Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]

LOL Cheapskates should at least be savvy enough not to patronize the same place again... because if you think the wait staff will not remember you, you are so wrong... Unless, of course, your idea of a steakhouse is Bonanza.. or Panderosa.. or Golden Corral (I had to google :) )

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]

Again, I think the public you are talking about might not realize that the base salary might be a buck an hour. And you might think that the wait stuff has something to do with setting the prices on the menu. Or what is on the plate. Or how fast the food comes out of the kitchen. Sometimes, great understanding comes from having to walk in someone else's shoes.

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]

beelzebub
then obviously you do not understand the system here. Maybe you should talk to somebody you know that works for the tips. But the best lesson for you would be if you, or somebody you care about, had to work for the tips. Until then, I'm afraid you'll remain clueless.

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]


you were lucky! we had to declare 15% of total sales, and if we complained, then it was assumed that we were not good enough...
The only thing I miss about those old times is that once my shift was done, I was free. I didn't take my work home - physically or mentally.

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]

Bzibzioh
No, I'm talking about US. For some reason, many of the Canadian tourists here are under the impression that the tip is already included on the check.

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]


really??? How can Canadians walk away without leaving a tip at all, then??
Mostly, I posted because I was concerned about Polish travelers getting an undeserved reputation simply because they thought their servers were getting an ample salary already.

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]


That's fine. I hope you frequent self-serve cafeterias made just for you.
In all honesty, this thread is about tipping in Polish establishments, which might be totally different. I see already how difficult this mind set is to change. I just took this opportunity to try and educate some travelers that come here thinking "I'll never come here again" and walk away self satisfied that they just saved themselves some money. Probably was not the right soap box to jump on. I apologize. Over and out.

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]

you just don't get it. If you want the priviledge of getting your food brought up to you, you have to pay for it. The establishments, in US at least, don't pay for it. Here, it's like an honor system. Tip here is not a perk, it's a wage. If you stiff your waiter or bartender, you're a cheap douche bag, taking advantage of the system.

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]


Then the prices of your food should be 15% higher, and the establishment should pay their server the minimum wage. But, that is not the system here. Here, servers have to pay income taxes on 15% of their total sales, wheather they get it or not. That's all I'm saying.

It's like with taxes for contractors here, they may not be automatically taken from your pay, but it is assumed that you'll pay them.

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]

That is easy to do. All you need to do is be curt, and short, and not overly friendly, and they will stop. Sometimes, second time they come around to ask if everything is ok, I just give them the "look". After all, they're just trying to figure you out and what will get them the biggest tip.

On the other hand, when you're traveling, your waiter or bartender can be a wealth of information.

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]


Some think the rules should be changes, some don't, but it is what it is. As with many things, one should acquaint him/herself with rules and customs in the country one is traveling to.

If, like in Poland, the servers are graduate of some gastronomical school (once, in Poland, I was sternly lectured on the fine points of a balanced meal by my waitress) and getting a "sufficient" hourly wage, you rightly might get the 'don't care' attitude.

In US, since the servers' livelyhood depends on not getting stiffed, you'll get all this hi-voltage "Hi, my name is Steve and I will be your server" bull****. Here, the rule is that if want to sit your a$$ down and be "served", add the 15% to the prices as you're ordering. If you don't like the service, complain to the owner, don't come back, but don't be a cheap d!ck. Here, if the service stinks, my bet is that it's not the servers fault.

As far as Canadians, I have gone as far as friendly inquiry- "where are you from?" and if your country is on the "list", then you cannot be trusted with following the local standards, and the 15% gratuity is automatically added to your bill.

So read your check carefully.

Life / Giving tips in Poland [235]

in USA, waiters and bartenders hourly pay is way below minimum wage. Sometimes as low as $1 or $2 per hour! To add insult to injury, I worked at one place, where we were automatically taxed on 15% of our total sales, as it was assumed that's the minimum we got in tips.

So, before you decide that your server did not prostrate her/himself enough for your liking, make sure that you are not actually taking the money away from her/him by not tipping. They might be paying taxes on the money they never got!

When you look at a menu in US, teach yourself to automatically add 15% to the prices - it belongs to your server. Tipping for good service is above that.

Admittedly, I don't know how it is in Poland, but in US some tourists, most notably Canadians, are especially loathed by the local service industry. Weather it's for ignorance or penny pinching - it really does not matter.

