[joonix]

I would prefer they get rid of waiters entirely and just have runners for the food. Then I can stop stressing about tips and grumpy waiters. In NYC, the waiter actually improves rather than detracts from my dining experience less than 5% of the time.

[tptacek]

You "stress" about the tip? Divide by ten, multiply by two, round to nearest dollar, just write the total line and not the tip line. Done.

The runners make tips too.

[selmnoo]

If it's such a formulaic process, the control should just be completely taken away from the end customer.

Other reasons that tipping should exist: it only serves to perpetuate racism [1] and sexism [2]. A lot of waiters have preconceived notions about what kind of people tip more, who tip less, etc.: they're expecting business people in suits to pay more, and African Americans to pay less. So what happens when the two enter a restaurant? Servers fight among themselves on who should get who... because it's an issue of money for them. Trust me, I once worked at a restaurant -- it got ugly.

The sooner we can get rid of this strange and hate-inspiring custom, the better. Better for customers, better for restaurant owners, cooks, dishwashers, everyone.

See TED talk by Bruce McAdams for more: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOk2C4n4eMQ

[1]: http://tippingresearch.com/uploads/Business_Considerations_T...

[2]: http://tippingresearch.com/uploads/ServerAppearance1-3-08.pd...