Restaurant Fees

[storewanderer]

I recently dealt with a pizza place. This is one of those order at counter type places, but food is brought out to your table and they sort of kind of provide drink service at the table and let you open a tab if you are drinking and pay when you leave.

They have a 3% fee assessed regardless of payment method "to help provide employee benefits" but you can ask for this fee to get removed from your bill if you don't want to pay it.

Then as it is not uncommon for restaurants to charge an automatic gratuity on parties larger than 5, 6, 7, whatever, however, this place does it differently. If your order total is over $120, you get hit with an automatic "large order fee." The excuse for this is due to the order at counter model they do not track how large the party size is, so if someone is ordering $120 worth it must be a large group... Also the 3% fee above is included when their system computes whether or not to charge a "large order fee." A large 3 topping pizza runs in the high $30's at this place (no different from the local Round Table) so 3 pizzas will basically put you over $120 and you will get assessed this "large order fee." Also you still get given the option to tip even after the system applies a 3% fee+17% fee. I cannot believe a to go 3 pizza order is getting hit with 20% additional fees.

So basically if you spend $120 here you pay an extra 20% in additional fees. Is this not excessive? I fail to see how this type of policy makes sense. I will never give another cent of business to this place.

Is this type of thing getting more common? I know 2-4% credit card surcharges are getting a lot more common at restaurants, and I have multiple local restaurants I will generally no longer go to due to that. I don't really care about a 20 cent fee on a $10 bill if the prices are fair/bargain, but if the prices are already high that is enough to make me find somewhere else to go.

[veteran+]

I recently dealt with a pizza place. This is one of those order at counter type places, but food is brought out to your table and they sort of kind of provide drink service at the table and let you open a tab if you are drinking and pay when you leave.

They have a 3% fee assessed regardless of payment method "to help provide employee benefits" but you can ask for this fee to get removed from your bill if you don't want to pay it.

Then as it is not uncommon for restaurants to charge an automatic gratuity on parties larger than 5, 6, 7, whatever, however, this place does it differently. If your order total is over $120, you get hit with an automatic "large order fee." The excuse for this is due to the order at counter model they do not track how large the party size is, so if someone is ordering $120 worth it must be a large group... Also the 3% fee above is included when their system computes whether or not to charge a "large order fee." A large 3 topping pizza runs in the high $30's at this place (no different from the local Round Table) so 3 pizzas will basically put you over $120 and you will get assessed this "large order fee." Also you still get given the option to tip even after the system applies a 3% fee+17% fee. I cannot believe a to go 3 pizza order is getting hit with 20% additional fees.

So basically if you spend $120 here you pay an extra 20% in additional fees. Is this not excessive? I fail to see how this type of policy makes sense. I will never give another cent of business to this place.

Is this type of thing getting more common? I know 2-4% credit card surcharges are getting a lot more common at restaurants, and I have multiple local restaurants I will generally no longer go to due to that. I don't really care about a 20 cent fee on a $10 bill if the prices are fair/bargain, but if the prices are already high that is enough to make me find somewhere else to go.

Everything at every level is being monetized. Pretty soon we will be charged a fee to walk through the door because it is a "convenience fee" for the customer.

It boggles the mind that an employer is soliciting help to pay for employee benefits. So now as consumers we are expected to "work" (like bagging our groceeries, etc.) to spend our money and function as a pseudo "employer" to pay employee benefits AND be thankful for reduced service. Also to be made to feel like the business is doing a favor to us.

You just can't make this stuff up. This parlays into other businesses like not being able to repair stuff nor "own" stuff.

[BillyGr]

Then as it is not uncommon for restaurants to charge an automatic gratuity on parties larger than 5, 6, 7, whatever, however, this place does it differently. If your order total is over $120, you get hit with an automatic "large order fee." The excuse for this is due to the order at counter model they do not track how large the party size is, so if someone is ordering $120 worth it must be a large group... Also the 3% fee above is included when their system computes whether or not to charge a "large order fee." A large 3 topping pizza runs in the high $30's at this place (no different from the local Round Table) so 3 pizzas will basically put you over $120 and you will get assessed this "large order fee." Also you still get given the option to tip even after the system applies a 3% fee+17% fee. I cannot believe a to go 3 pizza order is getting hit with 20% additional fees.

