beans

Hey beans, chill. :) I was saying that sdelgato was incorrect when he said the 8% thingy is a myth. It was a reality about 12 years ago or so. Chill? I'm precise and not upset or worked up. I simply do not wish to have any misunderstandings by any implications. I quoted Juanito addressing that entire post and expanding upon, beyond what sdelgato wrote. Okay? And besides, declaring 8% is still a common myth for today's servers. We have to "demysitfy" each time we start their new hire paperwork and training. You lost me on this. Where do the waiters fit in? And where does the total tips received fit into the formula? Each server takes their total tips and tip those folks out 1/2, 1 or 1 1/2 percent on their total sales, regardless of what overall tip percent they average on each ticket. Food for thought for those that feel 15% is too much to tip a server. Food runners, service barstaff and bussers depend on what you tip the server, too.

This may be unique to us and our bussers. We have four that have returned each season that are amazing. In fact, one of them has been there about 12 years. They are clean, fast and courteous hard workers eager to come to work and return for another season. Our managers really appreciate them. Our General Manager may have been the push behind this because he started as the thirteenth busser, in January, fourteen years ago? (We've never had thirteen bussers ever since, nor have any in the winter months anymore, so something about him was spotted wisely by one who did hiring. ) edit: Hmmm. Recounting the years and correcting... wow that was fast and where did they go?

I believe sdelgato implied that the 8% IRS rule is a figment of someone's imagination. There was an IRS regulation years ago that 8% was the minimum amount that could be declared. However, the law is and has always been that tipped employees are required to declare 100% of their tips. emphasis mine That must have been years ago.... I didn't didn't state anything to the effect that sdelgato was incorrect about their post implied or otherwise, but I wrote "beyond" what they stated. But now that's splitting hairs. Really? I just allocate it to the front of the house staff I hate. Wow. Something I also thought I'd add in for those reading this thread to think about.... Here's the agreed to tipping out procedure for most of servers (except for the boat servers) wherein I am employed: 1 1/2 percent of the total sales goes to the food runners 1 percent of the total sales goes to the assigned service bar 1/2 percent of the total sales goes to the bussers (they are the only FOH staff that earns at least minimum wage) Some restaurants may divide up the tip outs with the bar only being tipped on the overall liquor sales and foodrunners/bussers on the food sales of each server's closing report. We have found that the straight percent off the total sales to work the best because the servers need to respect the hard work of those that help them. And of course, these are the minimum percents. Those that tip best... well, y'all understand. As a server you hope to walk after tip outs with 15% of your sales.

