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« Healthy Hershey's April 7, 2007
One of the most confusing things for visitors to Paris is figuring out the tip system. Unlike the US where tips are expected (and considered part of the wages paid), in France by law a 15% gratuity is always included in the price wherever you eat or drink. No matter what anyone says, a service charge or tip is always included. Period. Guidebooks often underscore this fact, reminding you that the tip is included. But also they add that it's okay to leave extra. Which, understandably, leaves a lot of people confused. Outside of Paris, there's far less tipping. But since Paris has many international visitors, it's pretty common to leave something after a bite to eat or drink. But it's never expected and is only given for good or attentive service, or at a place you habituate frequently. Other circumstances where a tip is common: In restaurants if you have a baby or children that require special attention, if you don't speak the language and the server is particularly patient and helpful, or if you stand up and spill red wine all over the place and broken a couple of glasses as well. (Not that I've ever done that...) Although I have a few Parisian acquaintances that refuse to leave anything on principal (reasoning that it is, after all, included), most I know do leave a little something. Never feel obliged to tip, and if you go to a restaurant and they don't return with your change when you leave money for the bill, that's extremely bad form and I always say something. And of course don't leave anything. I've had them respond, "Oh? We thought it was pour le pourboire (a tip)!" Never, ever believe them since they would never do that to a French person. They'd be outraged. (Similarly, I'm outraged even when they do that in the states. Unfortunately you still need to leave a tip afterwards there.) If you do want to leave something extra, don't add it to your credit card slip since the waiter probably won't get it. Instead, leave the coins in the tray where the check was presented or on the table. Lastly: Don't overtip! So here's a little guide based on my observations and experiences dining and getting around Paris:
If you have a drink, although not necessary, often people leave the change. If the bill is 3.80€, you can leave 4€. Don't leave 5€ (unless you've accidentally smashed the table in half or something.) That's way too much. Simply round it up the nearest whole figure if you want. At the bar, if a coffee is 1.20€, you can leave an extra 10-20 centimes behind if you want.
In normal restaurants, including cafés, a friend of mine says he leaves 1€ for every 20€. So if the check is 80€, he'd leave 4€. Once again, it's not necessary but is appreciated for good service. And I think his equation works out just about right. In nicer restaurants, such as 3-start tables, where the service is exemplary, a tip of 20€ is fine to leave. It's not normal to tip the coat check person.
Like restaurants, tipping in a taxi isn't necessary, although most of the time I give a little extra, roughly an extra 1-2€ in Paris no matter what the fare. If coming from the airport and the driver's helped you with luggage and the like, 5-10% is fine to give him or her. Conversely, if they take you on a tour of Paris, ie: the longest route possible, I don't give them anything unless they were doing it to avoid traffic or a demonstration blocking the streets.
If your concierge at the hotel goes out of their way to make you a host of restaurant reservations, especially at hard-to-get places, it's a nice gesture to give them something for their efforts. While a box of chocolates or a bottle of good wine is welcome, a monetary gesture of gratitude is a good way to show your appreciation. (Curiously, women concierges usually get gifts while men receive cash from guests.) If they make a phone call or two to get you into a local bistro, it's not necessary. If you give them a list of places that you'd like them to book you at, I do recommend a little something, especially if you plan to go back to that hotel. Trust me, they'll remember you. And getting you into a nicer place that's normally booked is quite a feat—depending on the level of hotel you're staying at or restaurant you've requested, 5, 10, or 20€ is appreciated.
And if you go to the theatre, it's almost mandatory to tip the usher at least 1€ per person for showing you to your seat.
A 10% gratuity is fine to give the person who cuts your hair. Except for the woman who cut my hair when I first arrived in Paris years ago and I had to walk around the city looking like a sponge that got stuck in the garbage disposal for a couple of weeks until it grew out. She got a tip, but I didn't go back. (I hope she used the money to either improve her skills, or to head back to school to find another line of work. Boy, was that scary...)
