Mr Al Young Dot Com

Since I started working at BART again I often eat a nearby Chinese restaurant. On most days I prefer a hot rice or noodle plate over a cold sandwich and drink. On a recent lunch with coworkers the topic of “How much to tip” came up. Most people tip below the standard “15%” that is customary in American restaurants at a Chinese restaurant. They do so for 1 of 2 reasons:

1. They are cheap and will under tip at any restaurant.
2. Because they can get away with it at a Chinese restaurant.

I have a friend who always tips below the standard 15% at Chinese restaurants. He does so because of a combination of the above reasons. I on the other had always try to be as generous as possible when tipping at a Chinese restaurant typically in the 20%+ range. I do so not because I am normally a generous tipper. I believe you should tip according to service and if the service is sub par I will not hesitate to tip accordingly. Still, I try to tip as much as possible at a Chinese restaurant. I do so for the following reasons:

• It is Fair: If a waiter works at a popular high end restaurant where meals can cost anywhere from several hundred dollars to even thousands with a big party and wine a waiter can make a very good living on tips alone. Even at a more moderately price but popular restaurants waiters can still make out very well. A waiter at a Chinese restaurant will work just as hard but will only receive pennies in tips in comparison to a waiter at a high end restaurant. Not only that a waiter in a Chinese restaurant will work under much worse conditions such as no heat or air conditioning for pennies in wages and tips.
• Good Karma: A lunch at a Chinese restaurant will typically cost you $5 or $6 dollars. Spend $15 dollars and you can have a feast. Its a cheap and filling meal. A sandwich, chips and drink at Subway will cost you $8 or more. The difference between tipping 10% or 20% is only about 50 cents. Not a significant amount for most of us and your meal would still cost less than you would have paid for a cold sandwich, chips and drink at Subways. However to a waiter making minimum wage or less with no health benefits an extra 50 cents from each customer would be a significant boost to their income so why not create some good karma?
• These are my own people: Not only is tipping well at a Chinese restaurant the fair thing to do, creates good positive energy and makes a financial difference in a waiter’s income, I am also taking care of my own people. Most waiters and waitresses at Chinese restaurants are Chinese like myself. I know of many people in my family who is working or has worked at Chinese restaurants in the past. I know of the low wages, hard work and poor working conditions. Conditions have improved in recent years but labor laws mean very little in Chinatown. So why would I stiff my own people over 50 cents?

Under tipping is the accepted norm in Chinese restaurants. If you tip 10% or less you won’t be faced with indignation from the waiter or questions of “Was the service okay?” in oder to guilt you into tipping more. A waiter at a Chinese restaurant will accept whatever you tip without question. However just because you can does not mean you should or it is fair. Consider this next time you eat at a Chinese restaurant. An extra 50 cents won’t kill you.