I never tip at a fast food joint but I was picking up lunch at one today and as far as I could tell there was only one man there running the whole show. He was doing the grill, the fryer, the counter, the drive through, and the register, and doing it like a boss (which he probably is). Service was a tad slrower than usual, but geeze! When I picked up my order (which he nailed, by the way) I slipped him a $20 and said "You're kicking [censored], man. Merry Christmas!"

Very nice of you!

I do that on holidays for the convenience store worker because it's not convenient for him.

Good on you, man!

X2.

Good on you, I agree with tipping anywhere the service is exceptional. That’s really the purpose of a tip after all, even though it’s become an expectation lately

X3

I always tip the car hop at sonic

Always tip at the drive thu because they aren't over paid. I waited tables in my young years and know how it is out there.

i always tip when I encounter someone with a positive enthusiastic attitude, unfortunately that is not very often

I sacked groceries in high school for 2.20 an hour and worked my a$$ off every weekend and after school. I was never tipped, never expected to be tipped and never thought I was underpaid. Now days everyone has their hand out for a tip and think they are worth more than they get paid. Ate at Red Lobster last week and the tip on the receipt started @ 22%. F that. I have my own tipping system. I start @ 10% and it increases with attitude, friendliness, promptness and overall service during the meal. Most of the time it about 15%, but never more than that. I have no problem just tipping 10%. with the huge increases in restaurant priced now days, that still good $$.

I’m sorta like TPACK, in that I start at 10% and will go above 20% for really great service. For really poor service, I recently gave no tip at all. We do tip at Sonic usually.

And, on occasion…if the waitress is friendly and happy, I will tip extra if she can name the 7 Dwarfs. And she can consult co-workers on that. That usually leads to some laughter and fun for everybody.

Usually, never tip below 25% during the holidays; they need it a lot more than I do…and if they don’t, I really don’t care.

I'm kinda with Tpack here, too. I'll leave something even for ho-hum service, but a really good experience I'll go 15-20 percent. I agree that the house automatically adding 22 percent is BS. Let them pay their people more, first.
Slow Drifter, that was really nice of you.

If I have to stand in line at the counter to order, I don’t tip.

I always tip pretty much anybody for anything I get on Christmas/Christmas Eve, New Year/New Year’s Eve, and Thanksgiving. And thank them for coming in to work, because I would not.

Stopped off at a coffee shop this afternoon, while coming back from Bryan. I ordered 2 cookies. Took them 10 minutes to bag the two cookies, which were $4 total, and they offered me a chance to pay a tip. NO!

Good for you. I think lots of people tip due to pressure when they are paying their bill or checking out. It`s embarrassing how many places and people expect to be tipped for doing nothing beyond their basic job responsibilities. Most supermarkets will not let their employees accept tips. I know that Walmart, HEB and Brookshires will not. They don`t want their customers to feel pressured to tip after they just spent mega$$$ to feed their families.

i only tip fast food at Sonic. i was told the folks who deliver only work for tips.

Untrue. Sonic employees get paid regular minimum wage (or more) NOT waitstaff wage. Do not tip at Sonic. Makes ZERO sense.

'Can't stand Sonic, but don't tip the teenager that brings the food to your car?

You know what's "insane"? Coming on here with the express purpose of telling everyone they're stupid and getting some weird rush from it.

I almost always tip 20% regardless. If it’s a I walk up to counter and order, wait, walk away with my own food then no.

Of course I would tip at Sonic, but only time I go there is for ice in the ice chest.

Same here. That’s not waiting on me… it’s me waiting on you.

In a sit down restaurant, I typically tip 20%. But I always calculate that 20% on the pre-tax amount.

Sonic (I do not know if it was system wide or just a few franchises) got busted for underreporting tips and had to back pay a huge amount to the feds a few years ago. Last I heard, pre covid, the car hops made north of $12.

I still tip, I just round up to the whole dollar.

They also pay attention to the app users and the service sucks if you do not tip. Not giving condiments, not doing drinks right, etc.

I always tip at Sonic. My daughter worked at one in high school and she made some serious coin for a kid.