To think that restaurant service charges are getting out of hand?

[Comcor]

Does anyone else object to a service charge being added to their restaurant bill? I’m more than happy to tip, and would usually leave around 10 percent. If it was crap then I won’t.

I have noticed that “discretionary” service charges at restaurants are going up and up (as well as food prices).

I recently ate out and it was a 15% service charge PLUS they charged for water.

Yes - I hate the way recently it seems to be shifting from 10% - which it has always been in the UK as far as I am aware - to 12.5%.

You'll get the usual suspects saying oh well if you can afford to eat out you can afford to tip etc. which in principle I do agree with, but we're in the UK, waiting staff already get minimum wage, a decent restaurant meal for two with wine these days is about £60-100 so even at 10% it's already a healthy amount more per hour than many people make.

I didn't think you were allowed to charge for tap water.

Why don't you just opt out and leave your own tip?

I don't tip unless something is exceptional. Flame me all you want but its not my job to top up the low wages paid by crappy employers. The service charge being added is an import from America, where servers don't get a static wage, so it is completely different to the UK where they get a low but standard wage. I agree its getting ridiculous.

There was a thread about this not long ago and the op was called tight for not leaving a tip.
Yanbu I avoid places that do this and 1 star review them.
Too me it comes across as a scam. Just put prices up and pay your staff more. Simple solution.

A lot of people don't know that the service charge tip goes to the restaurant for the majority of the time, it hardly ever goes to the staff. I asked a waitress this myself when paying via card, the reason being that the company didn't have any way of giving it to the server, and which server was hosting which table etc. So the tips aren't divvied up.

If you want the server to get the tip, pay the tip in cash.

And don't get me started on the prompt to "double tip". When the full amount of the bill, plus service charge is added to the card machine, and then you are prompted "do you want to add tip?". Erm, it's already added....

Maybe they think that people won't notice rising prices if it's split between the food going up and a service charge?

But you'd have to be a bit dim to not notice that your £15 main translates into £70 once starters, a side or two and drinks for two when it used to be not much more than £40 for the same thing.

I do feel sorry for restaurants. They're facing soaring costs at the same time as their customers may be cutting back and looking to get better value for their diminishing disposable income, but hoodwinking and ripping off customers isn't the way to do it.

I heard that too, but vaguely recall someone saying you can charge for ice.

I’m embarrassed for you

I’m embarrassed for you ridiculous comment

A restaurant near me takes 8% and that goes between the staff and a charity. I’d far rather give the staff the cash.

They aren’t charging for tap water, they are charging for the cleaning of the gasses they are served in, the lemon, the electric to freeze the ice and the service for it to be brought for your table.

yanbu about tips but yabu abount tap water.

I wasn't debating if it was morally necessary, more if it was legally required, as apparently it is :

All restaurants in England and Wales that serve alcohol are legally required to give customers free tap water according to the Licensing Act 2003

According to Martin Lewis MSE website.

I agree OP. I hate mandatory tips. I once declined and the waitress looked aghast and got quite assertive asking what had been wrong. The service was just slow and lacking and didn’t warrant a tip.

I couldn't give a shit, who are you again?

I would only tip for something exceptional in the UK. The whole point of going out for a meal is that you pay someone to cook it, bring it to you and clean up. Why would someone need a tip for just doing their job. No one gives me a tip for answering the phone at work no matter how nicely I do it.

Exactly this it's bizarre.

You can ask for it to be removed. I have done recently. I had to fetch my own cutlery and the drinks turned up after three prompts but after the meal, which sat on the side for ages going cold. I’m not paying service on that! If they’re going to put it on automatically there has to be a standard of service.

I work in a pub at the weekend where service is not included on food bills, regardless of the size of the party. We can provide excellent service and still not receive any recognition by way of a tip which sucks when often for large parties the bill is £200+ and you have worked hard to give them a good experience. I get paid a reasonable wage as well so am not doing it for the tips, but it is nice to be recognised when you do a good job.

Tips for us are split between the staff equally regardless of whether they are behind the bar, waiting tables or in the kitchen as we see ourselves as a team who all contribute to the customers experience.

We also don't charge for tap water!

I don't like it either. In fact I don't think tipping has a place in this country. It's not the US where people are literally living off their tips. Staff here should be paid properly.

I always ask for the service charge to be removed. And then If i want to leave a tip (i recently did this and left no tip, when the waiter asked about it i told them: they had been too slow, ignored us when we asked for more drinks, ignored us when we asked for coffee and took so long to bring the bill in the end i went to the till. I asked him to point out where in all that he thought he should be getting a tip)

But i do usually tip, and i always ask if they share with the kitchen, or if the restaurant takes part of them or whatever. Then adjust accordingly.

@MrsE lots of people work hard to provide brilliant service without receiving tips. The scenario you describe is why 'service charge for parties of 6 or more' became the norm much sooner than for every table.

I agree so much of the narrative around tips comes from the US where remuneration and tax for waiting staff works very differently. I hate that system too - employers should pay fair wages.

But there is something a bit unfair about the fact that a table of 10 for example, is less likely to tip well than 5 tables of 2.

I think it's sensible enough to put a 10% service charge on for larger tables as long as they are advised when booking.

I agree, if restaurants want to charge more they should just up their prices by a % rather than adding that as a tip, at least then you know up front what you’re paying.

“who are you” as if this is Facebook and you’re surprised someone you don’t know is commenting 🙄