Awful place to work - Server/Waiter La Popular Employee Review

Easy and not very busy

not a lot of work

Overall, La Popular is a decent serving job with steady tips, largely due to the Toast system where most customers tip around 20%. The tip structure can be a bit high, with 7.5% going to the bar and 2% to the food runner on night shifts (day shifts only tip out to the bar), so you usually take home about 3/4 of your tips. The minimal side work is a plus—just one bucket and one assigned station to close out each shift. Daily tip deposits through the Kickfin app are super convenient, so you get paid directly to your bank every day.

There’s a lot of favoritism, and the new GM is strict but doesn’t always lead by example (no phones allowed, yet she's often on hers). Another downside is that some coworkers provide poor service, which reflects badly on everyone, hurting return business for good servers. While it’s decent money with manageable tasks, the high tip-out, lack of strong leadership, and impact of others’ service on tips can be frustrating.