
Bribing maitre d' to skip the line - howard_yeh
http://www.gourmet.com/magazine/2000s/2000/10/pocketful?printable=true
======
alexophile
Back in college, a buddy of mine worked as a doorman at what had become a
reasonably popular bar (with >30k undergrads, they're all pretty popular) with
a line down the block every Friday and Saturday. As a friend of the doorman, I
would rarely have to wait in said line, but on one peculiar condition.

On such days when he was going to be working, he'd give me a $10 bill some
time during the day. Later that night, I would wait until the line was good
and long, and walk confidently up to the door. Upon arrival, I would hand him
his $10 bill back and cruise on through, making sure the gesture was noticed
by passersby.

Without fail, every time we pulled this little stunt, he would manage to make
a decent haul off of people that were inspired by my brazen (though contrived)
bribery. As far as I know, there was no real policy on the matter of bribing
the doorman - the only real problem is having to fudge the occupancy for a few
minutes - and for every incidental person over the limit, there was at least
one outside smoking, so this was never a very worrisome problem.

~~~
ohashi
That's clever. Sends a great signal to the right audience. May I ask if that's
a common thing or if he came up with it?

~~~
cellularmitosis
I have a friend who valet parks at an up-scale hotel, and over the years he's
become pretty good at sizing up whether someone isn't aware that a tip is
expected. So he's come up with a little code between his fellow employees.
While the newb who doesn't know he's supposed to tip is waiting for his car,
my friend loudly announces to a fellow employee as he hands him the keys to
fetch some other customer's car "hey, he's already tipped, so he's good to
go...". Without fail, the newb promptly pulls a $5 out of his pocket a few
moments later...

------
jdietrich
> Increasingly, I was struck by how much impact the experience was having on
> me. Surmounting this challenge night after night was actually giving me a
> certain self-assurance, a feeling of having grown up. Some might find this
> disillusioning: “You mean life is not first-come, first-served?” I found I
> had a different reaction: “You mean all it takes to crack one of New York’s
> most daunting thresholds is fifty bucks?” Even if I chose not to do it on a
> regular basis, just knowing how doable it is brought the whole puffery of
> New York restaurants into perspective. Bribing, it turns out, has as much
> effect on the briber as it does on the bribee.

If you ever wanted to know why corruption is so entrenched in many parts of
the world, there is your answer.

~~~
mikeknoop
An excellent point. Besides the inherent scale, what makes this author's
experience different from a senator or representative who takes money in
exchange for preferential treatment? Both screw over a number of people who
are playing by the rules.

~~~
jafran
Actually, I think this article made me realize that in any situation it is
important to ask "what are the rules?". It's not like there is a sign posted
above the door saying "do not tip for better seating". Who says it's wrong to
tip for priority seating?

~~~
blizkreeg
You probably haven't experienced corruption. It takes away the level playing
field that would exist otherwise. When the rules involve bribing, those
without the means and capacity to bribe but who deserve their chance are
simply left watching.

Sure, in this case the bribing rule may be okay since they are all standing in
line at an expensive restaurant and presumably could afford the $50 bribe.
What if the rules were made public and now everyone starts to bribe the maitre
d'? Imagine what that would do :)

~~~
paulgb
The market should take care of it like it has for every other type of tipping:
the fixed wages of the maitre d' would drop to compensate for the expected
compensation in bribes. I don't have the data to prove it, but I suspect this
has already happened to some extent and the restaurants themselves benefit
indirectly from the bribes.