Wikipedia's Guide To Tipping in France and elsewhere. ParisMarais has a few tips. Fodors' Foodie Guide. The US Embassy weighs in. About.com on Tipping in France. Heather's notes at Secrets of Paris. Comments tip... the *usher*??? Now that is something that boggles my mind, especially since I tend to think of ushers as volunteer "friends of the theater." Is seating in French theater so complicated? Posted by dddg at April 7, 2007 12:43 PM A service charge may ALWAYS be included, but I know very few establishments who actually share the charge out with their waitstaff.... Posted by adrian at April 7, 2007 2:15 PM It can be pretty intimidating when you don't know exactly how things are done and you don't want to offend anyone. This provides lots of good info David, thanks. Posted by Terrie at April 7, 2007 2:20 PM Thanks for this useful info! Other than the basic cafe/restaurant tipping- I have found it nearly impossible to find info on tipping for these other services provided!! Posted by melange at April 7, 2007 7:42 PM dddg: I've heard it's because the ushers don't get paid. Being a cultural rube, I've only been to the Olympia here in Paris. But everyone always tips the ushers. Adrian: I didn't realize in France, it was meant to be shared. I thought people just got a standard wage. When Chez Panisse went to 'service compris' (in part, to equalize the pay between the kitchen and floor staff), the service charge on the bill was figured to be the amount that would be compensated to the staff in the form of higher wages, and wages were raised accordingly. If memory serves me, the waiters ended up making less, and the kitchen more. Terrie & Melange: It's interesting, because if you ask French people if you should tip or not, they generally say, "It's included...so you don't have to." But then they usually leave something anyways. It's like an 'unspoken' topic. And especially vexing for us Americans, who feel funny leaving without a tip. When I was in Trieste, after I asking the locals, I tipped the cab driver 5€ on a 55€ fare and the driver acted like I just handed him the Hope Diamond. So obviously they're not expecting tips like they do in the US. It really is a different way of thinking. (Or I'm a cheapskate, and the guy was being polite.) Posted by David at April 8, 2007 3:14 AM David, my understanding of the tipping issue is that it's exactly as you say at Chez Panisse: when the unions wanted to force the restaurants to pay servers minimum wage a deal was cut with the government whereby the restaurants could raise all the prices by 15% to cover the costs and say "tip included". For some serving staff this was undoubtedly a raise, for others a loss of wages - but for all it led to stability. And I believe that nowadays there are very few waiters who only receive minimum wage: it's seen as a métier, i.e. a real profession with real wages. Great post, by the way - I'm going to print it out to give to visitors as I get tired of trying to explain! And for some reason, that usher one really ticks my dear husband off, because they never allow you to just find your own seat - moral blackmail!! ; ) Posted by Meg at April 8, 2007 9:26 AM Thanks for the advice (I just narrowly avoided a terrible pun) It turns out I always tip too much when I come to Paris. In Ireland tipping is something we are only getting the hang of now. I would be the rounding up to €5 after a drink type, despite being a well-behaved customer. In restaurants I would usually leave at least €5 but my young daughter usually travels with me and I have found staff are always very patient (she likes to order for herself.)My hotel etiquette is somewhat lacking too. Will have to get to Paris soon to practise my new-found skills. Posted by Laura at April 8, 2007 6:59 PM Tipping in theaters was hard to get used to--do they still tip in movie theaters? And then bring up the lights after the previews so the ushers can walk around selling refreshments ("esquimaux! chocolats glaces!"?). Many many many years ago when I went to a sold-out performance at the opera, the usher grabbed my tip and showed me to the wrong box! But now they don't seem to take tips at either of the opera houses, nor at a few of the other concert halls. But you have to pay about $10 for the program -- does the concessionaire get a take? Posted by Susan at April 8, 2007 10:22 PM Laura: In Paris, a tip is more 'appreciated' rather than 'expected'. I used to over-tip, just to be sure. Posted by David at April 9, 2007 2:02 AM We were in Le Vieux Bistro a year ago, and an American woman was declaring to her dining partner that the "tip is included" claim was just a scam started by cheap rubes to cheat the poor French waiter/proletariat. Too loud, too long went her harangue and my husband finally interrupted their "private" conversation to explain