Economy may be tipping point for servers here
ZAGAT | Survey finds we're 2nd most generous, averaging 19.1%, but some restaurant workers say rising costs are biting into that
(Scott Stewart/Sun-Times)
Chicagoans are some of the highest tippers in the nation.
Zagat's 2008-2009 Chicago Restaurants survey found Chicagoans are tipping servers an average of 19.1 percent of food bills.
That's just shy of the nation's highest tippers in Philadelphia, who tip 19.4 percent. Los Angeles diners gave the least -- an average of 18.4 percent.
Nationally, tips averaged 19 percent in the survey, suggesting that the longtime standard 15 percent tip is outdated.
Despite the city's rank near the top, several servers weren't overly impressed. While many do see tips averaging between 18 percent and 20 percent, some have noticed an alarming drop in tips recently.
"If you're allowing yourself luxury to go out for a nice meal, allow yourself the luxury to also pay your server," said Jamie Sweeney, 25. She has been waiting tables since last September at English pub and restaurant in the Loop. Her tips sometimes have been 15 percent or lower recently.
Despite the rising cost of eating out, Chicagoans continue to abandon their kitchens on a regular basis. Zagat says dining out in Chicago costs 2 percent more than it did in 2007. But 81 percent of Chicagoans in the survey released late last month say they're eating out as much -- if not more --than they did two years ago.
Lori Aaron, 35, a server at Fuego Mexican Grill and Margarita Bar in Arlington Heights, said some diners are leaving smaller tips as a result of rising costs.
"I don't see people going out less. I don't see that the average check per person has changed, either. But I have seen the percentage on the tip has," said Aaron.
Sweeney said she depends on tips since she's only paid $4.50 an hour.
"We also have to tip out our bartender, busser, and food runner," she said. "I may average 20 percent, but I don't take home 20 percent."
Lou Malnati's server Irina Zavalisca, 24, said she hasn't seen an increase or decrease in gratuity. She attributes this to regular customers and a well-known name.
"I don't feel that my tips went down, but I think people don't feel the recession yet," Zavalisca said.