What should you tip at a bar?

Forsyth Mo. - Wow. Talk about being blind-sided, recently! I was at a local venue, ordered some beers and then paid my tab with about a 20% tip. An individual to my left looked at the bill and then proceeded to berate me as to to low amount. He was drinking only water (a free item thus far, and left a $5 tip)

'See, he loudly pronounced. Now that's a good tip..... '

Really? I thought the man to be a complete idiot. Who'd give a bartender $5 for a glass of water? But that did make me wonder. Was I perhaps behind the times? Was a 20% tip no longer acceptable in an age of cell phone imposed isolation....? Had I missed a step? Time to investigate!

So, I decided to go visit other local watering holes in Taney County to see just what was considered acceptable. Seriously, what do servers living in Taney County Missouri expect, whether they are serving food or alcohol or both? What's the norm in 2019? What's considered acceptable or just an insult? Is it 20%, 30%, 40%... or what? What about those who are working and making an income versus those who are on a fixed income?

The answer to that question will be in a post I plan to present in the near future! So, stay tuned!

Update: After making a road trip to Branson and visiting a few watering holes, my eyes were really opened. Most of the bartenders I talked with were making well in excess of 40% on tips! The average take for them was over $200 per day with a 'slow' day coming in at just $100! In addition, some bars were offering health insurance, profit sharing and even pension plans. Wow! I guess it must suck to work in Forsyth and other close by communities if you happen to work in a service profession.