Winter weather brings generosity out of hungry Chicagoans. View Full Caption Getty Images/Scott Olson (files)

CHICAGO — Chicagoans tend to ease their grip on money when extreme winter weather hits — but only a little bit.

Data provided by GrubHub, a Chicago-based online food-ordering service, shows that when Chicago is frozen or snowed under, city residents tip at a higher rate than on average.

On Feb. 1, during this year's big snowstorm, residents using the service tipped delivery drivers at a rate of 14.9 percent of the bill, the company said, based on an analysis of online receipts.

Throughout the year, Chicagoans tip an average of 13.4 percent. That climbs slightly to 13.6 percent during the winter. GrubHub's national average is about 14 percent.

Source: GrubHub and Weather Underground

Still, the tipping rate during the Super Bowl snowstorm was lower than that of Jan. 6, 2014, during the coldest period of last year's "Chiberia" experience. The tipping rate that day across the city was 15.4 percent.

Hattie Hopkins, 19, who lives in the Gold Coast, said on cold days she is more generous.

"I normally tip 25 percent for delivery, but on a cold day, I tip about 35 percent of the total," Hopkins said.

"The fact that I didn't have to go out in the cold to get food is a big deal for me," said Hopkins, who admits to ordering out more during winter.

While the cold brings out generosity across Chicago, certain neighborhoods give more than others, the data shows. According to GrubHub, the most generous 'hoods during the winter are:

• Edison Park (14.6 percent)

• North Center (14.1 percent)

• Avondale (14.1 percent)

• Bucktown (14.1 percent)

• Norwood Park (14.1 percent)

Like Hopkins, Craig Fox, 34, of Lincoln Park, takes advantage of food delivery services on "super cold days like this."



"I give 10 percent [more than usual] because [the delivery people] have to go outside and deal with the cold weather. Plus, I don't have to drive."

Chai Rou, of Thai Bowl in Lincoln Park, which uses GrubHub's delivery services, has delivered for his family-owned business in the past and has noticed the higher tips.

"It's definitely more frequent during the winter," Rou said. "Sometimes you get surprisingly good tips. People give $5, and you don't expect it."

Still, others, like Zeyad Speih, owner of the Pita Pit in Lincoln Park, said even though customers give larger tips during winter, everything generally balances out throughout the rest of the year.

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