Angry server says she 'hates Europeans' after getting 10% tip on a $700 bill

Angry server says she 'hates Europeans' after getting 10% tip on a $700 bill

X / madisontyt_

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A server has accused European diners of being “hostile” after she considered a $700 tip of 10% an “insult.”

The debate over tipping has been ongoing for years, and I’d venture to say that we’re still no closer to finding a consensus.

Different cultures and countries have different ways of handling tips, so when those two worlds collide, it can lead to a bit of a headache, especially for servers who feel shortchanged.

In the United States, tips are meant to help a server’s income cover living expenses. In Europe, however, servers are often already earning a living wage and tips are often seen as a way to show appreciation for excellent service.

For instance, in Italy and the United Kingdom, if a server tries to leave a tip, they likely won’t refuse your money, but they won’t expect you to hand over anything other than what’s on your check.

In this case, the waitress, Madison, works at a New York restaurant and took to Twitter earlier this year to complain about a table that had lingered for hours.

She said her manager asked her about their experience and they were "over the moon" about her service, so she explained to them that the typical tip was 20%. 

The server was not happy with their generous tip, which she said was "at least 20%" and "starting at 20%" and left the restaurant. 

Related: A US tourist has sparked an online debate after sharing a long list of things she doesn't like in Europe.

She then posted a screenshot of her check with a second caption saying, "We should ban Europeans from coming here until they know how to act properly." 

She wrote that this table only left me $70 after sitting there for hours with my $700 bill. "They were over the moon about my service, so I explained to them 20% was the normal tip and they were 'ok' and left." 

A photo of the check shows that the suggested tips start at 20%.

This led to a lot of Americans defending Madison, but also prompted a lot of Europeans to ask why she was rejecting a tip of $70.

70 dollars is more than fair. What on earth do you think is actually acceptable ?

— Kev D (@kevin_decesare) March 21, 2023

Some said it was “okay”, while others said the tipping culture in America “needs to end”.

This American tipping culture has got to end they've gotta pay you guys an actual wage you shouldn't put up with this

— Jack Fifield (@jackfifield) March 21, 2023

One helpful X user said, “Europeans aren’t used to tips because servers are usually paid well. It’s the US’s late stage capitalism that’s to blame, not customers from other countries.”

Europeans aren't used to tipping because servers are generally paid well. Blame the terrible late stage capitalism of the US, not patrons from other countries

— Sarah Nadav שרה נדב (@sarahnadav) March 21, 2023

Fast forward to Christmas, and it looks like Madison’s problems at work haven’t gotten any better, as her responses are still filled with people saying she doesn’t have a right to complain. She wrote to X, “I’ve got a table that signed up for a large party contract, and now they’re saying they don’t want to pay the check of $2,000.”

She stated that they had the attitude of "you can't make us pay," while we responded with the fact that they had indeed signed a legal contract to secure the reservation and we had their credit card information on record.

Therefore, we had the authority to enforce payment. Additionally, she further supported her argument by mentioning that Europeans lack proper restaurant etiquette.

It appears that the table dined from a "prix fixe" menu, in which you pay a predetermined sum and are given a list of options to choose from.

Madison didn't say where the clients were from, but based on her comments, it appears that she has frequent encounters with folks from this particular country.

That was a nightmare.