I will never get this comment that gets repeated infinitely. Servers in the US are absolutely laughing all the way to the bank with all their absurdly high tips that many times more than make up for their shitty hourly wage. Let's say a server in the EU gets say £12 hourly wage Vs in us say £3. The EU server has made £90 at the end of their shift + maybe some tips. Let's call it £130 total (being generous considering the argument's assumption is they get zero tips and are happy with that). Meanwhile the US server has made £22.50 in wages and like £200++ in tips.
That 100£ difference? The EU server paid pension benefits, health insurance and unemployment benefits. Also, any day they -or their children are ill or they’re lounging on some beach for any of those 21+ paid days off, they still make the 100£.
Because they know they will take away £90. It doesn't matter if it's a slow day, if they're having an off day. They don't have to jump about like performing monkeys to appease the clientele, they can just be themselves. They also don't have to worry about forking out hundred of pounds/euros for healthcare, have better sickness and annual leave policies. People who feel looked after are happier and do better work.
It depends on many factors and of course then varies quite a bit depending on the venue, but median server income in the US is around 17 USD/hr (this is including tips). This is similar to the median server salary in Germany (13-16 euro), which doesn't include tips.
And the majority of US servers don't receive employer health insurance, paid time off, and a variety of other social benefits. EU servers aren't living large but I think they likely benefit from more income stability and a much strong safety net.
Anyway, the point was that US servers rely on big tips and their behavior reflects that. I think that stands regardless :)
Most people tip in Germany, in the 5-10% range, by rounding up to the nearest euro or two. It doesn't come close to what servers get in the US, but it is enough for a couple of drinks, thus "trinkgeld".
So then they can get payed what the work is worthy and don’t need to put up with a charade to get more money…
Tipping culture to me still seems weird.
I will tip if I think I got exeptional service and I give extra as I please (I do so in EU) but the whole let’s get math class after dinner seems unecessary time consuming. And the whole interaction seem fake anyway.
As a bartender in Europe, I try to be friendly because I enjoy my job more when I do that. Not for tips. But...Our salaries arn't that high and we do appreciate tips.
One of the nicest people in the US was around 20 years ago when I had to travel from Nottingham to Grand Haven. She was married had a young son and her husband an ex-marine, who offered for me to stay with them for 1 week in 4, after only meeting me three times. I always received the stipend/funds in my bank account before I left as I wasn't high enough to clarify for a business credit card but refused to pay over £1000 in expenses for each trip, which normally took 6-8 weeks to be paid. Her son and I would hide the £1000 in a not so obvious place, so as to make it a game to find the money. Sadly, they moved to Vegas and we lost touch. America has many problems at the moment and coming from England, that's also true. American hospitality can be off the charts and I'll be forever grateful they opened their home to me, had beers with me, cooked meals for me, all with no expectation of anything in return. I did introduce them to a full on English breakfast, as well as English staples such as Shepherd's Pie. I know they won't see this, but Angelique, Tony and Budy, I still think about your kindness and I thank you for letting me into your lives for just over two years. I miss you.
I think Paris has changed a lot. Never experienced rudeness there and I don't speak any French. French folks I know have also commented on this, something like the younger generation speaks much more English and is more worldly and friendly than previous generations.
Honestly I’m Australian living in Paris and have only had a few negative experiences. The pickpockets are everywhere though. It’s true French people kinda see parisians as seperate haha. I experienced way worse attitude my month in Italy, 5 months in Turkey and my month in Poland was particularly bad. The Polish are horrible
I always find this odd. I've traveled through a few places in France and found people in Paris to be the nicest. Only time I experienced the "rude Frenchman" stereotype was in Marseille and Cannes
It's honestly not even that bad in paris. It helps if you know basic enough French to try to order something. If I worked at a busy restaurant or coffee shop I'd be annoyed if someone came in and only spoke Chinese with no effort to speak in English.
This is where American's fall over from what I've seen. When talking to a server, they tend to just demand what they want, with no hello/bonjour, and French servers often aren't afraid of showing offense to that.
When I've been to France, I've always greeted them first and they've always been polite and friendly in return. Also, one of my favourite memories of getting served in France is when I tried to use my limited understanding of French to buy something, and he replied in English, so we both carried on speaking each other's language.
I just got back from Paris. Spoke english with most of them and the ones that couldn't, we figured it out the best we could. The only rude person was transit authority, watch out for them
The only rude person was transit authority, watch out for them
Rent-a-cops are a plague wherever you look, mostly because the only people applying for this kind of job are the ones who can't pass the police test, and even police has very low hiring standards these days which means the ones who end up at transit authorities tend to be people who make r/wallstreetbets apes look like Albert Einstein
Asian who's been to France twice with A2 French, my experience in Paris was different. They were extremely friendly, even inviting me to their table or giving me free shots (different times).
This is extremely untrue. I'm like A2/B1 in French and my wife is probably A1 at best. People are very friendly and meet you on your level most of the time. Maybe it's a you problem.
The optional tipping is nice, but it's nuts to pretend that European waiters give great service.
"I've been sitting here for fifteen minutes, the waiter hasn't taken my order yet, nobody even brought me a glass of water, I can't tell if they're busy or just ignoring me on purpose" is a universal part of the European travel experience.
American waiters are over-the-top attentive because they're hungry for tips. European ones get paid the same whether the customer is happy or not, and they act accordingly.
It's not optional, is no tipping (except for whatever is going on in Germany) unless the service was like 10 stars and they gave you something for free, and even then it's 1-3 euros at most. Please don't tip, the rest of us don't wanna be Germany, and we certainly don't want to be the US on this
In my experience there is some level of voluntary tipping in every European country I've been to except Italy and France, usually by rounding up, as in Germany.
I mean if your dinner is 24.5 and you pay 25 fine but not more than that. As a European, who has lived and travelled in multiple places, I can assure you that they expect Americans to tip. Eventually they try to pass that on to everyone else. I'd prefer to not have that happen, and I think my friends and family would agree.
In Europe that is good service because the culture is different: when people go out to eat, they’re not just there to shove a load of food down their throat as quickly as possible. They’re there to be convivial with the people they’ve gone with, to take their time and to enjoy a non-rushed experience.
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u/Veneboy 4h ago
Tipping is very optional and the waiters and waitresses are awfully nice and friendly.