paying the bill without making the table weird

The tip is usually not included, and asking is normal

Standard tipping in Mexico City restaurants is ten to fifteen percent and it is almost never added to the bill automatically. Large groups are the exception - some places add propina incluida for tables of six or more, which is exactly why ¿incluye propina? is worth asking rather than assuming. It is an ordinary question, not a suspicious one.

Card machines complicate the moment. The waiter brings the terminal to the table, asks whether to add the tip to the card, and often asks for the percentage out loud. You can also say yo pongo la propina and leave it in cash, which plenty of people prefer.

Between friends the vocabulary changes completely. Hacer vaquita means everyone throws in - literally, making a little cow, from the old idea of a shared pot. Te transfiero is the default settle-up now that bank transfers between Mexican accounts are instant and free. Nobody is dividing the bill with a calculator app at the table. One person pays and the rest transfer.