Now I am what you'd call a regular when I choose a restaurant of business I like and want to support I tend to shop or spend my time and money in that particular place on a regular basis. I am very particular about the restaurants I go to, food is not the biggest thing I look for at a restaurant my biggest draw is excellent waitresses.

I never realized until a year ago that going to a restaurant could be enjoyable other then to just eat great food. But realized that if I maintained going to the same restaurant I got to know the waitresses and began to tell a serious difference in the quality of service I was receiving at certain restaurants.

No I'm not talking going to Hooters or Sammy J Peppers for the eye candy and sitting in the seat where the most attractive waitress covers. To me looks aren't what make service great and you can have the hottest waitress in the world but she can be the snobbiest dumbest waitress in the world.

About a year ago a sports bar called "Origional Joes" opened in my city. I decided to check it out when I did so my waitress introduced herself and asked my name. Took my order and gave me outstanding service. When I went back a week or so later I got the same waitress and she remembered my name, pretty soon I had a second waitress who did the exact same asked my name and actually started conversations with me.

Long story short I found myself in that restaurant more and more, the two great waitresses after only about 2-months not only remembered almost everything I ordered, but began suggesting foods based on the types I liked to eat. They remembered exactly what I drink and offer suggestions for how to get the best deal.

One day I was walking through the mall and one of the waitresses came up to me, she was like "I know you often order Chicken wings, well were doing a promotion coming soon where we will be giving out coupons for a years supply of wings" I later found out the promotion was in play she then told me what time she was telling people to go "She was like I am telling everyone to come four hours early but if you come around 6 hours early nobody will be here yet" I showed up six hours and sure enough nobody was there at about four hours before the give away everyone flowed in.

That and of course these things

-I never even finish my drink before the waitress tops it up, my pop is never out for more then half a minute and not once have I had to ask for a refill.

-The waitress greets me by name every time I come into the restaurant

-Always remembers what I like to order, suggesting other foods I may enjoy and/or confirming my order. (Not the whole specials thing, I hate it when waiters try to sell you the specials, these waitresses actually know what kind of foods I like almost better then I do. They know I hate heat and heavy spices and other things while loving mushrooms , calamari and stuff) Every time they suggest something new I don't usually order it is great.

-Actually converses with you, I know how busy waitresses and waiters are but somehow they find time to actually talk to you. Sometimes sitting down and having a short conversation. Example I told the two waitresses at different times I was going on a missions trip to Thailand, once I got back they asked me how my trip went and one actually wanted to see pictures.

-Never got my order wrong, not even once!

-Put up with my friend who's an ass hole, we've got horrible service before at other restaurants because he is one offensive annoying person.

I rarely tip at restaurants unless I get service that is amazing. But at this restaurant with the two greatest waitresses in the world I tip 15%-20% something I never do. I recently found out one of the waitresses was quitting, she was the first waitress who served me at opening the one who tipped me off to the coupon deal cared to see my Thailand pics etc....etc... I gave her a 300% tip for her final day.

Today when I go to the restaurant I intentionally sit in the area my favorite waitress covers, she has suggested other waitresses who work different shifts who do a good job. Funny thing is they are both aware they are the best waitresses at the restaurant, when I tipped the waitress 300% I told her she was the best waitress I have ever had , she told me in fact she was told that about a dozen times that day. She also said in the week before she was quitting she made more in tips then any pay check she had made prior. She then suggested that I try to get the other great waitress from now on.

Is it sort of weird that I go to a restaurant solely for the waiting? In all my years of eating out I have only had two waitresses and one waiter who are actually this good. I'm not sure if you live in a small town I am sure the waitresses and waiters remember your name, but I live in one of the biggest cities in British Columbia and the Origonal Joes bar is always packed 24 hours a day. To get this kind of service isn't something I find often.

Today I choose to go to that restaurant for the service, even though the food is not as good as certain other places. Fact is I would much rather eat a meal enjoy it with amazing service then eat a better tasting meal where I get lousy service. Anyone else found themselves going to certain restaurants for their service (Waiters/Waitresses)?

Or does the waitress/waiter not really effect your choice in restaurant?

No. I go to restaraunts for food.

You rarely tip at a restaurant? I would hope you realize that being a waiter/waitress is a service industry job. I always remember who tips, but, I remember those who do not tip more. Be careful where you eat. ;)

Here in British Columbia waitresses and waiters are all guaranteed minimum wage, tipping is a way of showing appretiation for good service. It is only in some western societies where tipping has become compulsary, tipping was never created as a tax that you pay everyone just because they do there job.

In some countries and states service industry jobs pay less, in those cases tipping should be a regular thing as they do not make minimum wage. Here in BC waiters and waitresses have been guaranteed minimum wage. New legislation passed by premier Christy Clark is raising the minimum wage to over ten dollars, however for the first time in the provinces history servers at resteraunts will be excluded from this rise in minimum wage. So in the near future when the minimum wage is increased and waitresses no longer make the same wages as everyone else I will start tipping everyone.

