The respect tip is bigger than the flirtatious tip, according to Mark Hanby, director of franchise development for The Tilted Kilt, a Scottish-Irish-English-themed pub and sports bar based in Tempe, Ariz.He’s the gentleman in the picture, flanked by Lauren Muscolino (left) and Heather Green, two servers at a local unit of the five-year-old chain.
There are currently 34 Tilted Kilts scattered across the country, with another 40 under development (land procured, ink on the leases dry), 11 of which are physically under construction as I write this.
Hanby talked a bit about the difference between his restaurant and some others that encourage more flirtation from their servers, like Hooters.
The Tilted Kilt has an older demographic, with many of their customers old enough to be the fathers of the servers, and Hanby discourages his servers from flirting with them.
He says the servers make more money by giving good service and being respectful.
I don’t know whether that’s true or not, but Hanby says the average Tilted Kilt server makes more than 30 percent in tips.
-- Bret Thorn at bthorn@nrn.com.
