Dishing Up Morality: How Chefs Account for Gratuity

Abstract

This study delves into the intricate world of tipping, examining how restaurant chefs and chef-owners account for and morally justify this practice. While previous research has paved the way for understanding several of the nuances of tipping in the dining experience, little attention has been given to chefs’ perspectives on its moral dimensions. In today’s evolving restaurant dining landscape, tipping practices have become increasingly contentious. Therefore, it is imperative to grasp the ethical intricacies of tipping experiences, as they hold significant implications for social and economic interactions. This study focuses on interviews with culinary artisans—the masterminds behind the dining experience, including executive chefs, chef-owners, sous chefs, chefs de cuisine, private chefs, and pop-up chefs. Through these conversations, we explore the moral justifications for tipping, unintended consequences that arise, and the advent of tip coercion. Our findings shed light on the moral reasoning and ethical dynamics behind tipping practices. These findings offer a foundation for shaping theoretical frameworks, informing practical solutions, and guiding policy decisions in this complex realm.

Appendices

Appendix 1. Interview Guide

Interview Guide

1. Consent

Please read the consent form and agree to participate.

Title: Tips in Restaurants.

Researchers: (names redacted for manuscript review)

Description of the research: You are invited to take part in a research study that seeks to gain a better understanding of individuals’ opinions about tips in a restaurant setting.

What will my participation involve? This interview will take about 20 min. Participation is voluntary, and you can choose to not answer any question that you do not want to answer or stop at any time. However, it is important that you answer every question so we can more fully understand your answers.

Are there any risks to you? Data collected in this study is confidential. We do not gather any personally identifiable information. Your individual responses will be combined with those of others who participate in the study and will not be linked to you in any way. We do not anticipate there will be any risks to you from participating in this study.

You may ask any questions about the research at any time. If you have questions about the research, you should contact [AUTHORS NAMES AND EMAILS HERE].

Thank you for participating.

Do you wish to participate in this study? Yes/No.

2. Demographic

2.1. What year were you born?

2.2. What is your gender?

3. Warmup Questions

3.1. What is your current role/title?

3.2. How long have you been in the culinary industry?

3.3. Do you think tips are expected by staff in the food service industry? [why or why not?].

3.4. Do you think the existing tipping system works well for both the server and the patron? [why or why not?].

4. Ethics Framework Questions [yes or no—can briefly elaborate if they want]

4.1. Do you think giving a tip is the morally right thing to do because it promotes the happiness of the server?

4.2. Does a tip signal a concern for the well-being of the server?

4.3. Are tips a sign of a virtuous character trait?

4.4. Is it only fair to leave a tip, regardless of the service?

4.5. Do servers have a right to receive a tip?

4.6. Is it a patrons’ moral duty to leave a tip?

5. Insights

5.1. Do you see any issues with the current tip culture in America? [If so, what solutions could you suggest that might remedy the tensions that exist?].

5.2. Are you aware of different tipping practices in other countries? [If so, how do you feel they work?].

5.3. Do you believe that tips are or can be coercive (definition: strongarming, forcible, intimidating, pushing)?

5.4. Do you think there is confusion/tension with tipping at restaurants? [If so, why?].

6. Signaling Questions

6.1 Do you think societal pressures influence people’s tip expectations more so than the restaurant experience (from both server and patron perspectives)?

6.2 Do you think that tipping related signals (e.g., feeling of satisfaction, gratitude, displeasure, annoyance etc.) which are sent and received between servers and patrons gets distorted or misinterpreted? (why, or why not?).

6.3. What signal is sent to the staff of a restaurant when a tip is not given by a patron?

6.4. What do you think helps (or could be done to help) the tipping exchange/experience to be more positive (from the perspective of the restaurant, the server, and the patron)?

6.5. What do you think hinders or damages the tipping exchange/experience (from the perspective of the restaurant, the server, and the patron)?

6.6. What are your views on the importance of tipping in restaurants?

7. Additional

7.1. Political affiliation (modified).

Which political group do you most identify with: Strong Republican, Republican, Independent, Democrat, Strong Democrat.

7.2. Contempt questions (modified).

I often feel like others are wasting my time. [1 (Strongly disagree) to 5 (Strongly agree)].

I often lose respect for others. [1 (Strongly disagree) to 5 (Strongly agree)].

I often feel contempt for others. [1 (Strongly disagree) to 5 (Strongly agree)].

7.3. Have you ever worked as front of the house staff (i.e., as a server)?

Do you have anything else you would like to add?

Thank you.

Appendix 2. Additional insights from chefs that translate into future research suggestions.

Additional Insights from Chefs on Tips

• I think tips are expected but I don’t have a good reason why.

• The patron controls the amount. Someone’s livelihood is at their discretion.