I have worked security, retail , janitorial and many other much more difficult jobs and never recieved any kind of tip of any sort for my work. I made minimum wage at almost every job I have worked. But my friend who was a waiter made more then I did each day in tips alone. A friend of mine (Female) worked at a very expensive resteraunt in Vancouver and in one day bragged she brought home almost a grand, which I found unbelievable. She has told me on a good regular day she can bring home up to two hundred dollars in tips.

I have other friends who wait and didn't make that huge amount. But the worst one I can think of said she made about 30$ in tips a night at MileStones on top of her minimum wage. Another of my friends is a greeter and bus boy at a resteraunt and doesn't make shit in tips, he said sometimes he does recieve tips but they are very rare people usually tip their waiters/waitresses. Why doesn't he deserve a tip for bussing while a waitress deserves one for serving? Both are service industry workers both garnish the same wages why does one deserve more pay then the other?

In fact if the waitress or waiter are recieving minimum wage, why do they deserve a tip at all? People don't tip security guards, janitors or other employees who give essential services. It doesn't make sense to tip someone who makes the same wage you do, its a job just like the one I had.

That being said I still tip really good waitresses and waiters. I think since everyone tips them and they do such a good job I am not showing them appretiation. If I think they did an amazing job then I need to tip to express my graditude. But if the service sucks and the waiter or waitress doesn't do her job past the bare minimum why would I tip?

Every time I go to the US in a state where wait staff make less then minimum wage I tip compulsary. Though my last visit pissed me off, I was staying at a hotel and ate every meal at the restaurant at the hotel. The last day as I was tipping I finally decided to read this little card on the side of the thing holding the bill. When I read the small print I was horrified.

The thing said "Dear customers here in North America it is customary to tip your server 15%, because you are unaware of this practice we have taken the liberty to include your tip in your bill" I realized I had been tipping on top of the 15% tip my whole stay, honestly I was tipping 30% that's radiculous and nobody said anything to me when I was giving out these tips. Nobody said "You know your tip is included in the bill". I was so upset of course I didn't complain but I am very hesitant to tip at hotels and fancy restaurants in the US now. To me that is a shaddy business practice. Unless the restaurant informed you ahead of time that your tip was included and made it obvious.

Now every time I'm in the US I carefully read everything on the menu and the check book to see if their is any hidden tip fee.

I think that all waiters and waitresses deserve to be paid minimum wage, getting bonuses based on performance working there way to higher wages like every other employee. That is how it works in British Columbia and a lot of Canada and some states and other countries. It makes absolutely no sense to pay an employee less and then expect the consumer to pay the employee their wages. An employer should be responsable for paying the employee if the employee doesn't do a good job they should be fired like any bad worker at any other work place.

But as I said once BC's laws change which will occur soon, I will start tipping more often. However by law Wait staff will have a guaranteed wage of 9$ an hour only a 1.25$ less then a regular employee. A single customer tipping will make up the difference in wages, so if the waitress does a horrible job I still won't tip.

In the end I tip where a tip is earned, where I live there is no reason why every waiter and waitress deserves a tip. They are no worse off then myself or any other working Canadian. In fact I'm unemployed at the moment so they have it way better then I do, why should I take what little money I have a give them a raise if they don't deserve it?

Wow, Joelcool. Judging by the length of your posts, you are extremely passionate about this subject. Too bad I can't read all of that. ADD, you know.

No, you should go to massage parlors for the service.

Yah I tend to be passionate about almost anything I discuss a problem with Autism I guess.

As for Spurgeonryan I would agree with you to a degree , waitresses and waiters and service workers do work their asses off for you more so then many other professions. However what about construction workers, security guards/body guards, secretaries and such who put just as much effort into serving you as does any waitress. Yet they get minimum wage in most cases.

Having been involved in security and construction I must say I worked my ass off for my client and no matter how good I performed I never got a tip. In fact while one security company did pay me 12$ an hour better then minimum wage I often slaved over the customer with no recognition or tip at all.

When you are escorting someone around protecting them from druggies and who know who else wants to hurt them, shouldn't you be entitled to a tip just as much as a waiter who serves you food? I secured a mall, I was responsible for the security and safety of every single individual in the mall. I ran around all day greeting people, responding to calls of crimes being committed getting assaulted, death threats stabbed at. All for barely above minimum wage. In fact I rarely even got a thank you often just criticism like "You should have been able to take that man down faster" or "You should have been able to handle that situation without causing a scene"

The way I see it, the service industry is a job like most others. I guess you may consider construction and security to be service industry jobs, but if you do there are so many more jobs that should be tipped then. I don't think its fair to tip a person for a job they are paid equally to do. Unless in some cases which I tip simply because I want to show gratitude to the server for amazing service.