I think the "level playing field" here is an illusion anyway. I can't afford
to go to a $375/person restaurant with or without the bribe.

~~~
blizkreeg
I'm sorry to say your argument is purely theoretical. "The market" resides in
economics texts, reality doesn't always conform to it. I grew up in a country
where bribery is rampant. It is a nuisance and a drain on everything.

------
donohoe
Related, but unrelated - this is some advice for events like weddings or any
open bar where there is a crowd (think SXSW).

Go to the bar early. Talk to the bartender, take $20 out of your pocket and
tell him/her/them:

 _"Hey, this is for you. I don't have change and I want to tip, and I have no
idea how much I'll actually drink... Thanks!"_

I started doing this because I used to bartend and a lot of people skimp on
tips at events or just don't have change at a cash-bar (who has a stack of $1
bills on-hand?). Its extra effective if there is a no-tipping policy.

The result: You'll always get a drink ahead of everyone else, especially when
it gets a little crazy. They usually start pouring what you last ordered when
they see you approaching.

Also, if there are more than one person it helps to have the conversation
within ear-shot of any other bartenders. Feel free to introduce yourself too
and give your name. Most 'drinkers' are meatheads so you stand out further.

~~~
RK
I was recently at a conference reception where each person was given two drink
tickets. My friend and I went up for our first drink and my friend tipped the
bar tender well. The rest of the night that same guy just kept handing him his
tickets back...

~~~
infinite8s
What is considered a good tip for a drink?

~~~
mncaudill
Usually a buck a drink will do the trick.

~~~
peterwwillis
I try to stack another buck on any time the tip will be <15%. You don't wanna
be the schmoe tipping a buck for a $9 drink.

------
lionhearted
I was reading Aristotle's Nichomachean Ethics, and he talks about being
liberal and magnificent with money. I'm in Vietnam now, things are cheap-ish
anyways, so I decided I'm make the transition towards doing that. I wrote up
my first experiences here -

<http://www.sebastianmarshall.com/?p=161>

Since then, it's been even more crazy. I was just trying to be gracious - I
wasn't trying to bribe for favors like the author of the gourmet.com piece.
Just either before or after I get service, tipping more. Result is staggering
to me - people start working for you. I wasn't asking anything in return, but
I'm now getting informed on all sorts of little details, recommendations,
little extra services here and there. In the changing room of the place I go
to get a massage, the guy there is like my intelligence agent now. As I was
getting changed back into street clothes after getting a massage, he says,
"Psst - hey, next time... go with locker #1." He taps the locker. He explains,
"Very pretty, young girl. Best girl here." Apparently the experience is
streamlined by number the whole way through - locker number, who you are
massage therapist is, and billing for tips/coffee/extra food or drink you
order is all tied together. He also shined my boots and he's super friendly
helping me put a robe.

It's strange, I came from pretty humble origins so this is all very new for
me. I just thought I should start being good to people and taking care of
people, and I'm kind of taken aback by how gracious people are. It's still
against my nature to over-tip, I came up pretty frugal and had literally no
money for large portions of my life, but I'm starting to see the value of
really taking care of people. There's a security guard near where I live who
I'm friendly with, I'm going to go buy him a tuna sandwich next time I'm
buying stuff at the bakery. I think, just like that, I'll go from having a
friendly acquaintance to having a guide and intelligence agent.

That's not even why I do it. I thought - give back, spread money around a
little bit, take care of people. But people seem to really want to take care
of you when you do. It's like you're signalling that you're a person who takes
good care of people or some such. I don't know, still very new to me. It's
interesting though.

~~~
diN0bot
i think what you're doing is great, so don't take my hypothesis the wrong way:

i have a dog and i live with 8 other people, so i have a bit of data on 8
different dog-human relationships. it boils dog to the dog treating everyone
differently depending on who gives him food. P always give dog his sandwich
crusts without asking anything in return, so when P walks in the door with a
subway, dog goes grazy. in fact, P started giving more when dog wimpered, so
for a little while dog whimpered until i made P not be such a sucker. A always
lets dog lick his plates, so dog gets excited when A finishes eating. L
requires dog to lie down in a neighboring room, so dog beg's from neighboring
room when L eats. it's not love or care, it's simple causation and reward. dog
constantly tries different tactics on those people who give him food. often,
the amount of food escalates.

btw, dog goes crazy when the (human) dinner bell is rung.

edit: also, in restaurants, bribing before is a bit like tipping afterwards.
the wait staff is constantly evaluating how much effort to expand on incoming
parties (among other things) in order to maximize tips. in light of that,
treatin an apparently wealthy couple well in hopes of a good tip isn't
unreasonable. as for accepting bribes...depending on the place it's not that
different from a tip except that it comes before not after the service (some
places split tips with the whole staff, including say back waiters, etc, so
then it might be immoral if the people keep the bribe for themselves. as for
the immorallity of "jumping" the queue--for all i know, the wait staff does
that anyway when they evaluate how much people can tip....)

~~~
whatusername
Can I just warn you that our dog always ate the scraps (and too much of them)
and ended up with Diabetes. (Such a first world problem I know). Having to
give her 2 insulin injections a day was not very fun (or cheap).

