English, baby!

Here's a Tip

Date: Oct 12 2007

Intro

1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.

2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

In the United States, a lot of people make a good portion of their money from tips. When you give a tip at a restaurant or bar, it’s usually split between the waiters and waitresses as well as the bussers and cooks.

It’s also customary to tip taxi drivers, bellhops, and even hair dressers. With so many people to tip, it can get confusing how much you’re supposed to give in a given situation. Listen to Marni and Mason talk about tipping at a pizza parlor.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Marni

Mason

Marni: So, did you tip for the pizza?

Mason: For the pizza? Like a little bit. Like a quarter or something. I mean it’s not…wasn’t as much as it should be.

Marni: It’s true. Mine was $2.50, I gave him $3, I put in the 50 cents for a tip.

Mason: Yeah. well that was a good tip. That’s like a what…a 20%?

Marni: I don’t know, is it a good tip? What do you think about tipping? Do you have a customary standard?

Mason: Well I’ve worked in the service industry, right, so I feel very entitled to tips and I feel that it’s good to give tips. But, so my pizza was like $2.75, a quarter doesn’t really cut it, but I also don’t want to have give them a dollar which I’d have to do because I never carry change around. It’s kind of a circumstantial thing.

Marni: So now, you’ve worked in the service industry, have you ever encountered people from other countries coming in and not knowing the custom, or when you travel, going to a country where tipping isn’t customary…

Mason: That’s one…It’s always weird for me not to tip. It’s very weird.

Marni: It is weird. I know some countries it’s kind of a grey area and you tip and they’re really excited. And I’ve heard, I’ve never been to Japan but it’s my understanding that they will literally chase you down the street and give you back your money if you try and tip ‘em so…

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Discussion

As they eat pizza together, Marni asks Mason if he tipped at the counter. He says he gave a quarter, which he knows is a little less than he should have given. Marni tipped 50 cents. Mason notes that a 50 cent tip for a piece of pizza that cost $2.50 is a good tip. It’s 20% of the price of the food, and 15-20% is the customary amount to tip in a restaurant where the waiter comes to your table, so it’s a really generous amount at a place where you order at the bar.

Marni asks Mason if he has a system for figuring out how much he’s going to tip. Mason used to work in the service industry so he takes tipping seriously. But on something like a slice of pizza, he just tips whatever change he has left.

Marni asks Mason if he’s ever traveled to a place with different tipping customs. He says he has and that it’s weird for him not to tip. Marni says that in Japan, people will absolutely not let you tip them.

Do people tip where you live? How much is an appropriate amount?

Comments

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Tiramisu99

China

I see it is common to tip in many countries, but in china,we tip rarely,maybe the culture differences results in that phenomenon,may be not,who knows :)

kkannanbe

India

In future service industry workers won’t refuse to fight with the people for good tip.

linjoy

China

I used to give some tips to the waiter in the KTV.

In China It would be “weird” when you give the tips to the waiter or waitress.

Itself is a little srange.

Now I always want to have the small retail shop owner keeps the small changes. I really do not like to fill it in my wallet. futher more , I often get them lost.

green greener

United Arab Emirates

Literally, in my country, we can tip anyone especially bellhop or busser specifically in service industry. There is no certain standard for tipping; you can tip any amount that you can to those people who offer services for you. Sometimes, when we go shopping and we have many stuff to carry, there are some men who came and request from us to carry our bags, so they accompany us while shopping and carry our things until we've finished shopping, then when we come to our car, we give him an amount of money that car reach to 50-100 Dirham, depending on their service. In addition, if we go somewhere, and the person doesn't has a change, we said it is ok and we don't need a change especially if he will not return back a big amount of money.

kdr_25

Turkey

yes people tip in turkey . mostly at restaurants and hotels . tipping is so common in turkey and it is not weird. byyy

momocha

China

after learning, i realize that i should tip if i go to America.

nad1a

Greece

This is certainly a grey area here where i am (Greece). In some services, they expect you to tip them, others would not accept and would insist that you have your change. Tipping is more common and natural at bigger and more expensive places.

In Bulgaria, on the other hand, people tip when they're extraordinary satisfied with the service. Taxi drivers, though, are expecting you to tip them anyway and would sometimes just keep the change without your mentioning it; which can be very awkward, if for example, he's been rude to you or you're not satisfied with him in any way and you decide not to tip him. What happens then is, he takes your money and starts waiting for you to get out of the cab, while you're waiting for your change. lol I've been in a situation like that before and it's really weird.

lucy_chen

China

Hi every, in china there is few people to give tips to services. but you will see some forniners gicing tips to waitressand wait in some high- class places in china. In the future, with more and more foreigners gong to china, tips will popular in china.

demet caha

Turkey

I dont want to thing about tipping becase ı'm short of money in these days! I even can not go out to drink or eat at a restaurant so that subject dosen't seam so sympathic to me??? sorry!!!

dodiking

Ghana

To give a tip is for most people a form of motivation. hence simply put "thanks for what you did and may you do it again when tomorrow comes

dodiking

Ghana

to give a tip is to say thanks and do it again for another tip tomorrow

Ai_RaLf

China

that's happening just in ths so-called developed countries.

yang yang xu

China

In China, traditionally there is no tipping. However, hotels that routinely serve foreign tourists may allow tipping. An example would be tour guides and associated drivers.
Tipping in the United States is widely practiced and is considered by some to be a social obligation under a variety of circumstances such as at a restaurant, at a bar, at a hotel and so on.

addiama

Ethiopia

Hi all….

In my country Ethiopia there is the practice of giving tips, especially in restuarants,hotels, taxis and other services. When people appreciate these services they like to give tips.So itis also a common practice among local people in Ethiopia, and not a practice only among foreigners.

power_xl

Turkey

In Turkey, it isnt customary to tip. That's to say, if you dont tip taxi drivers, busser, hair stylist, etc , they wont get angry with you.

On the other hand, you can also tip. Turkish people give tip if they are pleased with the service. They wont tip those who dont deserve it.

To me, the sense of tipping in Turkey is the correct one. No one should tip bad services.

Evgeniya

Saint Kitts and Nevis

When I'm in the restaurant I feel I should give a tip to a waiter who really works good, if not it will be a scandal.

ghadi

United Arab Emirates

about me i don t like to tip as a duty but ok i like to do it rawording for them and some thing like that and if a felt that i have to do it i really ll be angre coz i think it s not right but it s exta thing so they shouldn t wait the peaple to tip . if they do ok if they not ok so this is what i think

patricia_divina_velasquez

Philippines

yes! that was what i'm asking. because if you can see, when you click on the submit button, the word "correct" is displayed beside the option "none of these" and i'm somewhat confused about it. because if that is what the correct answer, then English teacher is included in the APPROPRIATE person to tip. and i think it is NOT GOOD to tip a teacher