Restaurants 3: Tips 「レストラン３：チップ」

When I went to that sit-down restaurant with my father the other day, I looked at the bill and was suddenly faced with something I had forgotten about: tips.

Restaurants in Japan do not use tips.  Neither does any part of the service industry, for that matter.  You won't find anybody tipping bellhops or hairdressers or chartered bus drivers in Japan.

Wait; perhaps I'm being hasty: I once saw someone tell a taxi driver to keep the change.

In general, however, good service in Japan is expected.  Tipping your server is actually perceived as an insult, something that I was unfortunate to discover on my first trip to a restaurant in Japan.  You see, tipping the waiter for good service in Japan implies that you were surprised with the quality of the service—that is to say, you weren't expecting to be treated well when you walked in the door.  It also cheapens the service by suggesting that the waitperson only worked so hard because he or she was hoping for a good tip.  Think about it: have you ever been treated exceptionally well by a waitperson or a taxi driver, and thought, "Wow, that person must really want a good tip."?  I'm willing to bet that you have.

Well, consider this: The best waitservice that I've encountered in the United States pales in comparison to some of the service that I saw in Japan.  There, good service is a matter of course.

Does that mean that I think that tips should be abolished in the States?  Not necessarily.  I've worked in the service industry before (as a theatre usher), and I know how demanding—and rude—some customers can be.

"I'm sorry, sir, but drinks are not allowed inside the theatre" seem to be fighting words for some people.  It's amazing the lengths some people will go to in an effort to take their diet cola inside a theatre, only to spill it on the hundred-year-old seats and have it run off the mezzanine onto the head of some poor customer below.  And, yes, that really happened.

What does that have to do with tips?  Well, I didn't get tips for that job, and I didn't need them, because I was paid well by the theatre.  Restaurant waitstaff is not.  Many employers count tips as part of the wage in the service industry, and reduce their own contributions accordingly.  When I compare the wages that I saw advertised in Japan to what people get in most of the United States, I understand why people in Japan don't need tips.  Which brings to mind another question: do you think that perhaps waitpersons in Japan are so courteous because they're paid decently?