Okay, I work at a Chinese place. While we have dine-in and make good tips from that,we also have a tip jar for the to-go orders. The other day it was really slow, so I got to spend some time munching on fortune cookes and letting my mind wander. I began to wonder, how much is the proper amount to leave in a tip jar. For Dine in it is about 15%. Is it the same for to-go? Should you leave more for those that rely only on their tip jar for tips ( Like a pizza place or coffee shop)? Do you leave more for the jars with cute puns on them like “Feeling Tipsy?” or “Karma”? All I know is that when I don’t leave any tip or just my $00.23 in change, I get dirty looks, but when I leave two or three dollars my friends say that I am being excessive. What Is the Proper amount?
Come to Australia. Things are so much easier here… 
Traditionally, WE DON’T TIP.
In recent years this has changed a bit. In a restaurant you might round up the amount to the next $5 or $10. In a cheap, suburban restaurant, I just take the coins and leave the notes. If a taxi fare is $19, you’ll give the driver $20 (but not if he’s an unwashed, rude arsehole as so many are). If it’s a $21 fare, many decent cabbies will say “Twenty’ll do, mate”.
Some upmarket hotels etc, are now doing the US-style tipping thing. About 10%, I believe.
I don’t tip at McDonalds for my ready-to-eat hamburger, I don’t tip at the grocery store for my ready-to-eat submarine sandwich, and I don’t tip at the convenience store for my ready-to-eat Snickers bar. Why should I tip for any other kind of takeout? And if I got a dirty look for not tipping, I would never go back there.
I do tip for table service, at least 15% and usually more, unless it’s really bad service.
You can’t pay for karma. Karma can only be portioned out by the cosmos!