The Star wades back into the (never-ending) tipping debate

The Star wades back into the (never-ending) tipping debate

Torontonians seem to have an endless appetite for reading about the when, who and how much of tipping. Anyone still confused has a new resource on the practice courtesy of a new, nearly 2,000-word article by the Toronto Star’s Tony Wong. Wong did some deep digging, including an interview with Kim Stahler, the woman behind The Stained Apron, a website/group therapy session for servers who want to vent about crappy customers and swap stories of retaliation (a heads-up: give your server attitude when you’re requesting extra foam and you might just wind up with someone’s breast milk in your coffee). He runs down a few of the standard rules on tipping, including some rough guidelines on how the percentages should vary from service to service (15 per cent for a concierge; 10 per cent for a taxi; 10 to 15 per cent for your hair stylist). Wong also provides a few tricks of the trade for servers (families with young kids: probably bad tippers; strippers: awesome tippers). Sure, a lot of this might seem like common sense, but with the possibility of someone else’s bodily fluids in your coffee, just remember that the stakes are high. Oh, and that you’re supplementing someone’s (probably meagre) hourly wage—so be nice out there. Read the entire story [Toronto Star] »