re: What's behind racial differences in restaurant tipping?

I waited tables in college.

I would have fought you to the death to wait on an Asian table. Usually ate family style, always ordered things as they came with no special instructions, always consolidated item requests instead of making me run back and forth 47 times, never wanted to split the bill, never argued charges, and always left a generous cash tip. Yes, they got my best service and attention not because I like Asians more than other races, but because they were good patrons to work with.

I'd have preferred to chew my own arm off than wait on a black table. Special requests galore, ridiculously complicated drink orders that were never right (half pineapple, some orange juice, malibu, some of that hypnotic, cherry juice, you can bring me more cherries, etc.), always splitting bills down to the cent ("no I didn't have any spinach and artichoke dip, take that $0.76 off my bill"), not wanting to be charged for that extra side item you requested, or arguing that it never came out at all, and as always, that fateful phrase, "You can keep the change" that means you just made 3 dollars on a $77 bill because he gave you four 20s. No, they didn't get my best service, and I hated waiting on them not because they were black, but because they were a huge pain in my arse with few exceptions.

Come at me. Call me a racist, I don't care. The proof was in the low tip and all the bullshite you had to put up with. Not worth it.

That was almost a decade ago, and yes, I'm still mad about it.