I wasn't aware tipping was all that common in the UK but here in Canada I would be wary of using Groupon for that exact reason. Personally I find tipping to be a nearly meaningless exercise (nearly because occasionally great service deserves a bit extra). Because I live in a country where we are expected to tip, restaurant owners do (and are allowed to with lower minimum wages) expect to be able to underpay their staff and let them live off tips.
It is to the point where most chains have a tipping system where wait staff tip out to everyone, chefs, bussers, etc so everyone gets a chip at it. If you undertip the wait staff can actually lose money.
I'm tired of being responsible for someone elses paycheck. Most restaurant waitstaff are merely ok, not amazing and not deserving of something extra, nonetheless I feel obligated to pay 15%+ anyways because of the culture.
Worse than this there are many here who despite the tipping culture feel perfectly free to never tip or undertip, leaving the rest of us to make up the difference (how do you think we go from 10% being a normal tip to 15-20%?).
It's for this reason alone and because I know most Groupon users are brutal cheapskates I will probably never take a Groupon for a restaurant. Though one persons advice to tip up front or at least let the waitstaff know you have no intention of only tipping on the remainder is valid and if you are going to get a groupon deal you'd do well to remember that.
What sucks about this whole anecdote is it means owners using Groupon are getting doubly screwed. They are getting one-timer coupon clipper who don't care about the crap service since they are never coming back anyways, and they are getting potential first customers who are not going to come back now because of the bad service. Even worse they will likely get negative word of mouth.
Of course there is a simple solution here, plan ahead and don't mistreat your staff by making them beg for tips. Personally I have zero sympathy for restaurant owners since they themselves are the ones who maintain this bullshit tipping culture.
You've hit a few proverbial nails on the head for me there. Having lived primarily in a number of countries where tipping was entirely optional and rarely more than 10%, I still find it awkward when I travel to the US. I generally follow the 20% lead these days but the figure is always determined based off the service I've received, as I've justified the absurdity of it as "the wait staff get ripped off by not being paid a fair wage and I have to top it up for them". There have been occasions where we've dined in quite expensive restaurants in NY and the food has been bad enough for me to send back (something I'll rarely do). But on both occasions the wait staff were polite and understanding and stuck the items off the final bill. I stilled tipped at 20% of the original bill + a little extra because at the end of the day the fact the meal wasn't cooked wasn't their fault and I didn't think they should be punished for it. Sharing that tip with the rest of the staff makes a mockery of the whole process and my justification.
And then I think; In almost every other profession you're expected to do your job to the best of your ability every day. Your "tip" is still being employed the following week.
"I'm tired of being responsible for someone elses paycheck."
I agree, I think mandatory tipping is absurd. I think people partially disassociate tip with their assessment of a restaurant's cost, so is a way for restaurants to appear cheaper. I think wait staff should perform to the best of their ability or be fired. I find it ridiculous to pay someone $1 to open a beer for me (ie. a bartender) or spend 30 seconds taking my order and then bringing my food out to me. Other times you are expected to tip maybe $1 for someone rigorously drying my car after a car wash. Seems disconnected. I hope technology helps offset this cost (automatic bartenders/ordering machines).
I'm also not sure why some restaurants have not tried to create a model of anti-tipping. I know many people that would like to go to a place that essentially says: "We pay our people well, if you feel that you have gotten a great experience, please tip by sharing us with your friends or donating to this charity."
I enjoy tipping. There is a vast difference between decent service and excellent service. Given the choice between paying more for my food and having no control over the tip vs. having the ability to tip proportional to my opinion of the service, I'll take the latter.
I'm tired of being responsible for someone elses paycheck. What's the alternative? Do you think the total cost of the night out would go down if the waitstaff was paid more? You're going to be paying their salary one way or the other, it's better that you get some input on their performance I think.
Maybe, but I'm sick of the way the price of everything in America is a lie.
This steak will be thirty dollars! Except it won't be, because you've got to pay tax on top of that, so it's thirty-three dollars! And then you've gotta pay an extra fifteen percent minimum on top of that, only apparently people think you're cheap if you only tip fifteen percent nowadays, and you just know you're going to be too lazy to do the maths properly so you're just gonna wind up rounding it up to forty dollars, aren't you?
On a recent trip back to Australia I did discover everything was very expensive, but at least you pay the price it says and not a penny (errr, cent) more. No mental arithmetic, no stress.
But if there's no culture of tipping and employers actually have to pay a fixed salary, situations like these wouldn't happen, since the waiters wouldn't be affected by coupons.
It is to the point where most chains have a tipping system where wait staff tip out to everyone, chefs, bussers, etc so everyone gets a chip at it. If you undertip the wait staff can actually lose money.
I'm tired of being responsible for someone elses paycheck. Most restaurant waitstaff are merely ok, not amazing and not deserving of something extra, nonetheless I feel obligated to pay 15%+ anyways because of the culture.
Worse than this there are many here who despite the tipping culture feel perfectly free to never tip or undertip, leaving the rest of us to make up the difference (how do you think we go from 10% being a normal tip to 15-20%?).
It's for this reason alone and because I know most Groupon users are brutal cheapskates I will probably never take a Groupon for a restaurant. Though one persons advice to tip up front or at least let the waitstaff know you have no intention of only tipping on the remainder is valid and if you are going to get a groupon deal you'd do well to remember that.
What sucks about this whole anecdote is it means owners using Groupon are getting doubly screwed. They are getting one-timer coupon clipper who don't care about the crap service since they are never coming back anyways, and they are getting potential first customers who are not going to come back now because of the bad service. Even worse they will likely get negative word of mouth.
Of course there is a simple solution here, plan ahead and don't mistreat your staff by making them beg for tips. Personally I have zero sympathy for restaurant owners since they themselves are the ones who maintain this bullshit tipping culture.