Out of curiosity how was his attitude about the whole thing? I mean, were they pissed at us in general? Or was he understanding? Did you tell him you'll be back on Friday?:evil:

It's safe to post your e-mail address linked to your paypal account though so we can send you some money via that channel.

Resistance is futile Kevy. We'll find a way to slip it to you. :evil:

And for added convenience, please include your bank account #, last 4 of your social, mother's maiden, and the name of your first pet.

He was a bit hesitant with me at first - understandable so. But, as I went into the discussion I made it clear that (a) I was trying to figure out what went wrong,(b) I was trying to come up with solutions to prevent the same thing happening in the future and (c) I was letting him know that we would be back on Friday. By the end of the conversation, he was happy that I had called and was sorry he was going to have the day off on Friday so he couldn't personally slap each and every one of us. No, he was sincerely sorry he was going to miss us.

I may not do a lot of things well, but I do know how to schmooze and make nice.

Why? Are you trying to determine my porn name?

Because I can tell you that is Hinkie Willowbrae

I can't make this stuff up I'm tellin' ya!

To compensate I think I have valet parked a car twice in my life. Once I did tip and once I would have but the guy who brought my car up ran off for another car when I was nowhere near him. Wasn't sure if I was expected to just throw the money after him.

Since the only place I'm ever likely to valet park is Vegas I'll lump them into the "people who open car doors for me" category.

Yes, I agree. We tried to get her to take our AP's several times before any bills were printed or issued and she wasn't having it. We mentioned that every single separate check would have an AP associated with it as well because of how we thought she would be splitting things, but apparently that all went out the window about 2 sections down the table...


Either way, I had a delightful meal with wonderful friends and I'd happily do it again soon!

Not related to the incident, since I wasn't there, but since we're talking about good strategies for making sure sufficient tips are given:

My personal rule in groups is to take the raw cost of my food and add 25%. It's the easiest amount to figure, and covers tax as well as a higher than 15% tip, regardless of which county you're in. And then most of the time I'll round up to the nearest dollar.

Actually, especially in LA county, 25% means just about right on a 15% tip now, with the latest sales tax increase.

Except when did the 'standard' tip go to 20%?


I have no problem with that change ... except that now if I want to leave a better than average tip, it's got to be at least 25% ... and fully one-quarter the price of the meal seems very out-of-line for a gratuity.