Mandatory Gratuity
There are few things in life that piss me off more than when the check comes after a nice meal and right there hidden between the chicken enchiladas and the extra side of guac is “15% Gratuity”, hoping not to be noticed.
Ryan and I are very generous tippers actually. As a for instance, we went for lunch today to one of our favorite places, Red White and Brew (plug!), and our waitress Amy was so good that we gave her what amounted to about a 25% tip. We’ve noticed that there’s really no such thing as great service anymore, so if we have stellar service we always ask to see the manager and thank them for having their servers go the extra mile.
However, tonight we met my parents and a couple they’ve been friends with for about 20 years for dinner (and if you can do simple math you know that’s 6 people total). When the check arrived, there it was. Gratuity added in. For a party of 6! The bill was $93.68 and when the waiter came to ask us if we needed any change (translation: how much of this will be left over for a tip for me?) my dad (who has never been known to keep quiet when there’s a point to be made) brazenly told him that no, no change was needed and that his $93.68 in exact change was right there clanging on the tip tray.
And if I was vindictive, I’d tell you exactly what the restaurant was that we ate at.