Genealogy / Polish-Ukranian roots and genes [72]

Interesting.
My father was born in Kowel, Ukraine (then Polish) in 1930. Shortly after his birth, his mother sold all the land that her father didn't gamble away on horses and moved the family to outskirts of Warsaw.

My father never considered himself anything else but Polish.

Genealogy / Polish looks? [1410]


Aww.. look, the russian girl is the only one that is not smiling! Signifficant?

Life / Feeling ashamed of my Polish heritage. [237]


Well, thank you. What a pleasant surprise!

Life / Feeling ashamed of my Polish heritage. [237]


oh really? That's kinda funny, in a forum context. And somewhat arrogant, wouldn't you say?
I happen to think my advice was more to the point that yours. Polish use complaining as a starting point to many conversations and that does not mean that they think their lives are unbearable, or that they are not patriotic.

Life / Feeling ashamed of my Polish heritage. [237]


You must have forgotten how Polish people love to complain.
I used to take it to heart until I traveled to Poland last time and saw that my cousins and old schoolmates dress better than me, their homes are better furnished than mine, they take more vacation, eat healthier and get more exercise.

So now, when they start complaining, I throw some of my numbers right back at them - cost of living, health care, insurance... and then we can move on to another subject.

Real Estate / Apartments too expensive for Poles living in Poland [54]

Maybe the reason the new places are finished so slowly is because people run out of money?
In Caribbean you see this a lot - two houses next to each other - one old, where family lives, and the other one in various stages of construction. The reason is that owners cannot get loans, so they save up for a year or so, then buy another load of bricks. The new construction takes years to finish.

Life / Warsaw - what's there to love? Semi-livable city? [42]

ok, I found something..

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World's_most_livable_cities

I guess others don't put as much weight on the weather as I do. When I'm up north, I start getting suicidal around this time of year.

Life / Warsaw - what's there to love? Semi-livable city? [42]

link?

Food / Polish Potatoes [48]

for the potato pancakes my mother taught me, no flour at all. Nothing but potato, onions, maybe egg to bind, but not even necessary. Salt, black pepper. Forget all that marjoram bussiness. Experiment with different food processors for the consistency you like.

Gnocci - pain in the a** super sticky mess, easily overcooked.

Life / Why so many Poles use a second hands clothes? [110]


That's ok, too. You're a snob and proud of it. I think being proud of it is an integral part of being a snob. My cousin is one, so I don't mind them.

Life / Why so many Poles use a second hands clothes? [110]


What bothers you is that those people using top of the line stuff which they bought used are messing with your inane need to stereotype. You can't tell if they bought it new, and spent the big bucks, or got it really cheap. Ain't that a b!tch!

Life / Why so many Poles use a second hands clothes? [110]

They're smart, they probably got the BMW second hand, cheap

Life / Why so many Poles use a second hands clothes? [110]

Not me, personally, but my mother had orders for black work pants and other uniforms. They get washed! What, do you think the clothes carry spirits?

Lets not get crazy for the arguments sake. Nobody buys (or sells!) second hand underwear of socks. Unless they're 'performance' clothes :)

Life / Why so many Poles use a second hands clothes? [110]

TIT: So, the fact that you bought something out of a box, (probably made in India) should fill you with great pride, as opposed to finding something well made, for much lower price?

Life / Why so many Poles use a second hands clothes? [110]

My mother has a hobby, which could turn into a little side business. My and all my friends put in an order with her, of exactly an item we would like, and my mother finds goes and finds it in second hand stores within two days. She has gotten countless kitchen stuff, furniture, children's clothes. All used, many for a single dollar. I just can't get her to tag a higher markup, she's having way too much fun.

Life / Why so many Poles use a second hands clothes? [110]

I don't know about socks, but US Army and Navy second hand stores are the sht for getting a pea coat and other winter gear for a quick trip up north. I even found one with a bullet hole!

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

Thanks. That's what I thought. Furman and furmanka are still pretty common names for horse pulled wagon and it's driver. But you hear it here, and everyone assumes its Jewish.

UK, Ireland / The best way for a Polish person to learn English? [34]

all that is true, but when driving to and from work it's easier to turn on the radio station than look for a Spaniard to take for a ride. ;)

Spanish TV has a lot of well known movies, dubbed. It's hard to sit and concentrate on most of them for too long, but even as a background noise it does it's work. After a while, it starts sinking in.

I write words and phrases I keep hearing and look them up later.