In practice, isn't this more than overcome by the underreporting of cash tips? Be honest. The IRS imputing 8% tips on sales wasn't always so; it developed as a remedy to the widespread practice of not reporting, or underreporting, tips. Not that I blame servers for cheating the IRS, in fact, I encourage it. If I had to bet money, I would say more servers are undertaxed on their true income, than overtaxed. I sure hate this tipping can of worms, but I'm happy to explain the inner workings as much as possible in hopes to demystify any of it for the average restaurant going patron. Restaurants are machines with many smaller teams supporting others to get each evening accomplished. Tips do not solely "reward" the server but in fact support the many others that indirectly contribute to the whole dining experience. Regarding those lucky servers in Seattle earning $7.00 an hour -- luckily they have a kinder and more generous system behind them to have the chance of actually earning a wee better living. And taxes, I've noted how high they are around the whole King County area. Ouch. I don't find either any justification for complaints about tipping! edit add: Factor in cost of living. Earning $7.00 or thereabouts an hour in expensive Seattle may be the equivalent of earning $2.13 an hour in Cleveland.... Okay, about that stigma of declaring 8%: Beyond what sdelgato stated, if the overall figure of declared tips for the entire service staff doesn't mesh with overall sales volume of the restaurant come tax time, red flags go up and the restaurant can be audited. The IRS eats out! They know that servers are tipped 15% or better (which of course is the tip outs to those in the team that have helped, so if you think 15% is high, the server is netting much less after tipping out the busboys, hostesses, food runners and service bartender). Then comes the allocations. Those are the worst -- especially for those that have faithfully declaired their tips, cash or otherwise. That is added income tacked onto to your W-2 (yes, check your W-2s there is a wee box for this category). This is applied to the whole group as income that has failed to declare to be taxed and the accountant or bookkeeper will try to do allocations as fairly as possible. He/She will take the overall sales and the overall labour hours of the FOH staff and determine that will be $x.xx per hour then multiply that by each employees' actual hours worked for that tax period. Possibly interesting to note, there is much peer pressure among the various sections (we have several designated sections for servers, i.e. on the main diningroom, the right, the left, the pool patio, the patio, upper deck, boats -- and ditto for our seven different bars) that tend to be cut about the same time, do closing duties for that section together and clock out together -- be honest and declare your frickin tips!! If I followed that 8% "guideline" or under claimed my tips, I would have never been able to purchase a car or my house! A current trend in proactive audit avoidance and seems to be popping up with more frequency are restaurants (usually the biggie chains) that require you to sign an agreement that you will declare 100% of your tips in order to remain employed. Managers actively supervise that as well. Lastly, the only saving grace a tippable person may have for their defense in the event of an unsavory appointment for a personal audit with the IRS -- maintaining that little book they offer. It is free, you write in your sales volume and declared tips. And a CYA move -- write down say a newspaper headline from that particular day to authenticate your honest effort. Anyone can grab a book at the eleventh hour and fill it with a bunch of meaningless numbers.... Whew! edit II: never write anything semi-serious while talking on the phone!

Not sure about servers. Veering a tad off topic, but sort of tangential.... On Webtender we've sort of touched on that subject, but then the subject of money/tips/earnings always leads to somebody being upset. But the few bartenders I am good friends with acrossed the pond that I keep in regular communications with have told me they'd love to take a leave of absence and work a year in the States. One, my dearest friend queneau69, noted that when he visits the States (he's my wild Northern Irishman in Belfarce) barstaff actually smile and say thank you, noticing they do some of the chitchat/pleasantry work for a tip. He told me that sadly that is not so in the European venues he's tended bar or patronised. However some of that club tipping culture is changing in the trendier places as two Lodnod barmen have told me they now work very hard to charm their guests and are thrilled when they see the results in the tip jars.

I'd never get paid in salary what I earn in tips. I left the legal eagle world, corporate law department, environmental/toxic tort section wherein I had some serious responsibilities. Years ago, when I first started as a server, in three months, I earned more than I did in almost a whole year of the 9 to 5 stuff. Again, I echo what Malawry stated above -- large parties take more time and attention with both the kitchen and waitstaff. Kitchen is a decent hourly or salaried, so they are going to earn the same amount working on large parties or table by table orders. Service staff scheduled to work the larger parties will have lower turnover which is taken into account by those that manage staff scheduling. The idea is to upsell and add on so that despite they spent most of the evening on Mr. Cooper's wife's birthday gathering, their tip is assured which could be comparable, if not more, than if that server worked another section and turned their four assigned tables over three times with the majority being all dueces/two tops. Management needs to keep relative peace among the staff, and servers, though our policy is termination to those that brag about the specifics of their own tips (fosters much ill will because there are better sections, bars and bar teams to work with), they all need to be in the same general ballpark of earnings. There is rationale behind the restaurant for forming that mandatory tipping policy/service charge on what they deem as large parties. It isn't to rip you off, make you feel bad or to anger the guest purposefully. It is simply keeping the entire diningroom floor fair for all service staff working, elsewise they'd (and I've seen the do it) will turn around without a single word and walk out the door and never be heard from again. Staff turnover like that sucks. And word gets out among those in the biz and a problem restaurant will remain being a problem restaurant struggling to keep a decent service staff. I can pick up the Classified section of the Cleveland PD and still see the same running ads for the same restaurants in the same locations for the last couple of years, or even longer!