~~~
megablast
Maybe that says more about the food you are eating, and a warning to change
your diet.

~~~
hugh3
Not really, dogs have very different dietary needs to humans.

~~~
eru
Especially when it comes to chocolate.

------
acabal
Interestingly, this sometimes works the other way around too. I frequented a
coffee shop in my town for a few months (I later moved house). The baristas
came to recognize my face, even though I didn't make smalltalk or introduce
myself. I would come in, order a coffee, and work on their wifi for a few
hours before leaving, more or less every other day.

One day the barista recognized me and said, "this coffee's on the house." I
was stunned--stuff like that usually doesn't happen to me because I'm usually
fairly quiet when it comes to interacting with service people. Grateful, I put
the money I would have spent on the coffee into the tip jar instead.

Over the course of the next month the barista would occasionally offer free
coffee again. The cup of coffee costs them cents, but it brightened my day so
much that I actually started tipping (for the first time at a coffee shop,
ever) regularly.

So in effect, for the cost of a "bribe" (a few cups of coffee to me), the
barista had established a relationship that made me feel like reciprocating
with cash.

~~~
BobbyH
If you think about it, it is economically rational behavior for a
barista/bartender to do this for regular customers. After all, she gives you a
drink _that is free to her_ and gets back real money as a tip. The only loser
is the coffee shop or bar, who has trouble tracking the number of drinks
served.

My friend runs a bar and this is a huge problem for him that he calls a "bribe
back". The only solution he found is hiring good people, as monitoring the
bartenders makes him look like he doesn't trust or respect them.

~~~
dandelany
Yes, it's economically rational for the barista/bartender, but it's not
necessarily bad business for the bar/coffeeshop either. If the bartender is
smart about when and how often she hands out these freebies, she can convert
one-time or occasional customers into loyal, regular customers, which is much
better for the bar in the long run.

It reminds me of the Apple store - 9 times out of 10, if you go in there with
something broken that's out of warranty, you have to pay the full price to
repair it. However, Apple geniuses are given a little bit of leeway, and often
offer "unnecessary" free out-of-warrany replacements that, while costly to
Apple in the short-term, generally pay handsome returns in the long run by
encouraging loyalty.

~~~
BobbyH
Yeah, I agree. What I was trying to articulate is that this is a good example
of a principal/agent problem, as the Principal (owner) has interests that
differ from those of his Agent. Solutions to this generally either decrease
information asymmetry or involve a better incentive system for the Agent.
However, as you point out, it's possible that the Agent will act in his
interest and still benefit the Principal.

Wow, I just looked and this exact example is actually featured on the
Wikipedia page for Principle-agent problem.
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Principal-
agent_problem#Employm...](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Principal-
agent_problem#Employment_contract)

------
kevingadd
Growing up, I rarely was in a situation to tip, but these days, living near
Palo Alto, i've noticed something interesting:

out of the places I go to eat or get coffee, a few are small independent
businesses owned by locals. At the ones where I was getting consistently good
service, I started tipping 20%+. Within a few weeks of this, I was surprised
to notice that they began discounting my food and drinks without mentioning
it, and they were more likely to remember my name and what I usually order.
The result is that other than the money I spent tipping more initially, this
improved service doesn't cost me anything.

~~~
RK
I think a very common tip increasing strategy used by people serving food is
to give discounts. If I'm selling you something for $10 and you'd normally tip
$1 and I give it to you for $8, you are much more inclined to tip me $2-3,
because you'd still pay the same or less and received "special" service.

