A TikTok user, @kalinaisabella, who is a server at a restaurant, shared a video in which she ranted about tipping culture. She claimed not to disagree with the idea that tipping shouldn’t be necessary. The video, posted on July 3, drew 572,000 views and 77,900 likes as of publication.
The woman started the video by agreeing that tipping shouldn’t be necessary. “People tip for, like, good service, and that doesn't have to be necessary,” she said. She added that restaurants should let people know at the beginning of their meal that an automatic gratuity would be added to their bill. She said that if people didn’t want the charge added to their bill, they should let the restaurant know at the beginning of the meal.
@kalinaisabella Tipping shouldn’t be necessary… unless you want ANY level of service #serverlife #bartenderlife #restaurantlife #funny #serverproblems
♬ original sound - kalinaisabella
“We won't be able to remove it at the end of the meal or once the dinner has started, but just let us know at the beginning. We'll remove it for you,” she said. The woman then explained that people who didn’t want the automatic gratuity added to their bill shouldn’t expect help from the servers.
She bluntly said that when people wanted water in the middle of their meal, the servers would simply point out a pitcher and tell them to get it themselves rather than helping them. “Excuse me, I need a new fork. I dropped mine on the ground. Yeah, there's a drawer back there with silverware if you want to go digging around for it,” she added.
“You know, excuse me, I have a peanut allergy, and it looks like there are nuts all over this. Yeah, you know, communicating allergies to the kitchen is like a service that you can pay for,” she added. She concluded by suggesting that people should be given these options.
“They come into the restaurant, they're like, I shouldn't only have to pay for the plate of food I'm eating. Absolutely, I agree with you. You shouldn't have to pay for all the extra little personalized touches that we silly little servers do. Give people the option. We should be accommodating all people, all budgets, all dining experiences. Not everybody wants to tip. Not everybody wants good service,” she concluded.
One commenter wrote, “Good service is expected because it's the job YOU applied for.” Another commenter wrote, “I shouldn’t have to tip, but I expect people to break their backs for my needs for free!” A third person wrote, “Attitude like this make us not wanting to tip even more.”
The Daily Dot could not independently verify the events and opinions described in the TikTok. The details above reflect @kalinaisabella’s account as shared on TikTok.