So basically if you spend $120 here you pay an extra 20% in additional fees. Is this not excessive? I fail to see how this type of policy makes sense. I will never give another cent of business to this place.

Sounds like you need to find a better pizza place

Unless this is just something odd in that area - looking at a local pizza place here (which I used to think of being higher priced than others) they are $15.99 for a plain pizza and $2 per topping (unless you want chicken, prosciutto, eggplant or sundried tomatoes), and their highest priced specialty pizzas (which all have at least one of those "special" toppings) are $26.99.

So, you'd be good for at least 4 of those if they charged such a fee/gratuity (which they don't). Unfortunately, it might be a bit cold by the time it gets to where you are .

[ClownLoach]

It does seem like there are a handful of bad actor restaurants that are basically screwing over their employees by putting massive service fees on their bills, like 18%, and when you read the fine print on the last page of the menu they reveal this is not a tip and doesn't go to the server. So they basically have marked up the food 18% instead of changing the actual menu price and the increase is coming out of the pay for the server. I do think this will stop quickly as the servers quit and go work elsewhere; there is still a labor shortage in the food services industry.

[storewanderer]

It does seem like there are a handful of bad actor restaurants that are basically screwing over their employees by putting massive service fees on their bills, like 18%, and when you read the fine print on the last page of the menu they reveal this is not a tip and doesn't go to the server. So they basically have marked up the food 18% instead of changing the actual menu price and the increase is coming out of the pay for the server. I do think this will stop quickly as the servers quit and go work elsewhere; there is still a labor shortage in the food services industry.

I hope something gives. I'd rather see the backlash be from customers, but having it from employees is just as impactful. Many customers I talk to do not seem to see much problem with junk fees like this, and they just leave tips on top of the junk fees and go about their business.

[ClownLoach]

It does seem like there are a handful of bad actor restaurants that are basically screwing over their employees by putting massive service fees on their bills, like 18%, and when you read the fine print on the last page of the menu they reveal this is not a tip and doesn't go to the server. So they basically have marked up the food 18% instead of changing the actual menu price and the increase is coming out of the pay for the server. I do think this will stop quickly as the servers quit and go work elsewhere; there is still a labor shortage in the food services industry.

I hope something gives. I'd rather see the backlash be from customers, but having it from employees is just as impactful. Many customers I talk to do not seem to see much problem with junk fees like this, and they just leave tips on top of the junk fees and go about their business.

The 3% to 5% junk fees are common and pretty much ignored now. But the bad actors are the ones sometimes slapping a 18% fee on top of the 3%-5% fee in an effort to rob the server of their tips. Those are the ones that are thankfully getting called out, review-bombed and Reddit topics. I am sure most of the customers are fooled by that 18% service fee and think it's a tip, if they realized they needed to pay 5% inflation fee, 18% service fee AND 20% tip they would probably blow up.

[storewanderer]

It does seem like there are a handful of bad actor restaurants that are basically screwing over their employees by putting massive service fees on their bills, like 18%, and when you read the fine print on the last page of the menu they reveal this is not a tip and doesn't go to the server. So they basically have marked up the food 18% instead of changing the actual menu price and the increase is coming out of the pay for the server. I do think this will stop quickly as the servers quit and go work elsewhere; there is still a labor shortage in the food services industry.

I hope something gives. I'd rather see the backlash be from customers, but having it from employees is just as impactful. Many customers I talk to do not seem to see much problem with junk fees like this, and they just leave tips on top of the junk fees and go about their business.

