Tipping in Spain

[cubix]

When I was in Spain in February, I heard two different answers to the question wether to tip or not

-That it is included in the price and a tip is not expected or needed

-That you should tip, but only if the service was great, or something like that

In the United States, tipping is expected all the time, waiters salaries are entirely based on tips...

Greg

[Ben]

The second case is more appropriate, that you tip if the service is worth it, and even then there is no fixed rate. A tip on a small lunch might only be a few percent, on a big meal it might be 5 to 10 percent - took me a long time to get used to not tipping much in Spain. It is very rare to tip on a lunchtime 'menu del dia'. A well seved breakfast or coffee might elicit 20 centimos. I'll get Marina to let us know what the rules are, if indeed there are any!

[lumpsuckerpig]

Personally, I tip all the time when I am in Spain, just a few Centimos each time. I do this because the service and presentation is better than you get at home here in England where things are genererally slapped in front of you in a take it or leave it sort of way without much work being done on the presentation. Where in Britain do you get a small dish of nuts, crisps or olives with your warm beer? Also, the cost of food and drink in rip off Britain deters me from tipping. Not the waiters fault this I know. I worked as a waiter myself several years ago for a short time and so I can empathise with them as it is true that quite often wages rely on tips to bulk them up, and I always felt that my effort to serve people well with a smile was appreciated by way of recieving a small tip.

Anyhow

¡Camarero, cuando puedes, una cerveza fría por favor!

[Marina]

You can find more details about tipping in Spain in our latest NIS podcast (http://www.notesfromspain.com/386/).

Otra cerveza para mi por favor!!!