> I obviously can't state "I'm going to tip you 20%!" at the beginning of the service – I'd look like a deranged person. When I’m at smaller restaurant where t

> I obviously can't state "I'm going to tip you 20%!" at the beginning of the service – I'd look like a deranged person. When I’m at smaller restaurant where the staff doesn’t know me well, and want to signal “I’m going to tip you well!”, I’ll often get an expensive drink at the bar beforehand and massively overtip. The staff obviously talks to each other, and in my non-scientific study, this fairly consistently results in a better service outcome.