Culture Shock

    

    I will talk about two of my cultural shock experiences related to tipping in America. 

    The first experience was when I went to a American restaurant for dinner, I felt really good. Food was delicious and the server was very kind. He explained about the menu and came to our table often, asked we were enjoying our dinner, continued fill the glasses the water. Also, he brought the bill to the table. His attitude was very different from my country because servers in Korea don't come to the table until customers call them. But then, I was very surprised that I had to give him a tip for 20% of the food. Even the food was expensive compared to Korea, but do I have to pay more? I couldn't understand it. It felt not good when I had to use a calculator with my phone at the restaurant. I've never given tips at a restaurant in Korea because there is no tip culture and food is much cheaper than America. So, I started to hesitate to go to a restaurant especially for dinner. Because I have to give a tip more at dinner time!    

    The second experience was later, when I went to a coffee shop to buy some cake and coffee. I was going to pay with my card; there was a tip sign on the screen. I didn't know what to do, should I tip for the coffee? I couldn't ask the employee. I just chose 5% tip, the lowest option on the screen. Later, I found out that you don't have to tip at coffee shops. What a relief. I also heard that the reason why customers give tips to servers is because they don't get minimum wage. 

    Now I can understand somewhat the tipping culture, however I'm still wondering why customers have to give tips instead of restaurant owners giving minimum wage to their employees.