Tacky or Not? A server picking up the tip before you leave

The end of the meal is filled with the possibility of redemption (a perfect dessert, a well-timed check or a visit from the manager to see what could be better) or the agony of a meal that won’t end (food in your lap, a forgotten entree or a server who has appeared to leave the building). But in between those meal-saving or meal-ruining moments is a whole other class of awkward possibilities as Jeff Yacos discovered. After the jump, we consider exactly why a server might pick up the tip before a diner has left and whether it’s the right call.