See my post up thread.

First, welcome to eG cafekats. Yes, yes and yes. We generally do not take reservations except for special events (i.e., mother's day) and for larger parties that will be dining with us. Must be six or larger in that party and a manager is required to follow up with confirming date, time, size and special menu requests. That is also when the person making these arrangements with us is advised seperate checks are not possible and an 18% gratuity will be added to the bill. Then it is up to the server to "tag" or not to tag: present the check listing the gratuity and grand total or they can gamble it, leave it blank and see if they get a better gratuity. When I worked as a server, I never tagged my large parties and I always did better than 18%. About taxing on the server's sales volume -- why do you suppose I never cashed a single paycheck for the entire summer? Earning $2.13 an hour barely covered the taxing of the declared tips of my income. Our bookkeeper would cancel my checks at the end of the summer and then issue one "big" one that was usually under $150.00 for my hourly earnings, after taxes. My college roomie actually had a paycheck in the negative as she went to work as a server in a New York State vacation resort area and they also deducted for room and board.

I'm afraind that was all baloney. It is made with 56 herbs and spices = liquid memory loss for some. Re: Fernet Branca I ran over to pick up our Ohio beverage journal wherein it lists the official oHIo Wholesale Price List for the liquor available to purchase. No Fernet Branca. (Oh, it is a long list of what we don't permit for legal sale). Next trip out of state, I will try this stuff out for comparison purposes. Something else that is vaguely familiar to Jäger -- Seven Heads liqueur from Ireland, also in green bottle but the glass was opaque giving this very emerald colouring effect. I don't believe it is available or distilled anymore, however I did work at a bar wherein we still had three bottles of it. A tasting was in order and it was very herbal and minty. sloppy proofing, again

This thread may be of some interest.

I have found two forms in a local Hispanic market (both Goya brand). One in a long, retangular brick (longer and skinnier than a Velveta box) and another in a round, metal tin. I understand the paste from the metal tin is of better quality. It is jelly like and much clearer than the retangular boxed type. I've used both for different things. The round tin paste I've for Guava cheesecakes. (hmmmm, inspiration to make some soon. Haven't had it in a while. ) In the Julia Child award winning cookbook Miami Spice by Steven Raichlen it is used with queso blanco for empanadas. They are delicious. As well as in a bbq sauce for baby back ribs. The retangular boxed paste I've sliced off a smidge and topped, along with a spread of cream cheese on those little round crackers (also Goya, they come in two sizes). My former neighbour was from Cuba and introduced me to this yummy snack.

Paraphrased from A Passion for Preserves -- Ginger Marmalade Makes about 4 cups 3 pounds tart apples 2 cups water 8 ounces Canton ginger sugar Coarsely chop apples, skins cores and all. Simmer in the water until thick and pulpy, then strain overnight through a jelly bag. The next day, add finely chopped ginger into the extracted apple juice and measure 1 cup of sugar per cup of the ginger-apple juice. Combine and bring to a boil stirring to dissolve sugar. Boil rapidly for about 10 minutes, or until set. Remove from heat and jar. Seal with your preferred method -- either immediately turning jars upside down or waterbath. I understand it is an excellent accompanyment as a dipping sauce for shrimp tempura.

You are brave! Cherries are very low on pectin and will be a very soft set which is why sometimes you'll see recipes calling for the addition of apples. After awhile of making jellies and jams you gain enough confidence and experience to go without a recipe, but I really had questions about some more of the exotic stuff and things I never thought could be done. (Praline Milk Jam made with whole milk!)

I'm not sure about the Jäger in Germany, but the stuff I've drank on my many visits to Canada (usually twice a year) is much different. It doesn't have that cough syrup consistency or thickness and it also doesn't have that heavy aftertaste. It is "dryer" and less sweet.

Dude, Boar's Head Natural Casings are always a hit around the beans family/friends wienie roast nights.

