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Cooking Recipes, 1720 E 16th Street, Los Angeles, CA (2026)

09/04/2026

How to tip. By Jennie Carroll

09/04/2026

😭💀 Nothing humbles you faster than lightly bumping into something that LOOKS like an ordinary trash can… only to find out it’s basically a concrete fortress.

I honestly expected it to roll away or tip over like a normal trash can.

Instead? ZERO movement. 😩

It felt like I hit a parking barrier disguised as a trash can. Now my bumper is cracked, the front end is damaged, and my car looks like it’s questioning every decision that led to this moment. 😂

But seriously… WHO decided a trash can needed the strength of a bunker?!

Has anyone else ever hit something that looked harmless but turned out to be practically indestructible? 😭

09/04/2026

💰 I’m happy to tip when the service deserves it—I usually tip well.

But here’s what bothers me: an employee’s wages should be the employer’s responsibility, not something customers are expected to make up for.

I’ll gladly reward great service, but relying on customers to cover the cost of paying your workers? That doesn’t sit right with me.

Pay your employees fairly, price your menu accordingly, and let tipping be a genuine choice—not a substitute for wages.

What do you think? Should customers be responsible for making sure restaurant workers earn a fair income? 🤔

09/04/2026

🤨 When an 18% service charge is already on the bill… are we still supposed to tip?

I recently looked at a restaurant receipt and saw an automatic 18% service charge added to the total. 🍽️

Fair enough. Restaurants can structure their pricing however they choose.

But then I noticed the fine print:

“This charge is NOT a tip or gratuity.”

Wait… what? 😭

If an additional 18% has already been added because of the service, I think it’s understandable for customers to wonder what that charge actually covers.

Does it go toward employee wages?
Operating expenses?
Benefits?
Something else?

And more importantly…

❓ Is another tip expected on top of the 18%?
❓ Are customers essentially being asked to pay twice for service?
❓ If tipping is still expected, why not make that expectation crystal clear?

I’m all for restaurant employees being compensated fairly. 👏 They absolutely deserve to be paid for their work.

But customers also deserve to understand exactly what they’re paying for.

Between service charges, suggested tips, processing fees, and other add-ons, paying a restaurant bill can sometimes feel like solving a math problem instead of simply paying for your meal. 💀

Personally, if an automatic 18% service charge is already included, I wouldn’t automatically assume I need to add another tip unless the restaurant clearly explains that one is still expected.

To me, the biggest issue isn't tipping itself.

It’s transparency.

If the real cost of providing the meal and service is higher, why not build that cost into the menu prices and let customers know upfront?

No guessing.
No surprise percentages.
No awkward moment at the payment screen. 😵‍💫

So what would you do?

If an automatic 18% service charge was already included on your bill, would you leave an additional tip? 👀

09/02/2026

I already know some people are going to have opinions about this… but I’m leaving the sign right where it is. 😅

The kids from a nearby family have been covering the sidewalk in front of my house with chalk drawings pretty regularly. At first, I didn’t think much of it. Kids being kids, right?

But after a while, it started to feel less like harmless neighborhood fun and more like my home’s frontage was becoming a permanent chalkboard. 🤷‍♂️

To be clear, I have nothing against kids, creativity, or letting children have fun outside. I just believe homeowners should be able to set reasonable boundaries about the space directly in front of their property.

I didn’t confront anyone or start an argument. I simply put up a polite sign explaining how I feel about it.

Maybe some people will think I’m being unreasonable. Others might completely understand.

Either way, the sign is staying. 👀

Would you put up a sign, or just let the kids keep drawing?

09/02/2026

🍽️💸 We thought we left a generous tip. The waiter clearly disagreed.

My wife and I had dinner, and our bill came to around $70. Before leaving, we added a $20 tip because we felt the service deserved a genuine thank-you.

That’s nearly 30% of the bill.

But instead of accepting it, the waiter turned it down and told us that if we couldn’t leave at least $35, we shouldn’t be eating out.

Honestly, we didn’t know what to say.

I understand that restaurant workers work hard, and I absolutely believe they deserve fair compensation. I also understand that many servers depend heavily on tips as part of their income.

But when a tip of almost 30% is considered unacceptable, it makes me wonder how far tipping expectations have shifted.

