Bellhop tip2/24/2023 ![]() If you have had rude service, don’t let them guilt you into tipping. NOTE: The VAT (or TVA en français) has been lowered to 5.5% for food, but remains 19.6% for wine and some luxury foods, both itemized on your bill, but it’s part of the actual menu item prices, not added on top at checkout like we do in the US for sales tax. If you plan on tipping, bring cash or be prepared to ask your server to add it to the bill before you pay (although when and if they actually see any of that tip is debatable). If you pay with a credit card, there is usually no place to add a tip (except in the most touristy restaurants). Leaving a tip should feel good, not fraught with confusion and bad feelings. Which is probably why we feel so bad when we don’t leave the full recommended (or, let’s be honest, obligatory) 20%. ![]() In the US what we’re really paying is the service, the server’s wages not a tip. French people still leave a small tip if they feel like it, but they know it’s “extra” for the server. This is the LAW in France ( see the official statement from the Ministry of Economy here), and it clearly states that tips are optional, and their amount is up to the client. To make sure the French clients understood this, all menus must state “ 15% service compris” (which also justified restaurants raising their prices to cover that). In 1985 the French government passed a law requiring all employees to be paid at least the minimum wage (known as le SMIC in France), thus outlawing the system of depending on clients to essentially pay servers’ salaries. Historically the French used to leave 15% for the service PLUS a tip. This is because in France a tip is actually a tip (or “ pourboire“), and what is called “ service” refers to the part of the total bill that goes towards paying for the staff. If you ask the server if the tip is included, they will say no. But if you WANT you can leave more, especially if you’ve been a particularly demanding client (ie: did you even try to order in French?) Explanation of the “15% service compris”Ī lot of the confusion comes from the vocabulary (and yes, even “expat tour guides” quoted in Travel + Leisure Magazine articles can get it wrong). My rather affluent French friend who eats out for every single meal (he’s a bachelor) never tips under €2 or more than €20, even when dining at a Michelin-star restaurant. The French usually round up to the nearest euro or two. Having said that, it’s always polite to tip when you’ve received good service (wow, what a novelty). No one will yell at you or shun you if you pay your bill and leave a restaurant without tipping. No workers are allowed to work for less than a full wage like they are in the US. Servers in France get salaries, paid vacations, health care, and living wages.ĭon’t bring your ingrained tipping anxiety - “What percentage is polite?” - with you to France. ![]() as part of the price of each item (not on top of the total).
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