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What’s the norm here? Are tips expected when getting delivery or when eating out? The people I work with seem to never tip, but for all I know maybe everybody thinks they are assholes because of it.
Mike’s Pizza is on the way, so what’s the consensus? Tip or no?
Tipping is not customary but some places will have tip jars (like Starbucks). You pretty much don’t need to tip anywhere, and often if you do leave a tip on the table after finishing a meal, the waiter or waitress will chase you outside to return the money to you thinking that you accidentally left it behind.
I’ve tried tipping waitresses, my internet repair guy, my wuguan handyman (xiu li gong?) and the tricycle guy i paid to move my stuff. None of them accepted it, and the tricycle guy was kinda angry (not sure why)when i offered him 20 kuai more (it was raining that day and the guy was an absolute trooper!).
You can force tips on people, but their immediate response is to refuse.. sometimes I force tips on people who do excellent little services for me like, the car guy who comes to fix my shit when it’s broken somewhere and he personally grabs a cab to wherever I’m at almost immediately, or essentially anyone who goes above and beyond to get something done for me, like the guy I argued with over cab fare to the airport (very early, no return fares, so he was like “80 minimum!” I was like “50! or use the machine!” etc..) ended up giving him 100 because he drove like a madman and got me there on time 😀
What you will notice, though, is as you go to different cities – like Shenzhen, you’ll be expected to tip at different places. Massage places, some restaurants, anything frequented by HK’ies who drive up for cheap service – they tip, and the people get used to it so expect it (and ask for it shamelessly… “Tipsie?” with fingers rubbing). Nicer restaurants etc in Shanghai expect tips, too, I found – at least western ones..not so much for Chinese ones.
It’s an awkward thing here. In general in Chengdu, don’t tip. It also kind of pisses me off that tipping isn’t common, I blame the generally shitty service on that…sure service is really cheap, but it’s almost never done with a smile or pleasant interactions, and people just blankly go about their job with almost no passion. Makes sense with no additional incentive and shitty pay, but sucks for someone who wants good service.
Rick, the shitty service you sometimes get here is the infamous Chengdu Shrug; sometimes it pisses me off, but i often find it funny. Like the girl in the chemist yesterday who said “mei you” when i asked for some glucosamine (putao tang). i picked up a bag and asked her “What’s this then?”. She gave a wonderfully sheepish smile, as if to say “Ok, you got me there”. God bless that underpaid child….
Sometimes funny, sure..but *gets tired fast* 😀 I heard an amusing story which gives a reason (other than no incentive) for the lack of service:
Back in the day, an emperor was heading to a town, and had his right hand ride ahead to arrange lodging for their horses. They arrived at a stable, and said, “We need to keep a couple horses here, by order of the king.” The stable-hand replied, “But Sir, we have no space! It’s full!” and immediately saw the frown on the hand’s face. He got a thought, “But.. wait! I have an idea. You can leave them with me and I will take them up the road to another stable, where we can take even better care of them. I will handle it all for you, no problem Sir! My pleasure to serve!”.
The hand immediately signaled to have the stable-hand beheaded.
Moral of the story: if you show motivation to go above and beyond and demonstrate any sort of ingenuity, motivation, or intellect, you will be seen as a threat, recognizing problems with leadership, or potentially leading a rebellion. The safe world for an emperor is a world of simple minded servants. Be a simple minded servant, and keep your head intact.
It’s sorta how I remembered it, anyways, and I don’t know if it’s a common story or just something someone made up, but the explanation fits a mentality I see pretty commonly around here 🙂
tigerkuma， In some companies and restaurants there are some kinda policies require workers do not accept tips otherwise they will get fired .
@Ivy: yeah, you’re right. I found out later that my internet gongzuo ren could get into trouble, and i’ve been told that if you tip a waitress she has to give it to the boss anyway!
Maybe I’m a cheap bastard, but i always prefer countries (like my home country) where tipping is not expected; just makes it more comfortable….(and we give a fair wage to waitresses etc…)
I tipped someone today and I think it was one of the rare occurrences that it’s appropriate in China.
Locked myself out of my room today (don’t take having your own bathroom for granted). I have a spare key that I leave at my work, but it’s Saturday and no one’s there. Also left my cell phone in my room. I could have hopped from my neighbor’s window to mine with some spidermanning, but he wasn’t home. I spot some street workers putting up signs with a pretty tall ladder. One of the guys agreed to help me out. I almost fell and died, but it was a success. The guy had already left and was back at the work site before I could thank him. Tipped him 20 kuai.
Quote:I almost fell and died, but it was a success. The guy had already left and was back at the work site before I could thank him. Tipped him 20 kuai.Hahah! Tipping seems totally appropriate in that situation.
A few years ago I had an outdoor gig in Chengdu (at the awesome plaza at Rainbow Bridge) a few days before flying to the US. Since it was my last weekend in Chengdu, I knew I was going to be drinking a lot and asked Sascha to help me look out for my turntables that I had to bring with me to this show. He ended up getting way more drunk than me so when I left, I put the decks in the trunk of the taxi and went home. When I arrived at 3am, I forgot about them and just got out of the taxi.
Long story short, I asked another taxi driver to get on the radio and try to reach the driver who was cruising around with turntables in his trunk. He ended up coming back with a TV news crew who filmed him giving me back my turntables and I insisted on rewarding his honesty with cash but he wasn’t having it. For about 30 seconds we were pretty much fighting over it but in the end, seeing that for him it was an issue of honor, I conceded. He deserved an enormous tip.
@Charlie: yeah, i think you’re right about the honour thing. My “removalist” and i bargained pretty hard about the intial price, so when i later offered a tip, it may have offended his honour (also i helped him lug my shit around so that may have had something to do with it. We were both drenched from the rain).
That’s a cool taxi story. I left my cell phone in a cab about 5 years ago here, called him, and he returned it. Also refused a tip. Still got that ancient cell phone. Wonder what would’ve happened if it was a new I-phone……
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