Monday, March 26, 2007

Disaster!

*sob* While making dinner tonight, my How It All Vegan Book came apart! I now have two chunks of papers that come right out of the cover :( I'm going to have to replace it eventually I guess. I love my cookbooks, and like to think I take pretty good care of them (minus all the writing and food stains).

Anyways, lunch this week is filling! I'm going to have to cut down on portions to be able to finish it all in one sitting. Beans and dogs (so yummy) with some bagel crisps, cucumber and edamame, and chocolate banana pudding. The pudding is very good, I think I'd like it even more made with chocolate soymilk instead of almond milk. But the banana makes it so great.

I made the Sweet Polenta Pie for dinner tonite, from my now deceased HIAV cookbook. Its alright. I suspect its one of those meals that is better as leftovers. I've never had polenta before though, so I'm not sure if the mushy texture of the crust is right or not. It does have a whole lot of veggies in it though, and the topping is good. Kind of hard to eat, the polenta is slippery ;)


I'm conducting an informal survey. When you eat out, what's your standard tip percentage, granted that the server was adequate and nothing went horribly wrong? Don't say a number because you think its what's right, answer honestly...I'm not here to judge. Its just that I hear many people at work complain about tips, but I'm thinking, maybe its not us, but that some people have different ideas of what a good tip is. Thanks!

16 comments:

bazu said...

I think my views on tipping might be a little skewed since I lived in NYC, but I always tip 20%. If the bill is smaller, and the restaurant is small, and we really liked the food and/or service, we tip even higher. However, in the last couple of years, I have begun tipping substantially lower if I'm dissatisfied with the service- I guess I'm getting older and don't tolerate rudeness anymore! So in the rare case when the server really doesn't treat us well, I've been known to go as low as 12-14% (roughly, I'm just guessing the numbers).

Judy said...

That is really too bad about your cookbook. But hey, at least it got used, and didn't fall apart just sitting on your shelf!

As far as tipping, I don't really know percentage. Maybe 15%? If the service was really good, more, and if bad, less. As a hairstylist, I make tips, and it always amazes me the variety that I get. One person will leave $2 on a $100 service, and the next might leave $20. It seems as though everyone has a different idea of what a good tip is. And it still surprises me when someone leaves no tip. Yeah, I remember them for next time.

Mary Worrell said...

Melissa! Don't give up on your book just yet...try hot glue. A few dots on the chunks, hold them in place and the book should be new!

As for tipping, I always tip 20 percent at least...even when I've had really bad service. Some friends of mine get on me because we had some really really terrible service one time and I still felt the need to tip 20%. If the bill is really small, my tip may be a little higher than that.

theONLYtania said...

What a good lookin' lunch! I may have to look up that pudding recipe. I can't see the second pic though :-(

Hey if you go on the PPK forums.. someone just recently recovered one of their cookbooks and it looked great. I can't remember who it was though.. so I guess that's no help.

As for tips.. I don't like to leave change so I just give a round dollar amount that winds up being between 10-15%.

Unknown said...

Something I keep meaning to do with my GOV and HIAV is to take them to a print shop where they should be able to cut off the spine and ring bind them for me (or if you know someone who owns a ring binder you could do it yourself). I think they fall apart because they refuse to lay flat without force, not a great design for a cookbook!

Can't help with the tips I'm afraid, confuses the hell out of me!

Melissa said...

Thanks for all the responses!
Bazu, that's a generous tip even when you're dissatisfied!

okra, I thought about glue. I think I'll give that a try and if it doesn't work I'll get it bound at the school print shop, as anna suggested.
Also, its great that you still tip well when stuff goes wrong. So many guests think that leaving a really bad tip (or none at all) tells the server their service is bad...but it doesn't! If its bad, you should talk to a manager and let them know, that's the only way it will change!

You're all such great tippers...I wish I had you as guests. Where we work, the best we usually get is 10% if that. I assumed that maybe that's what people think is the current norm. And as for myself, I usually tip 20%, as I know what the biz is like, higher if the bill isn't too big.

Anonymous said...

I usually tip 20% unless they really suck. Then maybe 10% or so. I think once you've had friends who've worked as servers, you realize the crap that they have to deal with and are more willing to cough up a bit more generosity if they're good servers and nice people.

scottishvegan said...

I usually tip around 20% in a restaurant unless the service is really bad when I am here in the I usually tip around 20% in a restaurant unless the service is really bad when I am here in the US because I think it’s expected. In the UK tipping is much less obligatory and many times there (unless we were somewhere posh) we would just leave the change from the bill… That sounds really mean now!

Sheree' said...

We always tip 20% unless the service is just sucky. I have heard that 15% is the norm, but waitreses and waiters work hard.

Tracy said...

Personally, I don't go by a percentage. I guess I've just never felt that it's more difficult for a server to serve me an expensive meal than it would be for a cheap one. I always leave a dollar amount that I feel reflects the service I got. I once left a twelve dollar tip on a $30 meal, just because the service was over the top.
BTW, I'm not sure how I feel about polenta either. It's soft and it's rubbery, (at least it was when I made it!)

Kati said...

I bet you'll be able to salvage your cookbook....but if not, you will know that it was well-loved. =)

As for the tipping, we usually leave a little more than 15%. We don't dip below that unless the service was really terrible. If I can tell someone is having a bad night, though, I'll usually give them extra - I've worked in customer service (although not waitressing) and know it's not easy. Hope that helps.

Unknown said...

My Vegan Planet faced the same problem that your HIAV did. I've tried re-binding it myself, but it still keeps falling apart :) Good luck with yours!

I always tip 20%, unless the service is sub-par, as I'll leave 15% in that case. I usually let the waiter/waitress know politely if there was a problem - I don't like to be totally stingy on the tip, as I can understand they may have had a really bad day that could impact their work.

Carrie™ said...

Your book falling apart is a sign that it's well loved. I'm curious about the pie as well. I've never really had polenta so I don't know if it's supposed to be "slippery". Were the leftovers better?

As for tipping, I'm under the impression that 15% is standard. If we've had decent service, but nothing great, we'll leave 15. Usually we get above average service and leave 20%. There is no obligation to tip and I think it's scandalous that employers routinely pay wait staff less than minimum wage because they'll "make up the rest in tips". These people work hard! I did my stint in the food industry so I know. On the flip side, it is still "customer service" and if I have really poor service and bad attitudes, I don't tip at all.

Melissa said...

We need you people at our restaurant, although its 100% opposite of vegan food. I can be the best server in the world and get a 5$ tip on 115$...sigh.

Anyways, yes the polenta pie improved vastly as leftovers. The polenta firmed up considerably.

VeganHeartDoc said...

I tip 20% for good service, less for not-so-good service, and more for exceptional service.

Deborah C. Anderson, Esq. said...

My husband and I also tip 20%. It's a horrid job.