$101 — it was a server’s dream.

The gentleman asked Ryan Ludwig and his fellow bartender what the best tip they had ever received was and, upon hearing $100, decided to raise it. Years later, Ludwig still smiles at the memory.

Ludwig also has his worst tip branded in his memory: 30 cents on a $29 tab. Servers have good memories — they do, after all, have to remember everyone’s order. A tip isn’t an anonymous donation seized and forgotten — it’s the foundation upon which a customer’s reputation is built. Good tippers are remembered and taken care of. Bad tippers are remembered, too.

Good or bad, tipping is a $5 billion-a-year practice, according to an article on www.counterpunch.org. Americans get served a lot — the National Restaurant Association found that one in five American meals are prepared in a commercial setting.

Tips are a part of life, especially in a college town, where serving jobs are often the only ones that provide the ready cash and flexible schedule students need. Statistics from www.collegegrad.com reveal that about 2.1 million Americans are servers.

The standard tip, according to etiquette Web sites like www.tipping.org, is 15 to 20 percent. But the simple numbers can be deceptive. A tip means a lot more than just a percentage of a total bill.

The sweat and blood joe customer doesn’t see

The primary work of servers is obvious: take orders, refill drinks and bring hot food. But a lot more goes on behind those kitchen doors. In a dynamic restaurant setting, servers have a plethora of duties. Servers Danielle Frederick, Topeka junior, of Lake Bar and Grill, and Emily Hensley, Wichita senior, of Addis Ababa, list some of their duties: sweeping, refilling condiments, rolling silverware, running other servers’ food, pouring drinks when bartender’s are busy, hosting, bussing tables, taking out trash, and breaking down stations in the kitchen. Other restaurants require servers to wash linens or make salads. A good server performs the whole gamut of restaurant duties — for $2.13 an hour.

Yep, $2.13 an hour

What countless customers don’t realize is that the federal minimum hourly wage for servers is $2.13, 41 percent of the federally mandated $5.15 minimum wage, according to the National Restaurant Association. Those two bucks an hour are then taxed, leaving servers often with a $0 paycheck. They depend on their tips to survive. “People don’t realize,” says Amber Tice, Perry senior and Molly McGee’s server, “It’s how we pay for bills, rent, education.”

And tips must be shared too. Frederick has to tip out bartenders, cooks, hosts, and bussers. Regardless of how much she makes.

Food for thought

A server can get very busy quickly. A typical, full five-table section can mean 20 or more guests, all needing food, drinks, and sides of ranch dressing. A 20-to-one ratio can be hard to manage. Ludwig says customers should understand that servers do the best they can – which is exactly what the customer would do in the same situation.

The server is the middleman, says Tice from Molly McGee’s. She says servers must deal with the bartender, owner, manager, kitchen staff, and customers, all of which have different priorities. For example, a customer gets frustrated when he has to wait to be seated while empty tables stand by. But that person doesn’t see that the kitchen is swamped, the servers are dealing with a frozen computer, and the owner is trying to find a plumber who can fix a dishwasher at eight on a Friday night.

Some customers automatically blame servers for things like delayed seating or food. But Flaigle says it’s wrong to assume it’s the server’s fault, as anything – from kitchen efficiency to a host’s pacing – can affect every aspect of a meal.

Hensley says servers know when they make a mistake, and usually understand if a lousy tip ensues. But they hope for compassion. If the guests are servers, they usually get it.

Servers tipping servers

All servers agree, the best tippers are those who have done serving work themselves.

“I tip well because I know what it’s like to make two bucks an hour,” Hensley says.

In an informal poll of Lawrence servers, five out of five say that they tip at least 20 percent, and often more. Hensley says there’s an “unspoken rule” that servers tip well. She tips between 25 and 30 percent. While that may not be feasible for every one, better to err on the side of generosity.

So remember the next time you go out to eat, take a look around, and remember, your tip has to go a long way. Your server’s probably earned it in more ways than you can tell.