I assume this is Alamo Draft House. You can definitely go to this movie theater and not buy any food and not tip anyone. The gimmick is that you can order fro

I assume this is Alamo Draft House. You can definitely go to this movie theater and not buy any food and not tip anyone. The gimmick is that you can order from your seat and the food you want is brought to you during the movie. After the movie, you get a receipt to sign and add a tip to like at any restaurant. I find it completely normal to tip 20% in this situation. (Your ticket was bought prior to this receipt being made, so you aren't tipping on the ticket price.) As you read the menu, you add 20% to the listed prices, and just pay it. It's a weird convention that makes paying for things complicated (math to do, forms to fill out), but it's simply how paying for things at a restaurant is done in the US. Basically, this place is no different than any other sit-down restaurant except they happen to arrange the tables in a theater and show a movie. You're expected to tip. When you don't, it's a big "fuck you" to the people making your food and drinks and carrying them to you. The author of this article is mad because many people over the course of his career told him "fuck you". I would be mad too.