This.

goddamn it. I was just about to post this too.

Hah! I finally beat someone!

for me, great service won't necessarily get you a larger tip, but lousy service definitely will get you a lousy tip.

Sometimes, I like to tease the waiter/tress a little when they bring the check and I'll deadpan ask them "how do you feel about tips?" They'll usually give me the "huh" look and I'll say "would you say you are for them or against them". Typically it results in a nice exchange and I tip well.

A while back, I was eating with a coworker and at the end of the meal I ask the waitress "how do you feel about tips". She looks at me like I've just shat upon my plate and then I realize she's a..top heavy gal......I laugh a little and then spell it....t-i-P-s tips....then she laughed.

If the servers are friendly and attentive, I take care of them.

I said nothing of the prices being higher. I said it's their way of getting their cut, which every bit of evidence leads to.

Thank God for this oh so scientific study!!! That restaurant's grand "experiment" proves two things... jack and shit.

That being said, I think some of their guesses might have some credence.

The best system I have seen is what you see in most of Europe. Servers are paid REAL wages and that gets factored into pricing. It really doesn't increase prices drastically and you can still tip if you want to but it isn't at all expected. Most of what I saw was that people would leave a portion of their change as "tip." And when I say change I mean low value coins. The first time that I left what I considered a regular tip, the waiter chased me down to give me back the money I must have forgotten on the table. Of course after I explained that it was a tip I was treated to exceptional service at that spot from then on out.

because you are a white american male. I generally tip 20% and yes, a great attitude and good service will guarantee this for the waiter. However, if they suck so does the tip.

I'm just curious why the restaurant shut down if this grand experiment was such a success? He says that they're getting ready to open a new one sure, but why shut down a successful restaurant?

So how did they eliminate tipping? They now force you to pay a 18% service charge. That is more than MOST ppl probably tipIin the 1st place.

Around my neighborhood and places I go to frequently I tip arounf 20% and I think its reeruned. When im out of town I tip as little as possible, usually like 8 to 10%. I shouldnt even tip at all, my life would have been much better. I estimate if Irefused to tip EVER throughout my entire life I would save $131, 000. ONE HUNDREDANDTHIRTYONE THOUSAND

As a former server, I would be all for this. I completely agree that, for the most part, quality of service doesn't greatly affect the tip. If someone is just terrible, sure, but just excellent service where nothing goes wrong? Not much.

The bigger difference in tip size, I've noticed, is whether they like you or not. Seriously, the servers who were big personalities that practically entertained the table always got the biggest tips (over the course of a night). I know some of you will say you don't like a super outgoing server, but trust me, most people love it. I was never that way. I did pretty well, tip-wise, but I couldn't bring myself to be a game show host at the dinner table.

That aside, This makes so much sense. It's essentially requiring tips and then pooling them for all the servers. Whenever I worked on a large party with a partner, they ALWAYS got better service than if we split them into two parties. Sure, servers help each other, but there's always a though to the fact that "I need to make my money." This eliminates that and would, I think, create a great teamwork atmosphere that would end up being much better for the customer, more consistent for the server, and much less stressful for the entire restaurant.

Thanks for providing more evidence that this is a great idea.

Except if you are a sexy cocktail waitress with a great personality, then you'll hate this system. I know because I dated one and the $ she made was goooood.

There's no mention of it going to the servers. It is nothing but a surcharge and is used to pool together the labor costs according to this article:

http://www.takepart.com/article/2013...ess-restaurant

I like the tipping system, it's fair. Give me good service and I'll pay you for it. If not, no.