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MontereyRick · 12-11-2002, 05:29 PM,

Read a rather heated discussion recently regarding this subject.

No doubt, the following question falls under the old "different strokes for different folks" adage, but...

Let's say it's customary to tip 15%-20% at a restaurant.

Do you tip on the wine at all?
If so, do you tip the same % as on the food?
Even if the server puts forth the same effort popping a $19 bottle or a $190 bottle?

I usually tip (if satisfied) at least 15% on the total bill, however, I've seen some pretty reasonable arguments recently for not tipping anywhere near that much on wine. Curious as to others thoughts.

hotwine · 12-11-2002, 05:40 PM,

Dunno what the norm is in the civilized world, but around here the same server handles both food and wine. So I tip a single percentage - 18-20% for routine service, 22-25% for exceptional service.

I'll get to do that tonight as I take my lovely out for her 50th b-day din-din at the Grey Moss Inn. Their 5,000 bottle wine cellar is the best in the area.

winoweenie · 12-11-2002, 07:01 PM,

I too like Hotsie tip on the total bill according to the level of service, and at the same level. WW

Innkeeper · 12-11-2002, 08:47 PM,

The traditional thing is to leave one tip for everyone on the total bill ($19 or $190 on the wine), except in N.Y.C. There, at least since I came of age in the '50s, and I'm sure much longer, you tip everyone; captain, wine steward, waiter, and anyone else you came into contact with. The only problem, is that the New York model seems to be catching on elsewhere. So you need to know.

When in doubt, I usually ask. It is complicated by the fact that it is hard to keep track of who did what. The wine steward might just advise you, bring the wine to the table, and pour the first glass. Others may refill every glass and attend to you as diligently as the waiter. I find it much easier to leave on 20% tip everyplace I go, unless I get lousy service, when it goes down some.

Everyone, is not everyone. Coat checkers and parking valets, among possible others, are always tipped separately.

[This message has been edited by Innkeeper (edited 12-11-2002).]

~~Bucko~~ · 12-11-2002, 09:37 PM,

Hey, WW, you having a bad batch of shine again?

hotwine · 12-11-2002, 10:39 PM,

Total tab tonight was $89.30, including wine and tax. Service was superb, so left a tip of $20 and about three inches of Cab.

winoweenie · 12-12-2002, 07:22 AM,

Tough gettin' through that 2nd bottle at your advanced Eh? WW [img]http://www.wines.com/ubb2/biggrin.gif[/img]

hotwine · 12-12-2002, 09:43 AM,

The local PD is tough on DWI's up there, and have a habit of stopping people leaving the restaurant as soon as they pull onto the road. I can't complain; 20 years ago, I was on the city council in that little burg, and we relied upon the PD to generate income so we could maintain the road network (my seat on the council had the additional duty of road commissioner (pot-hole filler)). No complaints. Confine my indulgence to half a bottle.

lizardbrains · 12-13-2002, 06:51 PM,

Ugh! I could never leave wine, unless it was bad-tasting! I think I probably would've sat there for another hour just so I could've drank the rest! (Just call me cheap, or maybe just desperate for wine?!!!)

hotwine · 12-13-2002, 07:15 PM,

I've found it a nice way to say thanks for good service, in addition to the tip. And in this case, it helped educate the waiter on the Geyser Peak Cab, since he was a new guy, and not familiar with it. He thanked us profusely for the gesture. It also, of course, reduced the quantity I would have consumed by at least a full glass....which allowed me to navigate that winding road without incident, instead of driving off into the creek, like so many poor souls have done. (I used to fish 'em out with the pick-em-up and a loggin' chain almost every weekend when we lived on that road.) And it saved room for a couple of glasses of Veueve Cliquot when we got home (her favorite, not mine)

