A TikTok user who posts as @captain.t.roll shared a video of a restaurant receipt and argued that a $20 tip on a large bill was enough. The clip, which he said had drawn about 133,500 views and more than 1,250 comments, opened with a close-up of the check and an on-screen question about why people tip in percentages.
He said in the video, “I don’t know who needs to hear this, but if you think that this is a bad tip, then you’ve sadly been brainwashed by the restaurant industry.” The camera then pulled back to show a receipt from Ember & Vine at 5108 W Sunset Blvd in Los Angeles, dated July 5, 2026, at 4:06 p.m. He pointed to a subtotal of $249 and a $20 tip, which he said was less than 10 percent of the subtotal.
The receipt listed items that included a 14-ounce Wagyu ribeye priced at $92 and pan-seared sea bass priced at $46. He said he always tips on the subtotal and called the $20 amount “a perfectly fine tip.” He argued that higher food prices do not mean the server did more work, since the server only carried the plates from the kitchen to the table.
Digital screens and older wage rules have changed when and how much people are asked to tip
He maintained that if anyone should earn more for costlier dishes, it would be the chef. He added that $20 for one table would equal $20 an hour if that were the only table he served. He told viewers not to accept the idea that the tip must rise just because the bill is higher.
Tipping in the United States has long been tied to wage rules that date to the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, according to National Geographic. That law allowed employers to pay tipped workers less than the regular minimum wage if tips made up the difference. In some states, hospitality workers can still be paid as little as $2.13 an hour, with tips expected to bring pay up to the federal minimum of $7.25.
The report said that expectations rose during the COVID-19 outbreak, when customers were urged to tip more generously. What had often been 15 to 20 percent became 20 to 30 percent in some places, and those higher asks did not fully recede after businesses reopened. Digital point-of-sale screens then spread the request to takeout counters, coffee shops, and even self-service spots where staff contact is limited.
A 2023 Pew Research Center survey found that two-thirds of Americans said they were confused by changing tipping etiquette, National Geographic reported. A 2025 Bankrate survey found that 63 percent of U.S. residents held a negative view of tipping and that 41 percent said it had gotten out of control. Some restaurants have tried no-tip models, and California and Nevada have ended the subminimum wage for tipped workers.
National Geographic quoted etiquette podcaster Nick Leighton as saying that, without an act of Congress, large-scale change is unlikely soon. Travel advisers cited in the same report suggested visitors budget an extra 20 percent for tips, with restaurant and delivery tips often landing between 15 and 20 percent, and higher in big cities or fine dining.
Commenters on the TikTok video split over whether the $20 amount matched the service shown on the receipt. One viewer rejected the idea that the tip was acceptable and wrote, “That’s not a bad tip. It’s a terrible tip.” Such debates often flare when diners leave modest tips on large bills, like the man who paid $612 for dinner and left $9.
Another said they shared the creator’s view and wrote, “I agree with him. I’m so over tipping.” A third tied the debate to rising menu prices and wrote, “Prices have doubled, service has not.” Others focused on how they decide what to leave. One commenter wrote, “I don’t tip based on money, I tip based on service.” Another suggested no tip at all could also be fine and wrote, “$0 its also a perfectly fine tip as well…”
A further commenter backed ending the practice and wrote, “i agree . tips should be banned and employers pay their employees more.”
Published: Sep 22, 2026 12:30 pm