3 ms·

Still plenty of restaurants with “service charge” at the bottom of the menu

by midasuni 4y ago

mdrzn 4y ago
That's at worst a couple euros per person, very far from a 10%-20% upcharge.
- midasuni 4y ago
  I have a photo of a menu from Munich earlier this year, not a particularly fancy restaurant - just a pizza place with a table on the street. 12.5% service charge at the bottom.
  - euroderf 4y ago
    But it was up front, in genuine print, not buried on a terminal.
    - yardstick 4y ago
      Just wait to you get to Italy or Spain, sometimes restaurants in very touristy areas will charge different service charges based on seating area. Eg nice area is 20% or more service charge, vs maybe 12.5% for a table without a view. You don’t see that until you are already in your seat, and then you have to deal with the social awkwardness of asking to move tables (which some don’t do because they are some mixture of introverted or embarrassed).
iLoveOncall 4y ago
Yep, in the UK it's almost always a 12.5% service charge. Almost always with terrible service of course.
- zarzavat 4y ago
  This is because nobody carries any cash around anymore. And it's not socially acceptable for waiters to ask customers how much they want to tip. You just tap your card on the portable terminal. As for the service being terrible, it can be. But British people generally don't like to be interrupted during their meal. So the waitstaff have a tougher job to be present but not harassing.
  - coremoff 4y ago
    > don't like to be interrupted during their meal it's mostly around being interrupted mid sentence, in my experience (and it's certainly the thing that annoys me the most)
GuB-42 4y ago
It depends on the country. It is not the case in France for instance. I don't know exactly what the law say, but you shouldn't have to pay for anything that you didn't order, and you shouldn't pay more than what's written on the menu. Tips are appreciated but not expected. I's say that if you are used to the American way, tip what you would normally tip above your baseline. For example if you normally tip 15%, and 20% for good service, then in France, don't tip for average service, and tip 5% for good service.

Still plenty of restaurants with “service charge” at the bottom of the menu

mdrzn 4y ago

That's at worst a couple euros per person, very far from a 10%-20% upcharge.

midasuni 4y ago
I have a photo of a menu from Munich earlier this year, not a particularly fancy restaurant - just a pizza place with a table on the street. 12.5% service charge at the bottom.
- euroderf 4y ago
  But it was up front, in genuine print, not buried on a terminal.
  - yardstick 4y ago
    Just wait to you get to Italy or Spain, sometimes restaurants in very touristy areas will charge different service charges based on seating area. Eg nice area is 20% or more service charge, vs maybe 12.5% for a table without a view. You don’t see that until you are already in your seat, and then you have to deal with the social awkwardness of asking to move tables (which some don’t do because they are some mixture of introverted or embarrassed).

iLoveOncall 4y ago

Yep, in the UK it's almost always a 12.5% service charge. Almost always with terrible service of course.

zarzavat 4y ago
This is because nobody carries any cash around anymore. And it's not socially acceptable for waiters to ask customers how much they want to tip. You just tap your card on the portable terminal. As for the service being terrible, it can be. But British people generally don't like to be interrupted during their meal. So the waitstaff have a tougher job to be present but not harassing.
- coremoff 4y ago
  > don't like to be interrupted during their meal it's mostly around being interrupted mid sentence, in my experience (and it's certainly the thing that annoys me the most)

GuB-42 4y ago

It depends on the country. It is not the case in France for instance. I don't know exactly what the law say, but you shouldn't have to pay for anything that you didn't order, and you shouldn't pay more than what's written on the menu. Tips are appreciated but not expected. I's say that if you are used to the American way, tip what you would normally tip above your baseline. For example if you normally tip 15%, and 20% for good service, then in France, don't tip for average service, and tip 5% for good service.