Davemiller · 12-06-2003, 06:00 PM,

This has beeen a topic of much discussion in our restaurant lately. Our wine list is as exceptional as our food and service. Most of the time customers will tip on the entire bill without thinking about it. A very few well traveled folks that spend a hefty sum on a given bottle will clearly not tip the full percentage on the wine but typically let their server know, verbally, why the tip seems low compared to the tab. Problem: as many restaurants do we add an 18% service charge to the bill on any table of 5 or over. We would like to set up a system that is friendly to the wine lover who wants to spend some bucks but protects our servers from cheapskates at the same time. Any ideas?

winoweenie · 12-06-2003, 07:03 PM,

Hi DaveM and welcome to the board. At all the restaurants I visit in the west from Phoenix to Seattle I've found that if I order a 100 bottle of wine and the tab is 300 My usual tip is 45 (20% on the Food, and 10% on the wine) and I always leave the server a taste. So far I haven't been 86d' from any jernt and my service is always top-flight. WW

hotwine · 12-06-2003, 07:15 PM,

Welcome to the board, Dave.

In my own not-so-humble opinion, any effort to protect the wine server with a guantanteed gratuity should be tempered by an analysis of your price structure. For example, if you're already charging 3X the wholesale price of a bottle of wine, I think it would be inappropriate to tag on an additional XY% of the bottle's price (to the customer) as a firm gratuity for the wine server; better that you would use a portion of the wine's margin as a reserve for the server. On the other hand, if you're operating on very slim margins, then adding 10% of retail to the bottle's price might not be a bad idea, provided that fact is clearly stated on the menu and bill. Just my two cents.

wineguruchgo · 12-07-2003, 02:28 AM,

I think alot of it has to do with the service. Did the waiter talk about the wine and possibly have you try a wine you have never had before. Did the waiter suggest the correct wine with your food? Did the waiter take the time with you and the list and decant if necessary? If they waiter goes above and beyond I think it's quite acceptable to tip fully on the wine.

On the other hand, did you pick your own wine and the waiter just opened it, poured the first glass and then disappear leaving you in resturant table hell? Well, no. I wouldn't tip fully.

I'd like your opinion on this one. As some of you know I am the sommelier in a chain of restaurants. One evening a customer ordered what turned out to be our last bottle of Beringer Private Reserve, 1997, Cab. It was pricey. Then he wanted another bottle and we didn't have it. So as I approached the table with the winelist I had yet another spectacular bottle tucked in my arm. I knew this guy was a high roller which is why I grabbed the bottle. As I handed him the list, I explained that the bottle I had wasn't on the list and we save a few bottles in the back for special customers. The wine was Caymus Reserve Cab, 1997.

His bill for dinner and wine was $700.00 and the guy left $40.00.

What is your take on that?

Kcwhippet · 12-07-2003, 08:20 AM,

Looks like the guy left off the 1 before the 4.

winoweenie · 12-07-2003, 09:55 AM,

Next time that sucker showed up in my station, when I brought the first bottle I'd set it on the table unopened, put my corkscrew down, and show him my posterior. WW

Drew · 12-07-2003, 07:07 PM,

You know, keep it simple, I don't want to go to a nice restaurant and have to figure out several different tips. What's wrong with one tip on the entire bill that's split among all who serve? Call me stupid but I'm not focused into separate stages of the dinner...just give me a bill and let me tip.

Drew

Kcwhippet · 12-07-2003, 09:30 PM,

My rule of thumb is 10% on wine and 20% on food. Generally it works out to about 12% to 15% of the total bill.

Innkeeper · 12-07-2003, 09:46 PM,

Since, as you all know, I don't spend a lot of money on wine be it in restaurants or at home. Therefore we give an across the board tip of 20%. You all have to remember that outside of NYC and few other joints, the tip is split among the whole front of the house crew according to a formula that they agreed on.

hotwine · 12-07-2003, 09:49 PM,

I think one of two things happened in the Chicago incident: either the customer was insulted somehow, and deliberately left off the $100 from the (20% of $700) calculation in retaliation; or he was in over his head with the total bill and decided to save money at the wine server's expense.... an expense he could somewhat control by limiting his tip. I can't say which would apply in this case, but I'd definitely drop him from the "A list" of customers at that restaurant.

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