that the French pay their waiters a real wage and that the system is simply different. (His brother is a waiter and considers it a profession.) She dismissed him as "ignorant." My husband is French, I am American, and I think Americans like the tipping in their culture because, at that moment when they hand someone the money, they have a moment of superiority. And the illusion of control over the person being graced with their cash. I prefer the French mentality: do your job because it is your job and businesses should pay people what their service is worth. (Don't get me started on the sense of entitlement that pervades the US, including the damn Starbucks "baristas" - {scoff} - who insist on tips because their job is "like, so hard" when they push the button.) But Americans are addicted to that moment when they can feel generous and powerful. Posted by valentine at April 9, 2007 4:29 PM I am an American who once lived on tips, and I don't care what the person feels (superior or put upon) when they leave the money on the table--all I know is that the money I earned in tips helped to pay my rent and bills and college tuition. The $2.13 an hour my employer paid me was certainly not going to do it. Yes, businesses *should* pay their employees what their service is worth, but many American businesses do not. For many barristas, the wage they make is often not a living wage and those tips can really help. Anyone who provides friendly service is certainly deserving of my pocket change. (And, no, I'm not a barrista.) Thank you, David, for this guide to tipping. It's not easy to spell out these often unspoken rules. I have never been to Paris, but I did recently have a Japanese friend visit my American hometown (where there is NO tipping) and having to explain the American system to him was a challenge! Posted by Brenda at April 9, 2007 5:01 PM Brenda: When I was in Japan, they told me it was an insult to tip. I did once, for room service, and from the mortified look on the woman's face, I think that's right. Curiously, in San Francisco, they just passed a law where waiters, and everyone else, are paid a 'living-wage'. So no longer will they be making a base pay of $2-3 (I don't know exactly what it was.) So waiters will now get tips on top of that. I waited tables for a while and although it could get rough, I raked it in. (Although not typical, at one restaurant I worked in, the waiters would average $80k per year, often in cash--unfortunately, I was a cook at that one...) Don't know if they're going to give up on the tip system as a result. When I go back to the US I never know if I'm giving enough. Or too much. It's so confusing... ...checking in and out of hotels when I teach, I gotta make sure you've got a wad of singles to hand out for housekeeping, bell clerks, car hop, taxi tips, etc.... I'd be happier if coffee shops raised their prices 25 cents (and improved their coffee 25%), and restaurants included a 15-18% service charge, and everyone got enough to live on. Then we all could collectively sing kumbaya and listen to Up With People! It's interesting how they can pull it off and make it work in Asia, Europe (and provide health care), and probably everywhere else in the world. Posted by David at April 10, 2007 1:30 AM Up, Up with People! I meant, in my post, that there is no tipping in Japan--but there is tipping in my American hometown (which you caught, of course!). In Japan, you might only tip at a ryokan, the traditional Japanese inn, and only at the beginning of the visit, not at the end. And the tip then is rather large, maybe 30% or more of the cost of your stay. There are a number of taboos regarding money in Japan. It can be incredibly rude, for example, to hand another person money, even when making a purchase or accepting change in a store...So I hope you didn't just hand the woman some money! She might've thought you were trying to buy something from her other than her housekeeping skills. (No, seriously.) Posted by Brenda at April 10, 2007 6:31 AM David's point is mine: somehow Europeans manage to live without such an extensive tipping culture. I'm not saying that Starbucks employees don't work. I'm just saying that a lot of people do their job accurately and with a friendly manner that don't get tipped. (Do you tip the check-out person at the supermarket? Or the bank teller?) Where does it end? I used Starbucks employees as an example because they are NOT paid $2/hour (like restaurant servers are). And, if I am remembering correctly, fifteen years ago, you would go into a Starbucks and (brace yourself) just pay for the drink that you ordered. And they would give it to you. With a smile. There was no "tip jar." Nobody had invented it yet. (Back then, you only really tipped if you got table service - because they were bringing you the food.) And