Originally posted this a couple of years ago. Gonna repost, since I saw a large team recently send their waitress scrambling for waters all night while spending about $10 combined between the 6-8 of them. This typically isn’t a major problem at my quizzes, but I just want to make sure everyone is on the same page.
A team played this past week at one of the bars with like 8 people on their team. I like this team. They’re a young team, really nice, really cool, and I don’t want to call them out, so I won’t say which bar or which team. But they ordered, for the entire table, 2 or 3 beers (total between the 8 of them) and 2 apps total. And lots and lots of water.
That’s not the way it works. Don’t get me wrong. You don’t need to order any beers if you don’t want to. There is no two drink minimum, and I have never pushed booze on anyone at my quizzes. But everyone on the team has to order something. That doesn’t mean you need to order caviar and foie gras either. It just means that if you go to a bar, you need to be prepared to spend something. That’s the way the thing works. If you don’t have at least $5, then stay home and play Trivial Pursuit. Quizzo is more fun, and don’t act like you don’t have 5 bucks in change in your couch. I’ve seen your couch. I’ve searched it when you weren’t home. There is A LOT of change in there.
And this not just at quizzo, that’s a good rule of thumb in general. Get a Coke and an app if you don’t want to drink. That’s fine. But you just can’t go to a bar or a restaurant and order nothing. It’s just not good form, and it’s disrespectful of your server to have her running around grabbing you waters that you won’t be tipping her for.
I’m not saying this stuff to be a jerk. Hey, I was young once too and didn’t know better. And Rick from the Champs is over 50 and he still doesn’t know it*. But it’s something that everyone who plays quizzo really needs to be aware of.
*just busting your balls, pal. I know how worked up you get over stuff like this so I couldn’t resist.
The whole point of quizzo, karaoke, open mics, etc are for the bars to make money.
One of the more hilarious things I came across when I was working at Tritone and we had karaoke for a short time was a person who wanted water with lemon and couldn’t drink because of his fucking voice. Seriously? It was fucking Tritone karaoke. Rick A. isn’t Simon Cowell and the mildew probably hurt your voice more than a fucking special would have.
Absolutely! This used to happen quite often at my quizzes, and it always bothered me so much. Man, I wish I had a blog back then – I would have written this! [Well, not nearly as well, I’m sure, but the gist would have been the same]
Don’t apologize, JGT. If you go to a bar to enjoy quizzo, which the bar has paid to host, only to drink water and sponge then you should be asked to leave. If you check their lineage I’m sure you’ll find parents who snapped at waiters, didn’t pull into the intersection when taking a left to let others go around and say things like “I know you only paid $12 for this bottle, why am I paying $7 a glass?”.
It’s great you’re not trying to be a jerk, but unless I missed something in your post, the team wasn’t informed of proper bar/restaurant etiquette. If they were informed, then problem solved. I think the main point you’re trying to make is that servers should be tipped, no matter what you partake of, or don’t. I do take issue with the notion I have to order something (other than water). I’ve contributed $5, $10 even $20 to a tip pool/bar tab at Quizzo, even if I only had water. But, I also don’t like subsidizing someone’s 5-course dinner or 6 beers, either.
The bar pays me to bring in people to eat and drink. They don’t pay me to bring in people to drink water. There is no such thing as a free lunch. If you don’t want to spend a dime when you go out, then go to the library or the park. Otherwise, you are being inconsiderate because you are taking the seat of someone else who would take that seat and pay to eat and drink. Again, it doesn’t mean you have to drop a hundred bucks. But it just means that the bar is providing shelter, heat, and atmosphere. In return you are expected to shell out a little money. If you don’t, you are breaking a social contract.
Well, I’ve spent my fair share of money (drinks, food and tips) at (quizzo) bars in this city. I’m not going to feel bad if I have one drink all night long, once out of 100 times. But, I do get your point and I’m in agreement. Next time, call out those losers who leave a tip based on their bill minus their winnings and not the actual value of their food and drinks.