, the bad sport, the bad citizen... The bad tipper!
I always tip in restaurants.....In effect I carry the bums who don’t tip. That’s how I look at it
>>who had under-tipped on previous visits
IMO, waiters and waitresses have OUTRAGEOUS expectations on tips. One, speaking on the radio, said that 25% should be the norm.
So, at a fancy place, say 200 bucks for two people, I should top $50? Or 25 on every 100.
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