then somebody somewhere was tacky enough to put out a jar with a hand-lettered sign that said "tips" and now we are being emotionally blackmailed into paying an extra dollar for an already (relatively) expensive item. And, worse yet, the practice is so pervasive that everyone *expects* the tip now. Yes, I tip in Starbucks. For all my rant, I do it. And I don't doubt that the money does definitely help the "baristas" there (and I think the quote marks are necessary). If someone gave me extra money, of course it would be more than I had before - and more money is almost always "helpful." But are they also implying that without that extra bit, they wouldn't make your drink or would do so with a snarl? Why wasn't this a problem ten years ago (pre-tip jar)? When did it become ok to accept money from anyone that will give it to you? What happened to pride? (I think we exchange pride for money.) I am a private tutor. I charge what the market will bear for my service. I do my job to the best of my ability, as kindly as possible. Because it is my job to do so. Every year, I have a handful of clients who try to give me extra money at the end of a semester (usually a couple hundred dollars). I realize it is old-fashioned (or stupid, according to my classless sister), but I always refuse the extra money: I am a professional (a very well educated one with a PhD in math, though most of my clients probably don't even know my last name...no kidding) and taking that "tip" would reduce me to nothing more than...a "barista" with their hand out. Sure, the extra money would "help," but at what cost? It is a cultural thing, definitely. (These same people would never dream of tipping their accountant or doctor....) Maybe it is wrong, but I have more respect for French servers. Long way around to agree with David. (By the way, I have waitressed. Put myself through college that way, through grad school. It is a very hard job - at times - and I am not missing it very much at all. That said, the "begging" for money implicit within the server-customer relationship is demeaning. Yes, the money was fabulous, but, in the end, I would have preferred to be paid a regular wage - maybe less money, probably - and not have that demeaning aspect inherent to the position.)
Posted by valentine at April 10, 2007 10:11 AM As an European living in the US, the de-facto obligatory tipping irritates me. To me, going to a restaurant is buying a concept -- you walk in, get seated, pick something off the menu and are served. The price I'm paying for my meal, should, in my opinion, include all these things. Perhaps I could opt for getting out in the kitchen and pick up my own plate? I do tip, but I do it because I have to (no, I don't Have to, but who would like to be known as the no-tipper?). I wish I tipped because the service and food was so darn good, but that's not always the case. For some reason, Americans seem to prefer this system; I don't hear anyone complain. And the guest seem to believe just because the tip isn't included in the price, the meal is much cheaper. Makes no sense to me. It would be interesting to know how much money in the country ends up in the tip jar over a year. Posted by Christina at April 10, 2007 11:19 AM Christina: According to *current* American mores, you would still have to tip even if you go to the kitchen and pick up your own food. (Ten years ago, when my husband would get tired of the whole tipping minefield, some nights he would want to just get carry-out to side-step the whole issue. Now even that is a tipping thing.) Now that I think about it, if people like Starbucks drink-makers "deserve" tips, why don't we tip cooks in restaurants? Now THAT I would gladly do. Their job is enormously hard when the restaurant is full (when I waitressed, I always knew that I had it much much easier than the cooks), and they do their job as best they can, often brilliantly, plate after plate. When they make a mistake, the server just walks it back to them (7 seconds extra work, 14 round trip), but they are the ones to actually take the extra time to fix the problem. Let's stop tipping the servers - pay them whatever wage the market demands to get the job done well, using supply/demand forces - and start tipping the cooks who ACTUALLY make the magic happen. Posted by valentine at April 10, 2007 11:52 AM Why DO we tip servers more when the food is very good? ("Well, the service was lousy, but the beurre blanc and torte was amazing, so let's leave a decent tip." We've all said something like that, I think.) The cooks don't get even a part of that, so what does that reinforce? Hmmmmm. Posted by stephen at April 10, 2007 11:57 AM Just a word on the proper use of nomenclature - ...... Posted by Richard Driskill at May 13, 2007 6:25 PM
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