Overall, I'd say that the commercial stuff is much more difficult than the consumer stuff. Soda syrup and juice boxes top my list. I have more of a hard time with cd's or dvd's or those items in the middle of plastic, loss prevention type of blister packs from Costco/Sam's Club.

Does anybody actually drink this, for any other reason than on a dare? Hells yeah! It's called a redeye. We used to drink them all the time when we were down the shore. Gotta use cheap beer, though; we used to use either rock, yuengling premium, or pabst. My regulars that drank them used the Pacific Northwest equivalent to Pabst -- Olympia. They were a bit of a hangover fix and we had Bloody Mary mix, plain tomato juice and V8 to suit their preferences if I remember correctly!

edited to add: http://www.opacleveland.com Opa is owned by two former Ohio City residents that are also a pair of my old friends from the House Tour Committee days/OCNW stuff. Mark and Dimitri are trying very hard to keep afloat. (They told my father that it was either Thursday or Friday they only had two tables the entire day/night... ) I hope they tough it out and continue to bring Ohio City many fantastic dining options. This is solely my opinion: Very interesting menu, however it is huge and each dish requires unique and fresh ingredients on hand at all times (there don't appear to be items with common denominator ingredients that are prepared differently for various dishes). Next week is a biggie for them. Lutheran Hospital picked local Ohio City restaurants to cater to employees as a lunch time cafeteria option for an entire week. One of the administrators met with each restaurant and discussed what they'd like to have each day. We had our stint three weeks ago, or thereabouts. It's a bit crazy because they'll tell you they want 30 of this or that, then in about 20 minutes they'd call and request another 30+ again so it was hard to predict what to have prepped or purchased! And they failed to tell us that Tuesday would be the smallest order since it is an employee favourite Mexican food theme day. Something else that Mark or Dimitri said is that they've noticed that they don't get very much foot traffic on that end of the street. If you stop in and asked for Beans, my parents would laugh. I stole Beans as a screen name from my mischievous cat. (And I'm around usually only during the large catering jobs for Lutheran or Moda or to help out with a shopping trip to Restaurant Depot, Deans Supply or Sam's Club). For the time being, we are sliming down our own menu until some more regular business comes through the doors and starts requesting particular items. Summertime in Cleveland means many on vacation with cottages to spend time at either east or west near the islands, those who own boats or time spent looking at the boats and people watch at all of the favourite outdoor patio type places. So it is a bit of a slower period right now.

Out without the kids? There's always all of the old haunts on Cedar/Lee. (Oh, I've been there....) Then, there's the warehouse district. Liquid, Sushi Rock, Velvet Dog, Blind Pig, Panini's, et al. My good friend and former co-worker is one of the men that own and operate Karma, newly opened in Powerhouse. He and his brother have a long, successful history with Shooters, Liquid, Tramp, Funky Buddha, Bone Yard, Fusion and Spy Bar. McCarthy's just opened last Tuesday night. It is a great place, cheap, on the West Bank (old Spaghetti Warehouse) with excellent live entertainment. Molson Canadian is the current draft of the month for a dollar a pint. Virgin tap lines. (although I'm not big on beer) Good, very friendly folks that work there too. Moda, next door to my family's pizzeria, is newly opened since you've been here last. Monster dance DJ Tiesto was here on his "world" tour with a sell out crowd a couple weeks ago. It's a cool place, but not very busy in the warmer months. Old Angle opened up and recently acquired their liquor license, acrossed the street from Moda. One of the owners is a friend of mine that is trying very hard with busy weekends, live music, but slow weekdays. We've hung out there to avoid all of the other Flats employees and enjoy a drink in peace. Most of the East Bank of the Flats is dead and gone. Coventry is always fun. Then there's Tremont, but living next door in Ohio City, sometimes even I make a wrong turn (and I worked there)! You'd get lost at least once, but there's a bunch of really cool places to eat and hang out. Shooters has Disco Inferno on Wednesdays back popular demand. (They used to put their huge afro wigs into the clothes dryer upstairs in our offices between sets). Kristin -- have you ever headed out west to the Islands?

