Tip on venue with Administrative fee

benoitmorse

I am using a venue that has an administrative fee

I am being charged 3500 on a 6101 food bill.

They do not accept tips with the bill but I am being told tips are expected in cash

What would be appropriate

T

s-aries8990

Do they not accept tips? Or do they not charge a gratuity fee?

If they just don't bake the cost in, tip the servers in cash based on the total food bill as long as the administrative fee doesn't include gratuity.

Do 15-20% of the total food bill (915-1200) and split it evenly among the number of servers.

misssunshine17

I would ask what exactly this admin. fee entails? It seems crazy high to me. 

GlassButton

It doesn't sound like the administrative fee includes tip. You should ask them.

If you are going to tip then you could do it by two ways. Pick the one that seems best for your venue.

Tip based on the total food bill then divide it amongst the serves. You can tip 15 to 20%. If you find that to be too steep then you could go down to 10 (depends on your region).

Give the serves a certain amount you feel comfortable with. If you tip 15% your total tip would be about $915. If you can only afford $400 then divide that. It's not the best way to go but at least you give them a tip.


Beware of certain places that don't give their servers their tip. I recommend you assign someone to give it to each server. Also, don't forget to tip the chef. If your place already has a standard way to split the tip then you can give it to the manager. The best way to find out is have someone else (that's really close to you and won't mind or planner) ask the servers how tips work at this location. Some places have it already set up where they give each worker a percentage.

s-aries8990

misssunshine17 said:

I would ask what exactly this admin. fee entails? It seems crazy high to me. 

Yeah, it's more than half the food bill - I'm wondering if it includes rentals too (tables, chairs, linens, dinnerware/flatware/glassware)

NYCMercedes

Most likely, the food bill is just for food! Admin fee could be for the venue rent fee, and/or aforementioned rentals, plus staff time to go buy food, and/or chef prep time, and/or venue chair setup time, and/or apportioned kitchen rent time, and/or food delivery and setup staff time, and/or any number of things. Ask your venue. Tip 10 to 20 percent of food cost only.

phira

That is a very high admin fee. I would ask to see what it entails.

I was just going through my Bat Mitzvah stuff last night, since it's surprisingly similar to wedding planning stuff (vendors, guest lists, seating charts--my mom was very organized). The cost of rending tables, linens, and place settings was half the cost of the food, which my partner noted is pretty common.

MayDay513

benoitmorse said:

I am using a venue that has an administrative fee

I am being charged 3500 on a 6101 food bill.

They do not accept tips with the bill but I am being told tips are expected in cash

What would be appropriate

T

Is that venue rental, staffing, and table/ linen rentals the $3500? If not I would really like to know which admin is getting paid such a huge commission.

Jen4948

Ask them what the administrative fee involves.  It might just be another way to say "gratuity."  But if it isn't included in that, I'd add 10 to 20% to the total food costs by way of a "tip.  "

I would make clear to the venue staff that they are not to put out a tip jar or otherwise expect your guests to pay for anything, including gratuities.