• A new business strategy or tactic is to start at the highest amount tip percent of 35%.

• Social media and cancel culture is a new outside influence.

• Tipping surges when there is a big snow day. This demonstrates that much is out of the hand of the server.

• People should have to write or explain why you give a low tip.

• There are so many issues with our tipping culture in America. We should be learning from Canada and Europe.

• “You better give me a good tip” said one server to a chef’s investors.

• It can be like the strip culture vibe.

• I tip high even for bad service because I know what goes on.

• Friggin Canadians. Canadians don’t know how to tip.

• Why don’t we just adopt another system?

• If you don’t tip, you are not a good person.

• It’s the patron’s moral duty to leave a tip!

• Livable wages in Europe, that is the right way.

• I have seen servers do some sketchy stuff for tips.

• Not an ideal system. The guests should not dictate what the employee is making.

• What is normal is not well defined.

• With bad service, yet still feel obligated to tip.

• Who do we tip nowadays and who do we not tip?

• As a community we should be willing to pay people what they are worth.

• There should not be a gratuity system.

• The societal expectation that you can negotiate the cost of your meal is state sanctioned slavery.

• We are stuck in a difficult system. Carrying an expensive bottle of wine to a table and expecting a 20% tip. How do you define value?

• It’s getting to the point where it is insulting to the customer. For example, expecting 20–25% on take out.

• Tipping is getting out of control—20, 30, 40%. Just pay the servers well.

• The current system is awful. I am moving forward with all my businesses that tips will be included. It is fully transparent to the patron.

• What hurts the tipping exchange is people being raised poorly by their parents.

• I think tipping is a dying culture. It creates more tensions then benefits.

• There can be misinterpretation, for example, the verbal tip but nothing came out at the end, just got 15% tip.

• I think the confusion is with the older generation. The younger generation tip better.

• Every decade decides on a new percentage that is okay to tip. When I was doing dinner with my dad it was 12–15% and now it is 20%. In America people feel like they have to. I brought my knives into a shop to get sharpened and they wanted a 30% tip. A farmer at a farmers market asked me for a tip the other day.

• Out in San Fran the minimum wage is over $16 and in other cities/states it is 2.50/hour.

• I would rather work in an industry where everyone was paid a livable wage.

• If people don’t give a tip, they are assholes.

• It is kind of wild that no one complains about our auto gratuity.

• We will tell people to stop coming into our restaurant if they don’t tip.

• For most customers that are kind and have a conscience, but they don’t know what is going on behind the scenes–they are probably overpaying.

• The manager should assess job performance not the customer. The guest grading you on how you are doing is odd.

• Make a fundamental change. Increase the price of goods and services. Increase wages. Accept lower profits. Return gratuity to its origin, which is gratuity not a hidden unspoken rule presented to you on a receipt like how you should pay my staff because I don’t, but you have to or you’re a bad person.

• Tips are just a 20% tax.

Future Research Avenues

• 1. Behavioral Stakeholder Theory: Are patrons stakeholders of the restaurant? Future research could examine the degree to which patrons are both service recipients as well as voters who are able to influence the discussion on items like tips and minimum wages.

• 2. Framing: Comments regarding preset tipping expectations surfaced numerous times. These expectations are powerful elements of perceptions of fairness. Future research could examine the effects of framing the same act of tipping as a reward versus a punishment.

• 3. Accountability: Tipping was identified as a linchpin in a “bait-and-switch” system. Future research could focus on the role of organizational transparency and full cost pricing that exert influence on the organizational outcomes.

• 4. Policy reform: Interviewees commented that tipping was merely a band aid placed on top of poor minimum wage laws. There is a need for additional scholarship on tipping at the intersection of ethics and policy reform.

• 5. Behavioral Stakeholder Theory: Back-of-house and chef discord with servers receiving the lion’s share of tips does not involve consumers directly. Yet, these important aspects need to be investigated to understand related procedural, distributive, and even interactional fairness concerns.

• 6. Cultural relativism: While this paper examines the act of tipping, there is a parallel and equally important track of research needed to unpack the cultural antecedents of not tipping. Chefs commented on the notion “It’s what we do here” in our study. This suggests the need for further research in arguments around moral, generational, and cultural relativism.

• 7. Moral sympathy: In what ways can tipping be observed as an egotistical act to overtly show off one’s altruism and generosity for self-serving reasons?

• 8. Rationalization: Many interviewees commented on being part of a system that is flawed or broken. Future research could examine the extent to which tipping is an ex post rationalization.

• 9. Signals signaling: Many interviewees commented that signal distortion happens frequently. Future research could ask and then answer if there are alternative signals that could be used to accurately communicate a job well (poorly) done, as part of an important feedback loop.