Tipping the bartender for a beer?

[Stanislaus]

@fetus

It doesn’t really matter. As Kalhoun alluded to, the place still makes more money off of me than other customers, because the more stuff I get comped, the more I buy–plus the more I tip, which contributes to employee morale, which contributes to better customer service which leads to more income for the business.

See, I knew it was a cultural thing. And I can see how it does work - provided everybody’s in the know, as they clearly are. Thanks for explaining so patiently.

[Fiddle_Peghead]

I lived in NYC until last month, and always tipped $1 for every other beer (starting with the first), no matter the price of the beer, and regularly got good service and usually a free beer for every three or so I bought outright. Tipping for every beer is, as our good friend Mr. Pink said, for the birds.

[Enginerd]

How does that go over in DC? Anytime I’ve been drinking in New York or Washington, I’ve tipped a dollar a beer - I can’t imagine being comped anything tipping $0.50 a drink.

[Kalhoun]

It’s been so long…I’ve forgotten what hard work it is to drink in a bar!

[Fiddle_Peghead]

Don’t know, Enginerd. I haven’t been out drinking yet.

I’ve just moved back to the area after 15 years. Any good tips on some decent dives in DC?

[Enginerd]

Yeah, head 40 miles north and turn east towards Fells Point.

I was a Baltimore kid - anytime I went out in DC it was because somebody was visiting and they picked the place. I really have no idea where to steer you in that direction.

[Fiddle_Peghead]

There used to be a strip club in Baltimore that booked fairly popular rock bands. I saw the Black Crowes there in the early 90’s, but I can’t remember the name of it. Can you help? Also, can you still smoke in MD bars and nightclubs?

[Enginerd]

Hammerjacks, maybe? Not a strip club, but I can’t think of any strip club that booked acts like the Black Crowes. That would be my first guess, at any rate.

I think smoking in bars is still allowed in Maryland, but that might be outdated information - I moved out west about 5 years ago.

[Cemetery_Savior]

@Bobotheoptimist

I don’t tip for the beer, I tip so that I can get another beer.

POW! Brilliant and succinct (from an ex-bartender).

-Cem

[Cemetery_Savior]

@Kalhoun

My son is a bartender. Comping a good customer is usually figured into a guy’s business. If you throw a guy a couple freebies, it builds good will and he’ll spend more money.

I’ll add that this is not done behind the boss’s back. They usually WANT you to do this, at your discretion. Bartenders will also sometimes comp out of their own pocket.

When I was bartending, it was understood thusly:

[ol]
[li]If he/she are drinking draft beer, slip them a free one whenever you feel like it.[/li][li]If it’s bottled, less often, but a freebie per 5 or 6 is good.[/li][li]If it’s a well drink…see #1 above.[/li][li]If it’s a premium drink, a freebie only once in a while.[/li][/ol]

Most of that was due to liquor costs being what they were.

-Cem

[Kalhoun]

@Cemetery Savior

When I was bartending, it was understood thusly:

[ol]
[li]If he/she are drinking draft beer, slip them a free one whenever you feel like it.[/li][li]If it’s bottled, less often, but a freebie per 5 or 6 is good.[/li][li]If it’s a well drink…see #1 above.[/li][li]If it’s a premium drink, a freebie only once in a while.[/li][/ol]

Most of that was due to liquor costs being what they were.

-Cem

Some bars these days have those “measured shot” machines on them. I don’t trust a place that looks that closely at how much they’re pouring. Not sure if you can comp with those…aren’t the counted on an evil computer in the basement or something?

[Mister_Rik]

@Jurph

Anyway, most tip-only employees get screwed on slow nights but do far, far better than the kitchen help on a reasonably average night. For excellent performance of my busboy duties, I was “promoted” :rolleyes: to fry cook, then prep cook, then line cook, then grill cook over the next three summers. My wages “increased” all the way up to $6.00-and-something-per-hour (with longer hours and dirtier work).

Around 1990-92 I cooked in a bar/restaurant where I had to deal with waitresses constantly demanding that I do things that I was not supposed to do for no reason other than to get them a bigger tip from their customers. When I would call them on it, they would get all huffy and berate me because “you get paid more than we do so we need tips!” Uh-huh. That must be why you (the waitresses) can all go to another bar when you get off work and drink all night, while I grab a six-pack at the convenience store to drink at home. And it must be why you’re all driving new cars (less than five years old) and I’m driving a beat up '73 Oldsmobile. :rolleyes:

@Kalhoun

Bartenders will also sometimes comp out of their own pocket.

I don’t know how it is in other states, but in Washington it’s illegal to serve a drink without the appropriate amount of money going into the till. The liquor board stipulates a minimum percentage of markup, and can come in and look at the records to see how much beer was purchased from the wholesaler and look at the reported profit. If the profit comes in under that minimum, the bar owner can get in trouble. So yeah, the honest bartenders will pay for the “freebies” themselves.

[dalej42]

Most of my opinions have been posted above.

1. I usually run a tab in a bar which isn’t packed. I’ll tip approximately a buck a beer.

2. Yes, bartenders can make good money while it is busy. However, they’re also working a lot of slow hours too. The 60 dollars they made in a busy hour is offset by that hour after close when they’re washing dishes and cleaning up at 2.13 per hour. Also, many days are absolutely dead in most bars.