Re: O/T Tipping at Buffets - Question - Page 3

mima · ‎03-14-2010

I don't really understand this. In buffets, they still take your plates and give you drinks, straws, and extra napkins. The only thing they don't do is take your order and bring you food. At a regular restaurant they don't have to pick up your plates numerous times. The buffet we go to also brings you rolls and has the prime rib taken back to be cooked until it is done and brings it out to us.

We usually give them $5 for two people and the other night the service was really good and we gave $7.

DarkShadowsGirl · ‎03-12-2014

On 11/17/2014 CeeCee said:
On 11/17/2014 DarkShadowsGirl said:
I actually tip more for buffets. Back in my waitressing days, the buffet days were when I would come home exhausted from all the running. The waitress isn't necessarily going to the table as often, but keeping the buffet clean and stocked with plates & flatwear, reporting to the kitchen what food needs to be restocked, then running the food out is a lot of work --- Not to mention there's much more cleaning involved on those days.

I see the kitchen staff maintaining the food here, and there are busboys (bussers? is that more gender neutral) to clean up the tables.

CeeCee

Probably each restaurant does things differently. I worked at two that did buffets. With one, the restaurant didn't have busboys at all. The waitstaff took care of bussing. We had buffets for lunch, one day per week. The other restaurant only had busboys on weekends, and we had buffets on Mondays. One restaurant my Mom likes to go to has a buffet every Saturday. The manager seems to keep tabs on it.

chrystaltree · ‎05-10-2010

It never occurred to me to tip any differently at a buffet; not that we go to many buffet restaurants. They aren't as popular in New England as they are in other parts of the country. I would only tip 10% if the service was bad. As a rule, we tip 20% at restaurants. Although, since someone referred to soda machines. Some of you might be taklking about a type of restaurant that is more chain fast food than "restaurant" dining. So, the 10% might be appropriate.

depglass · ‎03-10-2010

10% for the perfunctory ignore you service. If you get the occasional server that bends over backwards to keep your water and coffee filled, and is polite as well, I would tip the same as regular full service restaurant, meaning 15 to 20%.

LeaLeander · ‎03-14-2010

I would tip $5 per person in my party, perhaps more if it's an elegant champagne brunch.

Waitressing a buffet seems like a difficult and thankless job and we like to err on the side of making someone's day a bit brighter.

Snow Owl · ‎10-15-2011

On 11/17/2014 mima said:
I don't really understand this. In buffets, they still take your plates and give you drinks, straws, and extra napkins. The only thing they don't do is take your order and bring you food. At a regular restaurant they don't have to pick up your plates numerous times. The buffet we go to also brings you rolls and has the prime rib taken back to be cooked until it is done and brings it out to us.

We usually give them $5 for two people and the other night the service was really good and we gave $7.

The restaurant where I worked when I was school, we did have to pick up plates and bowls. The customer did serve themselves at the soup and salad bars, unless they requested me to get it for them. When the customers finished eating, there was only supposed to glasses and silverware left on the table for the busboy.

On especially busy nights, the hostess would overload some of us when a server or two didn't show up for work. I had two stations many a night, when what she should have done is split it up between all of us. One or even two extra tables is not that bad, but six is. On those nights, I paid the busboy well for helping me with all those dishes. I gave them money during the week as well because they only made minimum wage and often needed gas money.

There was more to it than bringing the drinks and food. We had to put together most of the deserts. Like a fudge cake. You get the cake out of the cooler, it was already sliced (through the middle like you're going to make a sandwich), then the block of ice cream out of the freezer and put it between slices. Then dip the fudge and pour on top, then the whip cream, and the cherry. And we had a lot of people getting desert, especially that one.

Then all the side work, rolling the silverware, cleaning the pie case, etc., took a while. We started on it as soon as we found out what it was our turn to do. When we were finished with that, we had to restock everything. We had two servers working at closing time, so if somebody skipped out on their side work, we had to do it. It was the most exhausting job I've ever had.

Krimpette · ‎03-09-2010

The only buffet that I typically go to is the salad bar at Ruby Tuesdays. I meet a friend there about once a month and we tip at least 20% - probably more. Since we see each other so infrequently, we spend a lot of time taking up the booth. We tip higher to accommodate the loss of tips from other customers s/he might have been able to serve.

StylishLady · ‎03-11-2010

At places like Sweet Tomatoes where tipping is not banned, I leave $1 per person to the folks who clean the tables. Do the same when traveling at motels with complimentary continental breakfasts.

CeeCee · ‎10-12-2010

I wanted to thank everyone for all the replies. Now I feel stuck in the middle, apparently it may be more work than it seems according to some of the posts. Since I'm stuck in the middle I'll probably go with 10% from now on. With all the table turnover the servers would be making pretty good money for a shift if everyone tipped that.

CeeCee