If customers are expected to meet a specific minimum before their gratuity is considered acceptable, is it still really a tip—or has it become an expected part of the price of dining out?

We weren't trying to leave a bad tip. We were trying to show appreciation.

So where do you stand?

Was $20 on a $70 dinner a reasonable tip, or should customers now expect to leave $35 or more?

And if you were in our position, would that response have surprised you too? 👇

09/02/2026

you taking the money still or no....

09/02/2026

🚨 When a “Package Trap” Turns Into Someone Else’s Problem…

I never expected picking up an unattended package from a neighbor’s porch to end with my car smelling like something died inside it. 😳

The package had been sitting outside for quite a while, with no one around. I assumed it had simply been forgotten, so I picked it up and placed it in the back seat before heading out.

A short time later, the package tipped over and opened.

Whatever was inside spilled all over my seats, carpeting, and interior panels. The odor was absolutely horrible—I actually had to pull over because I was getting sick from the smell.

That’s when I discovered the package wasn’t accidentally left outside at all. It was apparently being used as a bait package designed to catch someone who might take it.

I understand wanting to discourage package theft. But if your “trap” damages another person’s property, where does that cross the line from protecting your belongings into creating a problem for someone else?

And now I’m being blamed for picking up something that was intentionally left sitting outside in plain sight.

If the goal was to protect the package, why not simply bring it inside or use a safer theft-deterrent method?

Instead, a supposed lesson for thieves became a nightmare for my car.

I’m all for protecting your property—but setting a trap that can cause damage to someone else’s property doesn’t feel like justice to me.

Would you consider this fair revenge, or did the neighbor take things way too far?

09/02/2026

🍽️💸 When Tipping Starts Feeling Like a Requirement…

Tipping used to be a way to recognize great service. Now, some restaurants are putting the pressure front and center before you even sit down.

One sign breaks it down like this:

💵 $120 meal
👩‍🍳 Server earns $3.50/hour
💰 Expected tip: $24
➡️ Total: $144

Then comes the message: “If you can’t afford to tip, you can’t afford to dine out.”

That statement is where the conversation gets complicated.

Of course restaurant workers deserve fair pay. No question. But should customers be made to feel guilty for a wage system they didn't create?

A tip is supposed to be voluntary—a way to say, “Thank you for the service.” When the expectation is posted before the meal and backed by guilt, it can start feeling less like gratitude and more like an obligation.

People are already dealing with rising rent, groceries, gas, and everyday expenses. Adding another layer of financial pressure every time someone wants to eat out can make dining feel less accessible.

If a restaurant needs to put a lecture on the door explaining why customers should make up the difference in wages, maybe the bigger question is whether the business should simply build those labor costs into its prices.

What do you think? Is a sign like this a fair explanation of how servers are paid—or has tipping culture gone too far? 🤔

09/01/2026

🍽️ Can We Question Tipping Culture Without Being Called Cheap?

I had a dinner bill that came close to $500, and when I got the receipt, the suggested tip amounts were sitting around $90–$110. 😳

That’s when I started wondering: when did those numbers become the expectation instead of simply a suggestion?

The service was perfectly fine.

Our order was taken.
The food came out.
Drinks were refilled.
We had a few check-ins.

Nothing went wrong, but there also wasn’t anything extraordinary about the experience.

I still left a tip. I wasn’t trying to punish the server or disrespect the work they did. But because my tip wasn’t exactly what the receipt suggested, the atmosphere suddenly felt different.

And that’s what bothers me.

We’re constantly told to follow “industry standards,” but why can’t customers question the system itself?

If I order a $60 steak instead of a $20 burger, does serving me suddenly require three times the effort? Usually, the basic service is still the same.

That’s the strange thing about percentage-based tipping. When menu prices increase, the expected tip increases automatically—even when the amount of work involved may not change at all.

I’m not against tipping. I’m happy to reward excellent service, and I believe good servers deserve to be appreciated.

But there’s a difference between a tip being earned and a customer feeling like they’re being judged for not meeting an expected percentage.

And saying, “If you don’t like it, stay home,” doesn’t really address the issue.

Maybe the real conversation we should be having is whether tipping should remain a voluntary reward—or whether it has quietly become another required cost of dining out.

What do you think? 🤔

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