The best tippers: Tipplers

Consumers talked tough in late March when opinion researchers asked how much and how frequently they tip. But a separate in-depth analysis of guest check data finds that customers who order alcoholic beverages are actually generous tippers, leaving 20 percent or more per check.

The tipping survey was conducted by market research firm Harris Interactive on behalf of website CouponCabin.com. It found that while plenty of traditional tippers are still out there, a couple of nontraditional factors have begun to change the tipping landscape.

One is a negative for servers’ incomes. The CouponCabin survey found that 26 percent of U.S. adults who both tip and use coupons or daily deals tip on the discounted total only. If your restaurant runs a lot of daily deals and you find that server morale is eroding, this could be one cause.

On a more positive note, 59 percent of adults say they will either put their change into a counter tip jar or else dig into their pockets to come up with a contribution. Forty-one percent don’t put any money in tip jars. It’s good news if you own or work in a fast casual restaurant where the tip jar represents part of the compensation package.

Overall, this survey found that 51 percent of U.S. adults say they tip 16 percent or higher for average service in a restaurant, 32 percent tip between 11 and 15 percent for average service and 14 percent tip 10 percent or less. Thirty percent stiff their server if they receive “less than average” service.

The CouponCabin study is an opinion survey whose data may not accurately reflect real-world tipping behavior.  That’s why restaurant operators may want to take a closer look at the results of guest-check analysis firm Restaurant Sciences’ “Hey Big Spender Survey.” It’s billed as the “first-ever study of beer, wine and spirits gratuity.”  For this report, Restaurant Sciences looked at more than four million guest checks from family casual, upscale and fine dining restaurants plus nightclubs and hotel bars.

The key takeaway for restaurant operators and servers: Continue to emphasize your wine program. That’s where the money is, for everybody.

“Restaurant Sciences’ data shows that guest checks with only wine sales are 25 percent higher than checks with only spirit sales and 78 percent higher than those checks with only beer sales,” says Chuck Ellis, the company’s president.  “Whether consumers ordered beers, wine or spirits, they generally tipped an above-average amount of more than 20 percent per check.”  

The data shows that the average check for wine drinkers was $69.05, with an average tip of 20.32 percent. Spirits drinkers had an average check of $55.10, with brown spirits drinkers leaving the highest tip on a percentage basis—22 percent or more on average. Beer drinkers spent $38.74 on average and tipped in a similar percentage range as the other two categories.

Averages aside, both restaurant owners and servers do best when customers order wine. The check average is far and away the highest, and the resulting tip, although slightly lower on a percentage basis than those given in other alcoholic beverage categories, is significantly higher on a dollar basis. If your want to boost your restaurant’s revenue and your servers’ morale, an upgraded wine program looks like a good way to do both.