Servers Who Waited On Celebrities Are Sharing How Much They Were Tipped, And It's Honestly Surprising
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Recently, I rounded up some pretty interesting stories from the servers of the BuzzFeed Community, who shared what kind of tip the celebs they waited on left for them. In the comments, more people shared similar experiences they've had — both good and bad.
Here's how 16 celebs tipped, according to their servers:
Disclaimer: These stories have not been verified. The users are supposedly speaking from their own experiences.
Some entries have been edited for length/clarity.
1."Jack Black was a regular of mine, and he overheard me asking my manager for an extra shift because I was $50 short on rent. He tipped me $100 on a $20 tab, and after that, he never left less than $50."
"He's the sweetest man EVER!"
2."When I was 14 (and very, very poor and down), I was working at a small Vietnamese restaurant in Orange County. Keanu Reeves and his girlfriend Jennifer Syme came in, and after I served them, left me an envelope full of cash — mostly hundreds. They left me an envelope a week for almost five months, with random people dropping them off. Each envelope had a little note in it that said inspirational stuff like, 'We’re still rooting for you' and 'We’re really proud of you, keep pushing.'"
"They stopped weekly in April of that year. I found out Jennifer died in a car accident. Keanu still sent envelopes for a while, but never a note."
3."While in college in the late 1980s, I worked at Jim McMullen's in NYC on the Upper East Side. One night after we closed the restaurant, Donald Trump came in with his then-wife Ivana, their kids, and their friends. In total, there were about 12 of them. Jim asked me if I'd mind serving them, and I said I didn't. So, he opened the kitchen and joined them, and I brought them their dinner and drinks."
"The check was about $1,300 — a lot back then. When I dropped the check, Jim said, 'No check' and brushed me away. Normally, when your check is comped, you leave a generous tip — sometimes, up to half the check (or even more). When I bussed the table after, some two hours later, under Donald's plate was a neatly folded $20 bill."
4."I was Vice President Kamala Harris's server back when she was CA Attorney General. She was a great tipper and super nice to all the waitstaff!"
5."The absolute best celebrity I ever waited on was Howard Stern. I was new to cocktail waitressing, and I spilled champagne all over his now-wife Beth Ostrosky. He still tipped me — cash in hand! — when they moved from the cocktail bar to their dining table. Very kind!"
6."I had a friend who waited on Jennifer Lopez right after she got super famous. She and her entourage ran my friend ragged, insulted him, held up the table for more than three hours, and completely stiffed him on the tip."
"And that's on top of throwing a massive fit that they didn't have her favorite bottled water, making the manager run to a store to get it for her. He was a great server, and she was a nightmare."
7."Back in the day, I waited on Victoria Beckham. She was not so friendly and an average tipper."
8."Tracy Morgan used to come into where I worked. He was just like his characters on TV — boisterous and funny, making a scene. He would leave, like, a 50% tip."
"Such a nice guy."
9."I waited on Bret Michaels of Poison. I didn't know who he was until after, but he was super nice and tipped really well."
10."I work at a place in Charleston, and since Righteous Gemstones films in the area, Danny McBride developed a good rapport with the owner. They’ve had many kick-off parties before filming and wrap parties when done here. He’s even come by randomly with friends and family and is really nice to everyone here and a good tipper."
11."I served many celebrities back in the day, including Magic Johnson. He was a regular and an awesome tipper. He was also a super kind person and humble as hell."
12."Earlier this year, I served AEW wrestler Keith Lee and his wife and fellow wrestler Mia Yim. The bill was, like, $100, and they tipped $80."
"He was really nice. He gave me an autograph after he was done, and we took a picture."
13."Jon Voight was a regular. Oh my! He was so sweet, polite, interested in his surroundings, and a great tipper."
14."The worst celeb I served was a fellow countryman, Rodrigo Santoro. He used to be a regular. He was very specific with food and tipped no more than 5% on a high tab."
"I guess sometimes actors forget they were in our shoes before stardom."
15."Around 2007, Ryan Gosling was in my hometown and stopped by my pizza place with some others. He came in toward close, but he rounded up a $55 check to $100 and took pics with everyone there who wanted one."
16.And finally: "I tended a cash-only bar in Chicago for years. It was a proper neighborhood bar but near a few famous theaters, so we got a ton of celebrities in all the time. The two BEST customers were Rachel McAdams and Michael Shannon. In both cases, they'd pay for things one by one with 10s, leaving all the change (nothing cost more than $6-$7) as a tip, and were unfailingly polite without asking to be acknowledged."
"They were just two normal people who happened to be more famous and have slightly more money than our regulars."
