We were so disappointed that we departed without leaving a gratuity.
Patrick Collinson, Dublin Restaurants Service ("bedienung" in German) and VAT are always included in your restaurant bill and waiters don't live on tips, but it is customary to leave a gratuity unless the service was poor.
Apparently they tip more frequently than any other of the nine nationalities surveyed, with 69% saying they always leave a gratuity when travelling overseas.
In the tip section, instead of leaving a gratuity, the customer apparently wrote, "None n**ger".
In January, Mr. Bloomberg and his companion, Diana L. Taylor, had dinner at the Point, the island's most talked about new first-class restaurant, where the mayor left a $175 tip on top of the 17 percent gratuity automatically charged by the restaurant.
While tipping is not customary in China, many Westerners leave a small gratuity, no more than 10percentt.
Several histories of tipping trace it back to a practice adapted from Europeans, whose own history of tipping goes back to at least Tudor England, when overnight guests would leave a small gratuity (or vails) for the house servants.
There are customers who leave no extra money even though you've done nothing wrong, folks who leave way too much on a small check and even a special few who decide to leave a noncash gratuity (Wendy's gift card, really?).
And when those patrons behave badly - if they are sexist, rude, or leave a too-small gratuity - wait staff looking for retribution have been known to post those receipts online.
While gratuity may not be required at a self-serve buffet, a small tip is not only a nice gesture, but leaves a positive impression with your guest.
