How inflation is impacting the way we eat, when we go to restaurants and how we tip

In its latest report on restaurants, Toast finds a shift toward restaurant spending in the mornings, away from lunch and dinner.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

What does tipping look like in the United Kingdom?

Sep 21, 2023
Free health care and a higher minimum wage in the U.K. means that there's less reliance on tips to make up workers' income.
In the U.K., the standard tip is roughly 10% at restaurants, though people won’t leave any extra if they think the service hasn’t been good enough.
Peter Summers/Getty Images

A debate over tipping comes to South Korea

When a South Korean ride-hailing company started asking passengers for voluntary tips last month, it sparked backlash from some customers.
Diners eat at a noodle bar in Seoul, South Korea in April 2018.
Ed Jones/AFP via Getty Images

When — and how much — should I be tipping these days?

Expectations around tipping have changed in the last several years. Here's what to know.
Maybe the standard 15% or 20% tip on table service hasn't really changed, but what about takeout, delivery and the rest of it?
Alex Potemkin via Getty Images

The tipped minimum wage has origins in slavery

And that legacy means a worker can be paid as little as $2.13 an hour at the federal level.
Nikola Stojadinovic via Getty Images

NYC sets minimum wage for app-based delivery drivers

Jun 13, 2023
The workers currently earn $7 an hour on average. Starting in July, they'll make nearly $18 an hour before tips.
Starting in July, app delivery workers in New York City will make nearly $18 an hour before tips.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

Are we expected to tip robots now?

Jun 1, 2023
Replacing face-to-face service interactions with automation could change American tipping culture.
A loss of face-to-face tipped interactions, often replaced by self-checkout or automated transactions, could change our culture of tipping.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

A solution to the service worker shortage? Eliminate tipping, some experts say.

Jul 1, 2021
To promote equity and retain workers as the economy reopens, some restaurants are opting to forgo traditional gratuity models.
A growing number of restaurants are nixing traditional gratuity models, a choice some see as both ethical and practical.
Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

With tips down, some restaurants have raised wages for servers. Will it last?

Jul 13, 2020
“A lot of workers are saying no, I refuse to go back and put my health at risk and my family's health at risk for $2, $3 or $4 an hour.”
With business slow at most restaurants, some are raising wages to incentivize staff to come back.
Byron Smith/Getty Images