Election topic: Tipping expectations at fast casual restaurants vary in Borderland

As more candidates enter the 2016 presidential race, some strange issues are coming up — like whether you should tip at a fast casual restaurant such as Chipotle.

A pit-stop for lunch at a Chipotle for Hillary Clinton on her way to Iowa last week has turned into a major talking point for her Republican rivals, and pundits alike.

“Hillary’s going to raise $2.5 billion,” Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, a candidate for president, said last week. “That’s a lot of Chipotle my friends.”

Bloomberg reports Clinton did not leave a tip when she visited the Chipotle in Ohio. Since then, the Internet has exploded with opinions decrying or defending it.

That Chipotle did have a tip jar, as does the one in west El Paso.

But being somewhere in between fast food and a sit-down restaurant makes expectations murky for tipping. ABC-7 asked El Pasoans if they tip there or other places like Starbucks and recieved a variety of reactions.

“I usually pay with a card, and they don’t have you sign anything,” said one man outside of the Westside Chipotle Tuesday. “So no, I haven’t tipped.”

It’s kind of a gray area in etiquette for what to do at places where the food or drink is prepared there but not necessarily served at a table. Customers and businesses in the Borderland are reacting to changing expectations.

At the Chipotle on Mesa Street in west El Paso, staff told ABC-7 they don’t really expect everyone to tip every time. Some were surprised that Clinton didn’t, if only because she’s a major political candidate with lots of eyes on her. Otherwise, the only time they really expect tips is if someone has a very large or complex order.

At Kinley’s House, a local coffee and sort-of fast casual place further down Mesa to Downtown, staff said they don’t expect tips automatically.

“Typically,” said marketing director George White,”I see tipping as more of an incentive for the team to put in that extra step to ensure that the drink gets out consistently and quickly.”

While workers at Kinley’s all make at least minimum wage, servers at traditional restaurants can make as little as $2.13 an hour, which White has also done. In situations like that, tipping can be a huge deal.

“Oh, incredibly important,” White said. “Every table, we went the extra mile. You know, if they wanted more ice, if they wanted more chips, we were always on it. But, it doesn’t seem genuine, because it seems like we’re only working for the tips. We’re not working for the love of the food or the drinks, and that’s kind of what we’ve got going on here.”