This of course may be unethical for the employee, depending on store policy.
My best friend falls for it every time, tipping back up to "full" price. I see
it as a type of scam against the employer, though.

~~~
sambe
The danger with tactics like this is that the customers don't overthink
tipping as much as the service staff, particularly if they are from a
different country/culture. I tried to tip about $1/drink in New York, but when
I got a free drink ("for being stuck" - volcano) I didn't know whether I was
expected to tip the value, tip a little extra, or just take it as a favour. I
would guess that on a bill, rather than a free drink, there's a good chance
that people don't realise as well.

~~~
moron4hire
You should always tip the free drink. When you are in a bar or restaurant,
you're receiving two things: the product and the service. When the product is
free, you should still pay for the service.

------
bryanh
I thought the line "Bribing, it turns out, has as much effect on the briber as
it does on the bribee" was particularly telling. I mean, bribing someone
(successfully) touches on everything: a sense of exclusivity, an appearance of
prominence, a seemingly meaningful interpersonal connection, and it
streamlines the whole process. No wonder if feels so good...

~~~
mturmon
It _is_ an insightful line.

Partners in crime is the concept, though, I think. In this a very trivial
"crime".

~~~
uxp
The only "crime" that is broken is split between ethical and social.

Socially, if there is a line to get into a place or to receive something and
you skip ahead of a hundred other people, then you're a jerk. Another point I
can see is if by this article being published, more people start trying to
bribe their way into restaurants, the people that already try to follow the
standard rules get pushed further back in line. Bribing your way into some
place shouldn't be the protocol for getting a seat. Only when "This is a
really important night for me" is true should it be used. And if it
successful, tip on the way out if the service was great. If you start acting
like an ass, you're going to ruin it for the rest of us.

Ethically, its fairly weak. There might be rules and a code of conduct that
the wait staff need to adhere to, and when offered cash to break them it may
get them in trouble. Though, that is their problem for accepting it, but you
should also respect those rules and not try to break them either.

~~~
ZachPruckowski
>Bribing your way into some place shouldn't be the protocol for getting a
seat.

Why not? Doesn't microeconomics 101 say "if you have more demand than supply,
your prices are too low"? Clarendon Ballroom fills to capacity every weekend,
so I have to pay a $5 cover if I go this Saturday (and even at that price,
they still have a line at 11pm, which is why I'll get there early). When I
drive out to see friends tonight, I'll pay $5 to drive on the Dulles Toll Road
rather than sit in more traffic on Route 7 during rush hour. I mean, ideally
the system should be formalized so that it's not off-the-books, but I don't
see what's socially wrong with for-pay seating at exclusive restaurants.

------
e1ven
See also:

[http://www.esquire.com/features/the-state-of-the-american-
ma...](http://www.esquire.com/features/the-state-of-the-american-
man/ESQ0903-SEP_20DOLLAR)

<http://nymag.com/nymetro/shopping/features/9939/>

[http://www.chow.com/food-news/54576/will-this-20-change-
your...](http://www.chow.com/food-news/54576/will-this-20-change-your-mind/)

<http://www.esquire.com/features/ESQ0303-MAR_20DOLLARS>

~~~
Elite
I read the esquire articles and the chow.com, and neither of these authors
really perfected the art. Although the self-titled $20 millionaire
occassionally got serviced, he was often punked because he had no style, no
swagger.

And when he DID get service, he did it openly & brazenly without the required
discretion. Publicly announcing in a first class airplane section that he
wanted to trade seats?! Tacky. Cutting the line at a cab stand, only to end up
having to pay not only the front customer, but also the 2 cab stand guys?
Buddy, that just cost you sixty bucks and a half cup of coffee thrown at your
cab.

The demeanor and style in which you execute the handoff matters just as much,
if not more than the actual note you've got in your hand.

------
ErrantX
This works varyingly well over here in the UK (bearing in mind that we have a
lot less tip-focused service industry).

Obviously it works in top-class London restaurants. Anywhere else it tends to
vary, I've tried it once in a semi-nice place in Leeds and got an icy stare
and an extra wait :) but then it worked great in a grill house when I was in a
rush with friends.

