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AIBU?

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Original poster

Tipping for coffee

33 replies

TarasHarp55 · 21/08/2022 10:32

Just wondered if it's the norm to tip for a coffee. My sister and I had a coffee yesterday and when I went to pay the man behind the counter plonked a "tip jar" down just as I was paying with my card. I didn't have any cash so just left it. When I told my sister she rummaged through her purse and put some change in it. Does anyone else leave a tip just for coffee?

OP posts:
chipsandpeas · 21/08/2022 10:34

if its somewhere like starbucks or costa then no, if its somewhere like a cafe where its brought to me then yeah i would tip if i had change which doesnt happen a lot

Poppyblush · 21/08/2022 10:35

No

MinervaTerrathorn · 21/08/2022 10:39

If you are going up to pay then you are tipping for what exactly? The coffee to be brought to your table which takes seconds? It's not like there is the option to make the coffee yourself.

Whataretheodds · 21/08/2022 10:40

No I wouldn't.

DuggeeHugPlease · 21/08/2022 10:41

No I wouldn't and in fact I've stopped being so generous with tips in restaurants unless the service has been beyond the minimum I'd expect.
Had a meal at a pizza chain and the service was alright but nothing special. They didn't really interact at all, got our dessert order wrong and generally it didn't stand out as really good service - I mean it wasn't bad but wasn't great. In the past I would have given them 10% tip but am now thinking why do I tip in restaurants when I don't tip other minimum wage workers.

Original poster
TarasHarp55 · 21/08/2022 10:46

The man who plonked the tip jar down wasn't even the person who served us even. I just didn't really like the way he plonked it down, kind of like demanding in a way.

OP posts:
DancingBeanstalk · 21/08/2022 10:50

Nobody should be tipped regardless of what they do or where they work.

TitInATrance · 21/08/2022 11:05

No. I tip for meals if served at the table and the service is good. I might tip for coffee and cake if they went out of their way - shifted tables for us, gave us useful and needed information on the area / current state of transport, shielded me on my own from obnoxious stranger, etc.

Plonking the jar round would put me off though.

Bananarama21 · 21/08/2022 11:06

There's no need for tip in the UK we gave a minium wage unlike the USA which relie on it to top their income so its reasonable.

PolishingCandles · 21/08/2022 11:06

No.

fufflecake · 21/08/2022 11:07

Sometimes I do if there's a jar. But I most certainly wouldn't if a jar had been put down right in front of me like that.

fufflecake · 21/08/2022 11:08

If I'm there for the rush before 9am or they've had to serve an abnoxious customer then I'm more lovely to tip

custardbear · 21/08/2022 11:08

No, it's just their job to be honest, I realise it's low wages but lots of people get low wages, supermarket staff, cleaners etc and I don't tip them.
I'd tip if I went to a restaurant where the food was excellent and a really good personal service - coffee and cake - sorry but no

sandgrown · 21/08/2022 11:11

Just sat in the sun in Whitby having a coffee . The waitress was very friendly and pleasant so I did tip her . I suspect that now most people pay by card that they get very few tips . In my home town more restaurants seem to add a service charge now which I suspect is to make up the shortfall in tips . I do know I can ask for it to be taken off but if the service is good I don’t bother .

ofwarren · 21/08/2022 11:21

Bananarama21 · 21/08/2022 11:06

There's no need for tip in the UK we gave a minium wage unlike the USA which relie on it to top their income so its reasonable.

This
I never tip

Imthedamnfoolwhoshothim · 21/08/2022 11:23

I wouldn't tip in the UK. There is never a need to pay someone extra for literally doing their job.

AmazingBouncingFerret · 21/08/2022 11:27

I manage a coffee shop, we have tip jars on either side of the counter. People are really generous! We save them up all year and split them at Christmas as a nice Christmas bonus.

EmmaGrundyForPM · 21/08/2022 11:31

I wouldn't tip in a cafe unless I had a proper meal and the service was outstanding. People in the UK are paid minimum.wage, but we only tip certain workers/professions. Why should I tip a waiter but not a supermarket checkout person?

OneTonNoodles · 21/08/2022 11:33

ofwarren · 21/08/2022 11:21

This
I never tip

Show quote history

Same.

The jar plonker sounds rude. Unless it was a coincidence he was putting it back at the same time you were paying. In that case it wouldn't have been aimed at you.

Wheresmywoolyjumpers · 21/08/2022 11:46

I do tip yes, but I would not if they were that aggressive about it.

girlfriend44 · 21/08/2022 11:50

No because the coffee is expensive enough as it is.

girlmom21 · 21/08/2022 11:57

girlfriend44 · 21/08/2022 11:50

No because the coffee is expensive enough as it is.

This! Takeaway coffee is crazy expensive!

ClocksGoingBackwards · 21/08/2022 12:01

No, nothing happens to warrant a tip being given in the two minutes it takes to order and buy an already overpriced coffee.

abovedecknotbelow · 21/08/2022 12:12

It's now £3.50 for a coffee in my local independent. I don't tip, but then I don't tip for anything.

mondaytosunday · 21/08/2022 12:44

If I order at a counter and wait for it no. If I'm ordering food that someone had to make up I might put the change in.
If it was table service I'd also leave the change. But I use a card now for 99.9% of transactions.
Years ago I was paying at the till and the 'do you want to leave a tip' but came up in the machine. Hard no in that (also I do not too if collecting a takeaway myself).
Interesting at a local artisan cafe the cashier always hits 'no' when the tip option comes up in the machine, even though they do bring food to your table.

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