Hi.

I am hosting a dinner party for 55 people and have hired a Chef as well as the rest of the help. It is on a Thursday night and most people are working 3PM until the end of the party which will be probably at about 11.

I plan to tip each helper $20. I am not sure what to tip the Chef. Is $100 just right or is that too extreme either way? The Chef is taking additional time to do some shopping for things he won't order from a vendor. He happens to be fabulous and his workmanship, let alone his food, show it. It will be 8 pass around hors d'oeuvres, then buffet dinner. The desserts will be from a bakery and it is being brought in.

Please let me know your thoughts.

Sounds pretty fair to me.

John, to tip the chef in advance is my suggestion. My wife's 40th birthday party was at a very good restaurant that we frequented. I selected the menu with the owner with input from the chef. I handed the chef 2 $100 bills and told him I wanted the food to be special. He did not disappoint.

sounds light for the tips to the helpers. $20 for 8 hrs? I assume they are being paid as well, and I suppose it depends on what they are being paid.

quote:

Originally posted by irwin:
sounds light for the tips to the helpers. $20 for 8 hrs? I assume they are being paid as well, and I suppose it depends on what they are being paid.

Very frugal on the tips to the waitstaff

Figure that they are earning $2.50 an hour plus their regular wage which sucks....

maybe they should get a better job...

quote:

Originally posted by mareff:
Figure that they are earning $2.50 an hour plus their regular wage which sucks....

quote:

Originally posted by TBird:
maybe they should get a better job...

quote:

Originally posted by mareff:
Figure that they are earning $2.50 an hour plus their regular wage which sucks....

Great answer!

Who needs servers with any kind of ability working in the food & service industry.

Joe

If no service charge is include in the package and assuming the staff is getting their regular wages why don't you tip as you would in a restaurant.
Usually you have an approximate amount per "head" so just tip accordingly. 15-20% and divide the amount between the staff.

As for the chef the amount seems fair.

My $0.02

Boy..Tbird..thank god you have never been a server, you are just good at being served....

YOU WERE SERVED...!!!!!!!!!

Is the Chef the owner of the business that you have hired? If so, does this change whether you should tip?

I face this dilemma with other businesses. If my barber owns the barbershop that I go to, should I tip him? If the guy who washes my car runs his own car-washing business, should I tip him as well? I do. But I often wonder if I should; since they can set the price, and take the profits, why should I tip them?

Here's what I would do. Your mileage may vary.

I would figure what the food cost were and add 30% to divide amongst the staff. Your thinking is ok until I realize its 55 people they are serving. $20 may be a good tip if you had 8 people on your back deck though. How many staff are we speaking of? 4 seems about the minimal not counting the chef.

The $100 for the chef is good, if hes an owner/chef it may not be necessary though since he is making money on the job itself.

but then again, what the hell do I know.

I do know that they surely make more than $2.50 an hour though......

T, you've been served!!! HAH!

Seems like everyone is forgetting something here. Shouldn't a 'Tip' factor in the quality of service that was provided? Or is everyone assuming that the service will be excellent?

quote:

Originally posted by irwin:
sounds light for the tips to the helpers. $20 for 8 hrs? I assume they are being paid as well, and I suppose it depends on what they are being paid.

Agreed. $100 - $200 to the chef seems pretty fair. But I would probably tip the servers quite a bit more; and I wouldn't necessarily be afraid to ask the catering company for a general guideline as to what is appropriate with the servers, either. I mean, if they are getting paid $25+/hour -- which I know some special event servers in NorCal are paid, that is a very different situation than if they are getting $10 and relying on tips.

I like $200 for the chef if he/sh is not the owner. I would give $100 up front. If the owner, I may not give anything. For the staff, I would give $50 each if there were 4 and they did a nice job.

HI everybody. I am thankful about all of the attention my question received. The chef is not the owner. I will also give him some wine.

As per the servers, I am informed they are being paid $16 per hour and the ratio 1 server per 8 guests. It is butler pass around hors d'oeuvres, then a buffet dinner.

I hope this helps the direction of what the anser to my servers' tips should be.

15% X $16.00 X 8 hours = $19.20. Bump it to 20% and it's $25.60.

Be a sport and give them $25 each.

As for the chef, if he's the owner, the standard rule is no tip -- supposedly some owners feel insulted by tipping since that's reserved for the common folk and he is presumably making the profit he thought justified when he accepted the gig.

BTW, are you sure the wait staff is being PAID $16.00 per hour (seems pretty high), or is the caterer simply CHARGING you $16.00 per hour for each server, then keeping a slice of that pie due to his administrative overhead, liability for injury and damage, and any other justification his accountant/lawyer can think of?

That's not uncommon in any business.

Sounds like from the quality of service you are expecting, that's very cheap. I'd go with what Ratso is suggesting.

Btw, when the owner of a restaurant I managed would occasionally fill in as a server, he would simply pass along his tips.

Another thought: They may have their own policy on splitting tips, so it may be better to give one tip and let them split it up fairly. Ask. (What about kitchen staff, for example?)

quote:

Originally posted by TBird:
maybe they should get a better job...

quote:

Originally posted by mareff:
Figure that they are earning $2.50 an hour plus their regular wage which sucks....

I really hope somewhere, someone spits in your plate or drop your food and put it back in the plate, your majesty (yeah, right).

I bet it's happened to all of us.

I once read that if you want to know what a person is really like, watch how they treat the wait staff at a restaurant.

This was advice that was particularly useful for dating. Your date may be the sweetest/most polite person to you, but if they are treating the waiter/waitress poorly, that will be how they'll treat you one day.

quote:

Originally posted by Rothko:
I once read that if you want to know what a person is really like, watch how they treat the wait staff at a restaurant.

This was advice that was particularly useful for dating. Your date may be the sweetest/most polite person to you, but if they are treating the waiter/waitress poorly, that will be how they'll treat you one day.

... Skoshy, does anyone in one of our wine groups come to mind?

I abhor people who treat wait staff or anyone in a service job poorly. Most have issues of insecurity and/or entitlement. I would not continue a friendship with someone who behaved like that.

Funny, as we discussed this a little bit at dinner last night at the MD Offline at Lentini's. How people handle waitstaff, children and animals can be an incredible insight into their "real" personalities.

It always amazes me when people actually belittle or are insulting to their wives, partners SOs in public. Just incredible...

PH

I think you're all wrong but I can say that because the view is better from my pedistile.