By the way; this is fun to do if you are with a group of friends who have
never done it before. Once we were trying to eat in one of the London hotels
(it was the nearest place and pay day :)) and obviously got rebuffed. It's
really shallow but saying "hold on, wait here" and 30s later gesturing them
over is worth the looks on your friends faces :)

The best place this has worked for me is a restaurant in a nearby town - not
top class but always full. A few £20 "tips" now gets use pretty instant
service - because they know we will tip decently afterwards.

Is it immoral etc? I've always thought not, it's just that I value getting a
table X much and, most of the time, X is a steal price :)

------
jdvolz
Protip: it doesn't always have to be money.

In college I lived across the street from a art house movie theater. I was
invited to the Thursday night after party by a guy who worked at the theater
and another local establishment I frequented. Instead of money, I brought a
giant bottle of liquor. Because that theater had a "friends get in free"
policy and because I was now well known as the "guy who brought the liquor to
the party" I was everyone's friend. I would bring 2-3 people with me to the
theater, we'd all get in, and we'd all get employee servings of popcorn and
soda. Best $20 I ever spent.

------
mattmaroon
Rule #11, don't write an article about it. After this dropped bribing your way
into the New York restaurant scene got really tough. Managers were very
unhappy.

~~~
Confusion
That'll probably last only a few weeks. People will redirect their attention
to more pressing matters soon enough.

------
eof
I played poker a _lot_ for a couple years and would routinely drop 'quarters'
(25 bucks) to runners on busy nights to skip the line. Considering my hourly
rate was just under $100/hour saving an hour+ wait on a Friday night was a
bargain.

note: Most casinos you would be tipping the 'floor' not the runners, but in
this particular one the chip runners were doing the seating.

------
MichaelApproved
Great article but I wanted to discuss how the link is to the print page where
there is no navigation, ads or ability to see other content. I suggest the
?printable=true be removed from the url out of respect for the content
providers.

A lot of time and money goes into creating content. This is clearly a well
written and interesting article since it's on top of hacker news right now.
Why screw the website out of the extra traffic to it's other pages and
possible ad revenue by linking to the printable version?

I can understand not liking ads but this site isn't a content farm with tons
of ads. There is only a tiny, handful of ads on the right with plenty of room
for the content.

Sure, people on hacker news know enough to change the url if they want to
explore the rest of the site but articles that become popular here also get
picked up by other services with less savvy users.

~~~
winthrowe
If there's a 'display as single page' rather than a print option, I'll recieve
an add impression for most sites posted here, and might like the nav tools,
but if it's 'print version' or page through a half dozen pages, I'll take
print every time.

~~~
MichaelApproved
Fair point. Paging through _is_ a pain and annoying to the reader.

~~~
danielsoneg
But it doesn't dispute your original point - ads are annoying to the reader
too, and longer content costs more.

------
gyardley
I don't get the bribe terminology at all - offering better service to people
willing to pay more is a pretty standard form of price differentiation.

We certainly don't call it a bribe when a webservice charges more for faster
responses to support requests or access to a dedicated rep. We don't call it a
bribe when an airline charges more for more leg room. Why should we call it a
bribe when the restaurant's maitre d' charges more for priority access to
tables?

~~~
gabrielroth
Obviously, it's a bribe because it's pocketed by the employee rather than
passed up to the employer.

~~~
gyardley
That's how front-of-house restaurant employees are predominantly paid in
America.

------
tyng
I had a similar experience a few years ago in London where the night clubs
were well known for their strict enforcement of "no collar no entry" policy. I
did remember to wear a shirt that night but forgot to carry my passport, and I
was blocked by a sumo-looking security guard at the club door. Upon suggestion
by a friend who lived in London for many years I slipped a £10 note under a
random business card I found in my wallet (pretend to be a valid ID) and
approached the security guard.

"Here's my ID" I said, and showed a tip of the note under the card. "Show me,"
said the security guard and casually took both the card and the money from my
hand. After pretending to check the birthday details for 10 seconds he
returned the card (but not the money) to me and said "have a good night!"