Yes. The very kind folks of Corona came through with 4 tickets, again, together with wrist bands for admission to their hospitality party of cheeseburgers and Coronas. And even supplied t-shirts this time. Not a parrothead per se, but it grows on you. Especially when you work two years at the swim up pool bar at the Islander in Put in Bay. Somewhere on that island, 24 hours a day, one can hear his music playing.... Kristin: I wish you much patience on that doozie of a plane ride. Plenty of small games and colouring books.

Reporting back: It was a cucumber-vodka martini. My friends had purple basil mojitos. MMMMMMM on both counts. Where does one buy Sirop de Canne Antillais? I googled and came up emtpy. Ed used to sell it at his Yahoo ecommerce site but he's out of stock on it. http://store.yahoo.com/rhumsite/dosucasy1.html The one he sold is made by Dormoy. Its also made by Clement a few other companies, but its extremely difficult to find in the US. Actually I am pretty sure it is unobtanium. Both of the two I have are produced on the island of Martinique. I bought the Clement stuff on St. Martin and the Dormoy stuff from Ed. My understanding is that the British-Made product Lyle's Golden Syrup is similar to Sirop de Canne but I have never tried it. If you Froogle it you can get it fairly easily. As Ed says, the product called Sugar In the Raw can be used in the place of Sirop de Canne. I've had it that way prepared on St. Martin. How would Sugar Shots compare? Clear for white sugar uses Golden for turbinado sugar uses I know I've seen it at Williams Sonoma too because I picked the bottle up to look at it and thought about the various uses.

Yes! (I have one of those Singer sewing machines too! And the suits I used to sew and tailor were both a boon to my young college grad days on the first 9 to 5 job budget and my wardrobe overall -- they were of a better quality and fit than what I could buy prêt à porter! ) I have both the 4 1/2 and 5 quart sized Kitchenaid stand mixers. The 5 is newer, but I was thrilled that my dear Grandmother's old glass mixing bowl (from an ancient, all chrome model) fit my 4 1/2. It is simply gorgeous, and works fabulously. Too bad they gave the ancient mixer to the White Elephant Sale Shop sometime in the 1970s, but forgot the extra glass bowl that was still in its box in the spare room. Other old appliance preferences: old, fun shaped toasters with the cloth covered electrical cords and the sturdy, heavy, electric waffle irons. [/tangent] TYPOS/sloppy proofing

I found only the 4 1/2 size that would fit two different models -- the KSM90 and K45SS on Culinary Parts.

fifi- Years ago Williams Sonoma sold them for both the 4 1/2 and 5 quart sizes for the differing KA stand mixer models. (I bought the last one in stock before our Galleria store closed). http://www.culinaryparts.com/btc/product_d...30&k=KITCHENAID KSM90&pn=1 This website (culinaryparts.com) sells one for the 4 1/2 size, and perhaps for a 5 quarter too.... (I've got to do more searching). edit: link and tags would not format/work -- may have to go to their homepage, select stand mixers, accesories and then the specific KA model. (sorry)

I've worked in the food and beverage biz long enough. I've seen what bourdain has written about and more. Nothing surprises me anymore. I still eat out, with knowledge and firsthand witnessing all of the above. I don't flip when I see lipstick remains that aren't mine on my cocktail glass (not cleaned very carefully when washing the glassware). I'm not sure why so many view waitstaff as sinister and all as revenge seekers. Sure, I know they are out there, but damn. We (as a part of FOH staff) are just too frickin busy. You know you aren't the only table we're waiting on! And about servers nibbling: At the beginning of the season when all the hoards return (we have about 135-150 servers at peak) and the classes of fresh newbies walk in for their first food running shift or serving follow, they all think it is too harsh when they are told right off the bat that any eating on the job is grounds for termination. (One of our sous used to go postal about seeing the chewing mouths while servers were walking around the kitchen to pick up any of their orders, get more silverware from dish, etc.! ) I understand. First it is against health code because it is unsanitary and second it is contributing to food cost.