If it's just me, I'll throw my change in the tip jar. If I'm getting food for the entire family, then maybe a buck or two.

Hell, no I don't tip on take out. You want me to tip the clerk at Macy's, too? They do the same thing-- ring it up on the cash register and put it in the sack. Delivered pizza-- I am VERY generous--30 percent or more. These guys wear out their cars, tires, and face higher insurance costs. They climb stairs, face dogs, crazy traffic and the weather. I always get delivered pizza on the coldest, wettest, rainiest days.

Without getting too "Mr. Pink" here, I think this whole "tipping automatically thing; it's for the birds". That said, I still find myself in the apparently small minority ponying up nearly the full normal amount, for the following reason:

I remember getting really irked one time when I was getting takeout (Cafe Minnies' Tomato Basil soup) and finding that they'd charged me a 15% "takeout fee" - not to cover the cost of the bowls/spoons/etc, but to cover the lost tax revenue for the servers.

I guess the restaurant had been "estimated" by the IRS as having an average of 15% in tips - therefore, for any server's transaction where they DON'T get tipped, they are (potentially) losing money, unless they meticulously document all year (which, I guess it could be expected that Cafe Minnies' servers did not). Not to mention that most waitstaff "tip out" their busboys, cooks, bartenders, etc.

I personally actually hate tipping for all the reasons everyone else does - it's unfair to "fast-food" staff, it obscures the cost of food (the Ticketmaster effect), it introduces the concept of guilt & expectation, cajoling and power-play, into something that normally would feel like a delight.

I hate that if I DON'T order booze immediately (or god forbid, ask about using a discount card), I'm immediately profiled as a "bad tipper" not worthy of good service (even though despite this self-fulfilling prophecy, I pretty much always tip well anyway, if only to counter the stereotype).

My girlfriend was once followed out of Bimbo's and harrassed by an utterly incompetent and inattentive server after leaving *only* a 10% tip. (Believe me, she's not cheap - you'd have to hear the full story to realize how outrageous this was).

Point is, the way I see it is that given the system servers are in (which I wish I could change), I generally tip somewhere in the ballpark of 20% (in cash, whenever I can), UNLESS THEY'VE PROVIDED ME DEMONSTRABLY BAD SERVICE - even if the amount of that service is no more than bagging up some styrofoam or popping open a can of Rainier.

a real answer from my 4 friends who are servers / hosts:

tipping is for service. how you define service is up to you.
Table service = tip, damn you.
Baristas = fuck 'em. Unless they have memorized your order, nail the details every time, and ask about your precious baby girl.
For a server DOUBLING as a host/cashier doing the takeouts, tipping is very appreciated/nearly expected, as the time they put into prepping your order & cashing you out takes away from their time to schmooze the table clients who are likely to pay them 15-20%+.
For a server helping get out your take out order, say, during a slow shift with nothing better to do, it's understood that the takeout tips might be smaller or skipped altogether. Your order didn't 'cost' them anything (and likewise the service you get might be lazy too).
For a hostess doing double duty on dispatch/phones (like at Snappy Dragon), the hostess that gets right to you should get a little something for telling the potential customers (ringing the line) to fawk off while you get the mini-schmooze and chocolate fortune cookie treatment.

Some hosts and servers are also in charge of making salads , packing drinks, packing up desserts. Pay attention: folks actually portioning/handling your food should ALWAYS get good tippping love for giving your food the royal treatment.

In any case takeout tippers rarely go above 15%: it's usually 10% for good takeout and 20% for good table service.

This is just one example of why I hate tipping. The ethics of restaurant owners not paying their employees a living wage (and expecting their customers to make up for it) aside, there are just so many vagaries and awkwardness. Argh!

Anyway, if I'm paying in cash and there's no tip jar, I usually don't tip because it's awkward and weird tipping for takeout. If I'm paying by credit card, I'll tip maybe a couple bucks/15 percent or something.

If someone drives to my apartment, absolutely. Likewise, I tip if my order required them to provide personal service in any way-- such as making food that I specifically ordered. Shoving a slice of pizza onto a plate and handing it to me, filling a cup with hot water and handing that to me with a tea bag, and pulling something out of a display counter are not examples of this, and I don't usually tip in these situations. I don't drink coffee or eat fast food though, and I rarely get restaurant takeout, so maybe I'm not terribly qualified to answer this question. I also don't agree with the "living wage" argument in Washington, because restaurants here are legally required to pay their employees minimum wage, which isn't much lower than what I make. If I lived in a state where restaurants paid their employees $3.50 an hour, though, I suspect that my views would be different.