------
raghava
Many comments speak of 'establishing a relationship' and 'getting an inside
man'. Would it also not work the other way, in certain cases? Person A moves
into a locality. Couple of days later visits a nearby restaurant. He is asked
to wait; and he witnesses Person B flashing some greens (or blues, if on the
other side of the planet ;) and getting in jumping the wait-list. Person C
follows suit and does the same. Person A finds it insulting, and leaves. The
establishment just lost a potential regular considering that he resides
nearby.

Also, would service providers prefer a person who tips modestly (but
consistently) over someone who tips generously once?

Sebastian's comment above mentions an experience in Vietnam. From what I have
seen, in certain establishments/places in regions where stronger currencies
(e.g. $/£) trump the local currencies (e.g. INR), it is not uncommon to find
the local populace being treated with mild neglect in spite of them
being(equally if not more) friendly and respectful; while a great deal of
preference would be given to those who stand out in the crowd and can afford
to tip more. (I know; many can sense a hint of racism being dragged in. But as
unfortunately sad it is, it indeed happens at times. I hope visits to
Mysore/Goa/Hampi can relate to this)

And about dressing, it reminded me of
<http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/hodja.html#eatcoat>

tl:dr; Money speaks; nay, screams. We just have to get over this fact.

~~~
pjscott
In the restaurants the articles describes, they can afford to alienate a few
people. There will always be more people to replace them. It was written in
New York when the economy was booming.

------
Ayjay
Looking at it from a market perspective, there is a limited supply of
something (ie. seats at a table at a reasonable time), and a demand. It's then
not a surprise that getting a table costs you more. The only surprising thing
is that it seems suprising!

When there's a limited supply of anything, naturally the price will rise. In
every other market, there is no benefit to being "first in line" for the
product - the price is the price.

Why not have an auction system for getting tables? Whenever a table becomes
free, the maitre d' asks everyone to bid on the table. If no-one bids, then
whoever is first in line gets it. That seems like the fairest system - no-one
can game the system by bribing because it's all completely open and honest.

Why don't any restaurants do this? As a bonus side effect, you'd probably
attract the people with more money to spend, as they figure they can guarantee
themselves a quick table. Also, this allows the people that really want to go
to a restaurant to splurge on getting the first available table, while someone
who doesn't really care might leave and go somewhere else.

Basic market forces causing the most optimal distribution of a limited
resource.

\-- Ayjay on Fedang

------
Confusion

      And it hadn’t cost me a dime, merely the willingness to indicate that I
      would tip for service.
    

This is an interesting line, because it indicates the author redefined, in his
mind, what he was doing: he wasn't bribing anyone, he was merely tipping
beforehand. Suddenly, the practice seems much more acceptable, to the point
where I wonder why I'm instinctively against it.

I guess the answer is that we should consider a stark difference between
bribing someone for 'services' that aren't at his discretion to provide, such
as a police officer dropping a bill or a government employee granting a
permit, versus bribing someone for services that really are at the discretion
of the person being bribed. The rules for being seated at these restaurants
are informal rules and no laws are broken in bending them a bit.

As a result of this article, I feel much less unfavorably about 'bribing'
random personnel of companies. I wonder how long that will last.

------
SebMortelmans
In Vegas where at check-in, if you slide a 20$ bill with your CC & passport
and ask for "any complementary upgrades", you can get a free room upgrade. If
you do a quick search you'll notice how common this trick is, and the success
rate for most hotels is in the 80-90% region.

------
zzzmarcus
A common definition of intelligence, or at least part of the definition of
intelligence, is "the general mental ability to learn and apply knowledge to
manipulate your environment." I don't think it's too much of a stretch to say
that this type of tipping "hack" applies.

------
jon_dahl
There is something similar with hotels, esp. in a place like Vegas: show
$20/$50/$100 at check-in, and get an upgraded room. Google "twenty dollar
trick".

Not that I've had the nerve to try it.

