At restaurants, I tip 20% pretty much across the board. Great or shitty service is probably based on so many factors outside of whatever is going on between the staff and myself. Mood, what's going on in the kitchen, if someone's cat is sick, etc. But only for table service. If I get handed something across a counter, I don't tip. If there's a jar, I don't tip. Only table service waitstaff gets the crazy-low minimum wage in the states. It's also very easy math.
At bars, I have no clue what to do. I've heard a million things about what's "standard": If you tip a dollar a drink, every drink, you're asking for a free drink. If you tip any less than a dollar a drink, you're an asshole. Once, when working up the bill, I put in my share of the drinks and a tip, and the guy I was with was like, "how long have we been sitting here?" as if there were a per-hour tip, not a per-drink tip, or a 'how well taken care of you felt' tip.
Left to my own devices, I probably tip a dollar for every other drink. I pretty much only drink beer and neat whiskey, though. It's not like I'm asking anyone to shake up exotic, 12 ingredient cocktails for me.
tipping(Read 22511 times)