what is the custom? I am a waiter in America,,,,so I am very concerned about leaving 15% to 20% of the bill when i am in a bar and restaurant,,,,,,what is the custom in Nice?
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I honestly don%26#39;t believe there is one. Restaurant staff in France get paid and, while they will appreciate a tip, they can live without it. I was once in a restaurant in Paris with seven Belgians. One person collected money from each of us, handed it all to the waiter and asked for the change to be given back in euro coins, so that he could give each of us two euros. Being British I found this very embarrassing but the others seemed to think it was perfectly normal. I suspect that anyone who tried that in the US would be lucky to get out alive!
I suspect that, when in Nice, Americans usually give 15 - 20%, the British 10% and so on.
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As an englishman visiting Nice regularly for work i tip about 10% in restaurants and to waiters in bars, if i am served by the bartender at the bar i normally leave the odd coins from the change.
They always seem grateful.
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The tip is included in the bill in France. You can leave a little extra if you think you have been treated well.
Rgds
Wilko
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But in the UK when the tip is included in the bill the staff rarely get it. Is this different in France?
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The whole point is if the wait staff are paid well, which is the case in France, they don%26#39;t need/expect the tips, regardless of where the service charge goes (in France, it usually goes to the boss).
Locals don%26#39;t tip 15-20%. But some like to bring their own customs and habits along when they travel.
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At tourist places in Nice, the waiter/bus person will often come up and tell you that tips are not included in the bill. I just ignore it.
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My take is that its customary in France to %26quot;round up%26quot; the bill, so for example if its 33 euro meal leave thirty five in notes, if a beer is 4.20, leave five.
The sense I get is that its a respect thing rather than a %26quot;tip%26quot; - the waiters not for sale, and only a cheapskate waits around for 80 cents change.
Leave a rounded amount on the table and you can leave there and then., and he can collect when passing, and no-ones uptight about money. Thats French cool - they%26#39;re less interest in money than Anglosaxons - thats vulgar - and thats how they like it.
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A service charge is included in the bill at a restaurant; so you do not need to leave anything extra unless you feel the service has been outstanding--and not even then unless you want to. But in cafés the custom is to leave the small change from your bill, or the equivalent.
You may or may not see %26quot;service compris%26quot; on a menu or on the bill, but service is included by law--no matter what anyone tells you. We have had this pounded into us by our French friends who live in the Nice area.
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Service Compris means the service charge is included in each line item, not itemized separately. By law the service is included, only the way it is calculated can change.
One night in Paris earlier this year we and a Parisian friend and her 12-year-old son had dinner out, my treat. It was very nice and fairly expensive. I tipped more than normal, for France, about 20 Euros. It led to quite the discussion when Julien asked Nathalie why I was leaving such a huge tip. She explained to him that I, as an American, came from a country where waiters get paid slave wages and rely on tips for their income. He was flabbergasted by my tip and she thought it excessive, but considering the special occasion, etc., thought it within reason.
Normally I adhere to the round-up philosophy. We return to the same restaurants again and again and always get good service from waiters who recognize us and greet us as semi-regulars, so obviously we aren%26#39;t under tipping.
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