Toscana's on Charles St + Tipping Bartenders

Hi there, hope you guys can help me out with this one.

My wife and I are coming to Boston on the 21st for a 5 night stay, we%26#39;d like to eat out on a couple of nights at the weekend so I suppose now is the time to make reservations. Toscana%26#39;s seemed to get pretty good reviews on another site so I was wondering if anyone here has tried it and could reccomend it, we were also looking at Casa Romero also as it%26#39;s fairly close to our Hotel (The Lenox) as with most places the reviews seem a little mixed.

This is our first trip to the US, and we%26#39;ve been reading in the guides that it%26#39;s expected to tip bartenders 50c per drink, is this right? and if so is it still 50c or has inflation reared it%26#39;s ugly head again?

Thanks

Toscana's on Charles St + Tipping Bartenders

I%26#39;ve never heard of the ';50 cents'; guideline, and I%26#39;ve always tipped bartenders 15 percent of the final bill.

That doesn%26#39;t necessarily mean I%26#39;m doing it correctly, but I have to admit this is the first time I%26#39;ve even seen this issue discussed.

Toscana's on Charles St + Tipping Bartenders

Toscana is a nice Italian restaurant. Keep in mind it%26#39;s Tuscan-style Italian--heavy on the vegetables and grilling, short on the red sauce and meatballs. You won%26#39;t find a chicken parm dinner here(for those, head to the North End). Still, it%26#39;s a nice place.

50c per drink seems a bit light to be honest. I%26#39;ve never broken it down, but let%26#39;s say I get three beers at $4 per, for a total of $12. I%26#39;d give the bartender $15. So i guess it%26#39;s more like $1 a drink.

It%26#39;s really based on percentage, much like food. So even $1 a drink is too light for a glass of wine or mixed drink. 15-20% is the rule of thumb. Fifty cents would be viewed as ';cheap';, so I wouldn%26#39;t go there ever. Make it at least a dollar, even if the percentages indicate otherwse.

AlanM

It depends on your order but $1.00 per two drinks, should be fine, and is customary, when you order at the bar. Tipping is based on service so great service should indicate a better tip and poor service should indicate a smaller tip but most of us still just tip the 15-20% for any type of service (except for exceptional service).

Also, if you ask for a tab, then you can just tip the customary 15-20 % of the bill at the end of drinking and or eating. (One dollar bills are always nicer than 4 quarters- Americans are fonder of green then change. That is why we have a hard time accepting or using the one dollar coins.)

Keep in mind there are two restaurants with very similar names:

Toscano: On Charles Street, Beacon Hill: quite expensive, pretty good food but you鈥檙e paying more for the location and the very nice room.

Trattoria Toscana: in the Fenway area, much better food IMO, but MUCH simpler room, no reservations, tiny space.

I would never ';start off'; a night tipping a bartender $1 for two drinks. AT LEAST a dollar a drink, more if they%26#39;re mixing something complicated. Later on, after I%26#39;ve tipped a bit, if they鈥檙e just grabbing a couple beers, not exactly hard work, yes then my tip rate goes down. If I run a tab from the beginning, I calculate 20%, but that could go up or down. Definitely never less than 15%.

I would not go by a strict percentage with bartenders. If I bought a $10 glass of wine I would probably give the bartender $1, if I bought a $5 glass of wine I would probably give him $1, too. Around a $1 a drink is about right, but this is somewhat flexible up or down depending on the circumstances and how much change is involved. Even 50 cents a drink might be OK sometimes. For example, if you were in a ';downscale'; bar or pub and ordered a couple of bottles of beer, a $1 tip, while not overly generous would not be completely out of line.

I have not been to Toscano%26#39;s on Charles in 3 years. I have been here many times and always walked away very happy. If you are looking to have a few drinks before dinner, this would not be the place. I would have one at The Taj. From The Taj it is a nice 10 minute walk.

A big thankyou to everyone for taking the time to reply, it%26#39;s much appreciated.

I suppose the tipping thing seems a bit of an odd question, but over here in Britain it%26#39;s pretty much unheard of to tip bartenders, in fact I%26#39;ve never seen it done over the 17 years I%26#39;ve been drinking!. At least now I have an idea of what%26#39;s considered an acceptable tip for when I visit. Given the feedback on Toscana%26#39;s I think I%26#39;ll book a table.

Thanks again for all your help