Do You Tip For Takeout Food? NH Has a Definite Opinion

If there's one thing everyone feels passionate about...it's tipping. Whether you're going out tonight for a fancy Valentine's Day dinner, or you're just grabbing something on the way home from work, and eating in front of the TV...you'll probably feel compelled to leave a tip if the service is good. Or maybe you won't.

I traditionally have never tipped when I pick up takeout. My feeling has always been that no one brought the food to my table as if I was dining in. And they weren't delivering it to my house. So why tip them as if they were a waitress or a delivery driver?

Well, I got schooled on that last night when I went to pick up food from one of my favorite spots. When I went to pay the bill, my girlfriend noticed I didn't leave a tip. She pointed out that someone had to take the time to insure the order was correct, box up the food, place it in a bag, and make sure it stayed hot until we got there to pick it up. Her rule of thumb is to tip a $5 flat fee. After giving it some thought...I think she's right. I'd never considered that point before.

So I posed the question to a bunch of friends. Here's what they think about tipping on takeout.