~~~
euroclydon
Saw it. I guess there is a disconnect between the rate charged and the room
assigned in hotel management systems. I could fix that pretty quickly with a
few queries.

~~~
nl
Your comment is a little unclear, but it appears you think room rates are
fixed.

They're not at all - they vary pretty much the same way airline tickets do.
Hotels are a bit less obvious about it because the often have display rates.

(Varying rates is especially common in places like Vegas where there is
usually a huge oversupply of rooms, but hotels make money from other things,
ie, gambling)

~~~
philwelch
In Vegas in particular, hotel-casinos will comp you a room if you gamble
enough--and interestingly, the EV on that gambling sometimes compares
favorably to the cost of the room.

------
jambo
I first encountered this story when Steven Pinker retold it at an
Authors@Google talk: <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hBpetDxIEMU>

About 40 minutes in, Pinker talks about the psychology, linguistics, and game
theory of bribery and talks for a few minutes about the article.

------
juanito
Despite how effective this generally is, I feel dirty every time and I hate
doing it.

~~~
drivingmenuts
Seems unethical to me, strictly speaking.

Sure, everyone's doing it. Doesn't mean cheating someone else out of their
fair share is right, though.

~~~
forensic
it's not unethical. It's the market economy.

~~~
acon
Do you think bribing government officials to get preferential treatment is
also OK? If not, what is the difference?

~~~
scott_s
Government officials are not a part of the market economy.

It's paying for service, it just goes through unofficial channels. I live in a
small college town. I eat at the same vegetarian restaurant for lunch almost
every single weekday. I sit at the counter with a book, and make small talk
with the cooks and servers as appropriate. I unquestionably receive
preferential treatment from them. The cooks sometimes slide me extra food if
it's not enough to sell as a full meal, or if someone sends back food that's
fine to eat. The servers take my order almost the moment I take a seat at the
counter and it's usually served the moment it's ready.

I don't tip extravagantly ($2 for an $8 meal), but I'm friendly, easy to serve
and they know they'll see me every day. I get preferential treatment, but I'm
also giving _them_ preferential treatment by coming in every day.

You have a right to be treated the same as everyone else by the government.
You have no such right at a service establishment - yes, they cannot refuse
service for the all of the standard prejudices. But they most certainly can
offer a higher level of service to people who pay more.

~~~
willyt
OK, what about if you employed someone to tender contracts for you and one of
the tenderers took this person out for an extravagant lunch in the expectation
of influencing the bidding process? Wouldn't that be immoral?

~~~
scott_s
I would think so, yes. But restaurants, bars, massage parlors, etc. are
service-oriented places where tipping is already the norm. The precedent for
more-money-means-better-service has already been set.

------
Aegean
_My girlfriend looks at me in a way she hasn’t since I surprised her by
uncharacteristically demolishing a friend on the tennis court._

That should have been fun.

------
lelele
This is one of the HN's best thread ever. Thanks, thanks, thanks to everyone
for sharing.

As Gabriele D'Annunzio used to say: "I own what I've given away."

------
alexyim
Here's another thread on HN:

<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=318827>

------
jefffoster
Link to previous discussion

<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=318827>

------
chevas
Wildly entertaining read.

------
smoody
someone posts this every six or eight months it seems. And every time it
scores the poster hundreds of points. Still a good read. :-)

------
chailatte
the article is from October 2000. The restaurant business is so bad right now
that there is absolutely no need to bribe.

I am traveling to Chicago and NY on Jetblue's all you can fly. Alinea had a
few openings that I was able to squeeze in over the phone. I was changing
Daniel and Jean Georges's appointments many times with no problem.

~~~
aditya
Take the same advice, and apply it to clubs/lounges. Or, anywhere there is
more demand than supply.

------
dkarl
_I had already learned a number of lessons. First: Go. You’d be surprised at
what you get just by showing up. Second: Dress decently. Third, and most
important: Don’t be ashamed. They’re not, and neither should you be._

I see. If people go along with what you suggest, you don't have to feel
ashamed about it. So this guy has no interest in right or wrong at all; he
just doesn't want to feel embarrassed. I'm sure this guy will enjoy a lot of
loyalty and support when the chips are down.

