Please Be Kind, Tip Your Server 20%
I saw a couple out to dinner tip $2 on a $58 tab. This may not seem like a big deal to you but to me it is. I watched the couple run their server/bartender to and from the kitchen. I watched them receive stellar customer service and what should have been a $12 tip turned out to be just 2 bucks. I was in disbelief they just left the change on the table and walked out.
I do take it personally because waiters in Louisiana and Texas only make $2.13 an hour. Servers rely on our tips to pay their bills. Before you start saying "The restaurant owner needs to pay their employees more it's not my fault.". If the employer is having to pay servers the same wage they pay the line cooks or other staff, the cost of your meal would skyrocket. Seriously. Basic economics here. So yes, servers heavily rely on your tips.
I was born into a family who works 90 hours a week. My family is full of dreamers, but most of all, hard workers. I was raised in a restaurant, seriously I hung out there after school every day, my mom and dad had a cute little restaurant named El Jardin in Turlock, California. My brothers went on to open up restaurants of their own and I was in the restaurant business for several years. The art of serving tables is one I still take pride in.
I know what it feels like to go above and beyond for a table and be left with a 5% tip. Please, if you can afford to go out to eat dinner you can afford to tip. Treat your server the same way you would want to be treated, and tip them the way you hope your siblings or kids would be tipped.
If you need an example of servers going above and beyond in our community please check this out.