With an effort to raise tips, I dropped off mints with the customer's bill. If anything the "mint dropping" lowered my tip.
Tonight, I completed another dinner shift at The Bistro. Business was rather slow, and I had a small about of tables. But in dedication to my project I decided to drop off mints with the customer’s bill.
I only had the opportunity to do this twice, however. The results were rather disappointing, and not what I expected. Maybe it was just an off night?
Of the two tables that I dropped mints with, both one tipped me under 15%. Two ladies made up the party at my first “mint dropping” table. They ordered two waters, and shared an appetizer and one entree. This brought their total to a whopping $34! Their $4 tip contributed to the cheapness of their little dinner. Did my mints have a negative effect on the tip or were they just a bad table that gave a bad tip?
My second table that I “dropped mints” with wasn’t much better! It was obviously a married couple who were out for dinner. They ordered waters to drink, the lowest priced appetizer, the lowest priced entree for the lady, and lowest priced sandwich for the man. Their bill came to the grand total of $33.31, and I received a tip that total the bill to $38. Was this table just cheap as well, or did my mints lower the tip again?
I know I only observed two tables and the effect of “dropping mints” with their bill, but I really expected different results. I always enjoy getting mints or candy at the end of dinner; however, so far customers don’t take this into consideration when tipping.
