[borgia]

>Tipping is expected no matter what in the US. There is no incentive to do better here either.

It is expected, yes, but as a European with vast experience in customer service on both sides of the pond, even with expected tips the level of service in US restaurants/bars/etc. is far, far higher than what I'm accustomed to in Europe.

Now it can sometimes be overbearing but overall the experience is generally more welcoming, more friendly and more personal. When I'm eating in an up-scale place in Europe, the staff are generally very professional and quite quiet. Lower down the scale the staff are just "meh".

In the US, even if you go into a chain restaurant at rush hour I've found the staff to be totally engaging, eager to have a chat, find out what you like, recommend you things and then check up on you to see if everything is alright.

That's not to say that it's always great service in US and always mediocre in Europe, but there's definitely an overall different feel to the level of service offered regardless of a tip being expected.