When it comes to social etiquette, there are certain unwritten rules and regulations that everyone is expected to adhere to. Saying "please" and "thank you" is a big one, as is holding open a door for someone behind you, or letting people out of a room before trying to go into it.
And, in American culture in particular, the amount you give as a tip on a bill says a lot about you as a person.
In other countries, this isn't so much of a big deal. Restaurant-goers would be expected to tip maybe 10-15 per cent in the UK, for example, but it really isn't enforced at all. If the service is bad, or the establishment is more of a buffet type place, or even if you don't feel like tipping, nobody's going to come after you and demand that you cough up an extra couple of bucks.
But, in the USA, it's a whole different ballgame.
If you're going to dine out in the states, a tip of around 15-20 per cent is usually expected at the end of the meal, regardless of how much you actually spent on the food. If you're just picking up a casual cheeseburger and fries, this will usually amount to only a few dollars extra on your tab. But, if you're splashing out big time, you could end up owing hundreds to the servers.
So, when Jay-Z went out this weekend for his friend's birthday, he didn't hold back - and it ended up costing him big time on the tip.
According to Page Six, the rapper kicked off the evening's celebrations with a $13,000 meal at a Japanese restaurant, then proceeded to visit Made in Mexico - a New York bar - where he splashed out $9000 on drinks alone. And that was just the start of it.
For the main event, Jay-Z took his buddies to the Playroom, where he proceeded to buy 40 bottles of champagne (his own brand - Ace of Spades - of course), which cost a whopping $1,200 each. That's about $200 per glass of bubbly - which is probably more than you or I have ever spent on an entire meal.
By the time the group was done, they'd racked up a $74,000 - plus an extra $6,000 in tax, of course.
Jay-Z, being the gentleman that he is, covered the tab - including the 15 per cent tip.
However, when a picture of the receipt began circulating on the internet, people were outraged - not at how much he'd spent, though, but at how little he had tipped.
"I typically tip 18-20%, this bozo spends $91,000 and only tips 12%?? Jay-Z has 99 problem but being a weak ass tipper ain’t one!" said one person on Twitter (who apparently couldn't work out that he paid 15 per cent before tax).
"Not even 20% smh," wrote another.
However, other people were more focused on the fact that Jay-Z just left a server more than 10gs for a night's work.
The Playroom, meanwhile, just seemed grateful to have the business.
"First of all Thank God for everything!! What happen last Night has become the topic of discussion on social Media but for us was more then [sic] the money!!" they wrote on Instagram. "Having the GOAT #jayz #rocnationin the building was priceless!!! Thanks to everyone that came out and behaved!!!"
The way I see it, everyone in this story is a winner: the bar got some free advertising, some lucky members of staff got a year's bills paid for a couple of hours work, and Jay-Z got a pretty sweet night on the town.