Here in Mexico it a bit different. It is customary to tip the person who bags your groceries. This is not the cashier, but a separate individual, usually a young person (10-13 yrs) or an old person (60+ yrs). The usual amount of the tip is 1-2% of the total purchase, and this tip is most likely the sole source of income for that person; he is NOT employed by the store, but has permission to work there for tips.

The same holds true in the parking lot. You will be besieged by persons, frequently older men past the viable age of employment, who will carry your groceries to your car and quite competently pack them away and be very pleased to receive a five peso tip (about 40 cents USD). Again, this may well be their sole source of income.

At the gas station, the "rule" seems to be if the attendant hustled and cleaned all your windows, kicked the tires to see if one of them might be low, and told you his cousin Carlos could fix that scrape on the bumper for maybe 150 pesos... you tip him 10 pesos. If he just stood there and put gas in the tank, you tell him muchas gracias, and go on your way. A fill-up from near-empty costs 300 pesos, about $25 USD.

By contrast, I was told NOT to tip at the corner mini-mart, run by an old lady and her daughter. In this case, a "tip" would be buying a loaf of bread and two liters of milk for 38 pesos, giving her 40 and saying "No cambio, por favor." This would be construed as being condescending, with me, the rich Gringo from up the hill, acting as though she needed the extra two pesos and I being so wealthy that mere pesos don't matter to me. It's a different culture here that I am slowly coming to grips with.

In the best restaurant in town (not just my opinion; it is an understood "fact" beyond dispute) normal USA-style tipping practices are observed, except that the locals usually tip at 10% and we rich Gringos usually tip at 15%. The reason I bring this up is that all tips go into a pool and are distributed equally among the wait staff and kitchen staff at the end of the week. While this might appear to be a disincentive (why bust your butt if you're gonna get paid the same regardless?) that doesn't appear to be the case. I have never seen one of the wait staff standing around wondering what to do next. Every waiter services every table, the number of waiters per table is at least double any other restaurant in town, the owner of the restaurant is out there every night busing tables, keeping an eagle eye out for anything amiss, all the staff move at a near trot and it all works like a well-oiled machine. Oh, the service isn't perfect, mind you. One time it took 38 whole seconds for my empty Sprite bottle to be cleared from the table, but that's about as bad as things ever get there. The capper is this: There are at lot of pretty good restaurants within a two block radius of Tango's (the restaurant I am talking about here.) On a typical evening, you can go to any of those restaurants and there is a fair chance you will be the only client, or perhaps you'll share the place with one or two other occupied tables. At Tango's, where they have about 35 tables, you will wait 20 to 40 minutes to be seated. Applicants wait months for a chance to work there, and people appreciate the level of service and are willing to tip accordingly.

BTW, a Filet Mignon dinner for two (Argentinian beef, cut it with a fork), with side dishes, drinks, dessert, and propina (tip), will run under $30 (~$350 pesos), and the servings are so generous that the take-home box will be enough for a complete second meal.

So, if you think your tipping situation is complex, try living here.

tanstaafl.