Maybe the service on the $150 bill was not deserving of a tip.

Apparently these waiters think that what they do is actually worthy tipping. I welcome them to travel to Asia and observe tipping approaching 0% in most countries.

Well I simply cannot agree with a 15% or even 20% tipping policy! Here is why; say you buy just a sandwich and soda for 10-15$, then I would leave about 2-3$ (20%) tip. Say I go to a fancy restaurant with my wife and the bill comes to 120$, including a 40$ bottle of wine. I would typically leave about 10% (on total before taxes), sometimes more (if I was very pleased with the service) and sometimes less (if displeased). I am a retired Professional Engineer having worked more than 35 years after completing a graduate degree and even at the top of my career had every trouble making 50$/hour (as a senior associate of a large consulting engineering firm). Even at a zero wage from the employer, a server working a 1.5 hour sitting of only 3 customers (tables), spending 120$ would make 54$ in tips or 36$/hour at 15% tip (plus any employer wages). I consider this excessive given that the average national wage (all industries combined) is about 23$/hour! I am certainly not here to subsidize or compensate my server given his particular financial situation and I leave this up to governments (via student bursaries, loans, unemployment etc.), government that taxes me heavily on my revenues whereas often tips go undeclared and untaxed. Also I do not see why I would tip somebody 15% or 20% on a 250$ bottle of wine as the service or effort required is not going to be substantially different. I consider this tipping policy an industry/employer fabrication to entice people to join their ranks (case in point: cruise ships) and many times I have suffered from very poor service given the long waits because the kitchen was lagging. Yes this is indirectly the server’s responsibility as he is the restaurants representative/intermediary and will have to suffer his employer’s inadequacies. Lastly and not least in the present economic situation we try to support the restaurant industry by visiting their restaurants (which is not the case any more for many). Yes we enjoy the visit and in return the restaurant owner/server profit (win/win situation), but we will not make up the 20% plus in industry activity decline by paying excessive tips and occasionally even suffering bad overall service because of cutbacks. And that is the way I see it and it is not a matter of ignorance!