Tip the M&P business but the major chains refuse tips and you could get some kid fired.

Food stamps are being accepted now. How do they tip?

I don't generally tip at your basic fast-food chain place, but at a smaller restaurant, I'll always tip at least a couple of dollars for takeout. More if I'm a regular. I rarely go higher than 10% for takeout, though.

I tend to tip less. If it's the owner, you're not really supposed to tip, but if I like them, I tend to tip say 10 percent, depending on how much effort.

Delivered pizzas I tip way more. That goes to the delivery guy.

i tip a buck or two (never percent based on takeout) if they seem cool and competent or do any basic sort of extra thing or if my order was anything more complicated than 2 basic entrees or so and it's all packaged well.

i definitely don't tip when they just throw food and a credit card slip to sign in front of me without a word.

probably 60/40 in favor of a buck or two.

20% is too much when you aren't receiving table service. 10% is reasonable compensation for a host or hostess taking your order accurately and putting it together for you.

One thing I'd like to add to the whole tipping thing is this: it's understandable to not want to shell out for poor or discourteous service, but if you opt to return to a place, you are, in a way, putting a seal of approval on the quality of service they offer. For instance, I regularly eat at a pho joint which has service which on occasion borders on offensive, but I love the food, and I continue to go there, and while I don't throw down the 30% I give my favorite bartender, I do kick down a couple of bucks on my order, which still gets me a crazy delicious meal for cheap.

To me my life is worth more than the time and energy it takes to be dedicated to frugality. If I'm flush enough to be ordering restaurant food, not tipping is classless. If I shouldn't be spending the money, I eat at home.

I usually tip a dollar per entree. Getting takeout together in the middle of dinner rush can really fuck up a waiter's flow. You still have to take the order, pack it up and ring it up. In some ways this can be more complex than taking care of your in house tables. I used to loathe doing it as a waiter, and it took me away from my other customers. I would suggest at least a small token tip.

i am much more apt to tip when getting take out food if:

1 - i have phoned in the order previously and it was ready when i get there (never before the promised pick-up time, mind you) - even more if the people there know me and have thrown in visible extras

2 - it is an institution which allows me to forego the (often long) line to pay and pick up before all the schmoes in line who didn't phone in advance - i figure it's a convenience tax for me, and i'm more than happy to toss in a buck or two

3 - if i order after having walked into the place and am treated with any kind of service (could be as little as offering/asking if i'd like water, tea, another beverage, etc) i like to do the same as above - a buck or two.

but in no case do i ever compute the amount i tip on a percentage of the total i'm paying...i only do percentages when i'm dining in or sometimes getting delivery.

I usually do 20%, especially since usually take out is from a local place and I know the people.

If I'm just getting food for me, I won't tip. Otherwise, I usually kick in $1 per entree.

For take-out, two bucks or fifteen percent, whichever is bigger. And you know what? If my order is wrong, it's in my favor every time - two eggrolls instead of one, etc. It's worth it.

Just a $1 usually.

Round up to the nearest $5.

Really depends. Most of the time I tip 25% as they did have to drive to my home. Though Garlic Jim's on 65th I didn't tip when my pizza arrived 2 hours after I ordered it a few months back.

10 - 15% in the general amount to tip for delivery.

If you really dig a delivery place, a little extra is nice too. I generally tip Snooze Junction here in Ballard around 20%.

A buck or two with 10% sort of as a rough guide. $4 or $5 for takeout seems like it requires something a little more than putting styrofoam in a plastic bag.

The old 'owners should pay them better' schtick is so thin it's transparent. We all know the economics, you are just plain cheap. Seattle's motto should be 'whining is free.' Seattle likes whining, and Seattle is cheap.

No! Tipping on take-out seems akward and robotic. I tried to tip once on take-out and the nice girl politely refused! Tipping on take-out reinforces the sad reality that people think they must robotically tip regardless of "service" (what service?) and encourages wait-people to give less service to those who actually eat-in, since the tip was robotic, after-all and not based on anything. This only applies to "real" restaurants that provide dining service. If you want to tip the subway worker on a take-out sub (if they're even allowed to accept tips - which, frankly, they should be), then that is OK, but in a real restaurant - no way! If a real restaurant offers me some water while I wait for take-out, then we have grounds for a take-out tip.

Hells to the No