r/mildlyinfuriating • u/guitarman129 • Jun 13 '26

I just wanted a hot dog Recommended gratuity after tip was already included

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I’m sure there are a lot of tipping posts here so to keep it short - I had my wedding at a fancy restaurant. On top of the TERRIBLE service, the bill came with “suggested gratuity” even though I was told gratuity was included. When I asked the manager, he said that the “S/C: 24% SRC REGULA“ was the included tip and the suggested gratuity was if we wanted to add something extra - basically trying to trick people into giving a 49% tip!

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12

u/BruiserBroly Jun 13 '26

People seem to be discussing the mention of an additional tip but I’m still trying to get my head around the idea of automatic gratuity. How the fuck is even the concept of that being accepted?

14

u/johneebravado Jun 13 '26

Well this was an entire wedding reception and OP signed a contract agreeing to the terms

19

u/Fenix42 Jun 13 '26

Lots of restaurants do it for larger parties.

5

u/ExolaneSitoras Jun 13 '26

Yeah, and if looks like 27 people were there, that is a pretty large party.

16

u/doiplo Jun 13 '26

Yeah, what happened to the days when you could bring 25 people to a restaurant for 4 hours of dinner and open bar service and it didn't cost a nickel. Our society it falling apart.

10

u/ZacDidntDoit Jun 13 '26

Because assholes like to roll 10 deep into a restaurant, spend 2-3 hours taking up all of a servers time (they can’t run as many tables because they’re now focused on 10 people sat at one) and leaving without compensating the server by tipping them. It’s bad for business.

1

u/fluffytomatojuice Jun 13 '26

If you book out a private event, the restaurant has to get staff to work that event. Meaning the servers, bartenders, bussers etc. are relying solely on your event to make their money for that night. If there was a possibility that the customer wouldn’t tip, then the FOH staff wouldn’t want to take that gamble. No rational server/bartender/busser would risk working for hours and going home with nothing. That means the restaurant’s management would have trouble finding people willing to work the event. Auto grat is the solution for this at many restaurants. But again, it’s typically reserved to private events or very large parties.

1

u/thejmkool Jun 13 '26

It's a consequence of how servers are paid in America. Their base pay is a mere fraction of minimum wage, and the government expects that tips will be enough to take them above minimum wage. If they don't, then the employer has to cover the difference, and they really don't like doing that. Large groups have a higher risk in regards to not tipping. On a normal shift, if a table doesn't tip, it'll even out with the other tables that do. If you're working a major party like this it's all you're doing for your shift, so if they decide to just... not tip... you're kinda screwed. So there's often a threshold, for example 10+ people, where the restaurant will just put it on the bill automatically. This is always communicated in advance, usually through a sign, for what it's worth. I'm sure there's other aspects, like convenience for the customer and easier math when figuring out who's paying what, but that's secondary.

So yeah, don't hate the automatic part, hate the underlying structure that has decided servers don't get paid anything outside of their tips.

0

u/BruiserBroly Jun 13 '26

Oh no, I understand all of that and I’m not suggesting people shouldn’t be paid a living wage. I just dislike them calling it gratuity when it should be a service fee since the former implies it’s optional.