The 3% to 5% junk fees are common and pretty much ignored now. But the bad actors are the ones sometimes slapping a 18% fee on top of the 3%-5% fee in an effort to rob the server of their tips. Those are the ones that are thankfully getting called out, review-bombed and Reddit topics. I am sure most of the customers are fooled by that 18% service fee and think it's a tip, if they realized they needed to pay 5% inflation fee, 18% service fee AND 20% tip they would probably blow up.

These are the same restaurant customers who feel offended by a "pay at table" payment device that completes payment plus tip right in front of the customer before the customer gets up for some reason and like it better when a server takes their credit card and disappears for 5 minutes then returns with a slip of paper for them to write a tip amount in on, requiring the restaurant to go through and manually key in the tip amounts after the customer is long gone and manually a process ripe for error/fraud. Reasons I've heard include "I shouldn't have to process my own card" and "I don't like the server standing over me as I input the tip amount."

[veteran+]

Yep, that would bother me as well.

[BillyGr]

It does seem like there are a handful of bad actor restaurants that are basically screwing over their employees by putting massive service fees on their bills, like 18%, and when you read the fine print on the last page of the menu they reveal this is not a tip and doesn't go to the server. So, they basically have marked up the food 18% instead of changing the actual menu price and the increase is coming out of the pay for the server. I do think this will stop quickly as the servers quit and go work elsewhere; there is still a labor shortage in the food services industry.

I hope something gives. I'd rather see the backlash be from customers, but having it from employees is just as impactful. Many customers I talk to do not seem to see much problem with junk fees like this, and they just leave tips on top of the junk fees and go about their business.

The 3% to 5% junk fees are common and pretty much ignored now. But the bad actors are the ones sometimes slapping a 18% fee on top of the 3%-5% fee in an effort to rob the server of their tips. Those are the ones that are thankfully getting called out, review-bombed and Reddit topics. I am sure most of the customers are fooled by that 18% service fee and think it's a tip, if they realized they needed to pay 5% inflation fee, 18% service fee AND 20% tip they would probably blow up.

Seems like if you see that 18%, you will think it is a tip, maybe leave a tiny bit more (if you normally leave 20% or whatever) and just go. If the employees are not happy, that would be up to them to talk to their owners and get it fixed or just leave (and then the owner will have to fix it, or the same will happen to any newly hired staff).

That, of course, assumes that when the 18% goes to the restaurant, they aren't actually using it (or some of it) to offer a pay rate more similar to a non-tipped place (in which case the employees might be fine with it), and could actually be the case even if it states in fine print that it is not a tip (since they aren't necessarily getting that exact 18%, but are getting something extra since the restaurant is collecting more up front).

[ClownLoach]

I hope something gives. I'd rather see the backlash be from customers, but having it from employees is just as impactful. Many customers I talk to do not seem to see much problem with junk fees like this, and they just leave tips on top of the junk fees and go about their business.

The 3% to 5% junk fees are common and pretty much ignored now. But the bad actors are the ones sometimes slapping a 18% fee on top of the 3%-5% fee in an effort to rob the server of their tips. Those are the ones that are thankfully getting called out, review-bombed and Reddit topics. I am sure most of the customers are fooled by that 18% service fee and think it's a tip, if they realized they needed to pay 5% inflation fee, 18% service fee AND 20% tip they would probably blow up.

Seems like if you see that 18%, you will think it is a tip, maybe leave a tiny bit more (if you normally leave 20% or whatever) and just go. If the employees are not happy, that would be up to them to talk to their owners and get it fixed or just leave (and then the owner will have to fix it, or the same will happen to any newly hired staff).

That, of course, assumes that when the 18% goes to the restaurant, they aren't actually using it (or some of it) to offer a pay rate more similar to a non-tipped place (in which case the employees might be fine with it), and could actually be the case even if it states in fine print that it is not a tip (since they aren't necessarily getting that exact 18%, but are getting something extra since the restaurant is collecting more up front).

Usually the restaurants doing the higher wage/higher price brag about what they are doing as a social experiment and such, and usually they don't allow tipping at all or reduce the amount to 5% or 10% max to not insult customers who really want to compliment the service.