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Restaurant charges

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By *obilebottom OP   Man
3 days ago

All over

I was just trying to book a restaurant and I was reminded throughout the process that there is a £2 cover charge and a 'discretionaty' 10% will be added to the bill.

Cover charge - what exactly is that at a good and rather expensive restaurant. A couple of pounds for what? Some used to bring bread and butter to the table to justify it or those crostini things. Apparently it's there to stop occupying a table but hardly ordering anything. Really?

Service charge - added to your bill in advance forcing you literally to pay a tip whether you like it or not. Incidently I have always left a tip, sometimes less but often more than what they add if the service is good as for me that is as important as the food itself. But they should not assume, especially in places where service is abysmal. I went to such a place not long ago and asked them to their surprise and obvious annoyance to remove it. Yes it was embarassing btw but I hate bad service which has sadly been on the increase for some time. O also like to tip the individuals, not giving it to a machine.

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By *allySlinkyWoman
3 days ago

Leeds

It annoys me when a theatre charges a booking fee when I have booked online myself.

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By *obilebottom OP   Man
3 days ago

All over


"It annoys me when a theatre charges a booking fee when I have booked online myself. "

Yes, that too

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By *lue collar bi guyMan
3 days ago

the shire


"I was just trying to book a restaurant and I was reminded throughout the process that there is a £2 cover charge and a 'discretionaty' 10% will be added to the bill.

Cover charge - what exactly is that at a good and rather expensive restaurant. A couple of pounds for what? Some used to bring bread and butter to the table to justify it or those crostini things. Apparently it's there to stop occupying a table but hardly ordering anything. Really?

Service charge - added to your bill in advance forcing you literally to pay a tip whether you like it or not. Incidently I have always left a tip, sometimes less but often more than what they add if the service is good as for me that is as important as the food itself. But they should not assume, especially in places where service is abysmal. I went to such a place not long ago and asked them to their surprise and obvious annoyance to remove it. Yes it was embarassing btw but I hate bad service which has sadly been on the increase for some time. O also like to tip the individuals, not giving it to a machine.

"

I may be wrong but is a cover charge not the minimum spend per person at the table. Food only.

I'm positive when I visited the kitchen in Edinburgh it was a £150 cover charge. This did get you a 5 course tasting menu tho. Drinks obviously extra.

Plus remember the service charge you can ask to be removed at your discretion.

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By *obilebottom OP   Man
3 days ago

All over


"I was just trying to book a restaurant and I was reminded throughout the process that there is a £2 cover charge and a 'discretionaty' 10% will be added to the bill.

Cover charge - what exactly is that at a good and rather expensive restaurant. A couple of pounds for what? Some used to bring bread and butter to the table to justify it or those crostini things. Apparently it's there to stop occupying a table but hardly ordering anything. Really?

Service charge - added to your bill in advance forcing you literally to pay a tip whether you like it or not. Incidently I have always left a tip, sometimes less but often more than what they add if the service is good as for me that is as important as the food itself. But they should not assume, especially in places where service is abysmal. I went to such a place not long ago and asked them to their surprise and obvious annoyance to remove it. Yes it was embarassing btw but I hate bad service which has sadly been on the increase for some time. O also like to tip the individuals, not giving it to a machine.

I may be wrong but is a cover charge not the minimum spend per person at the table. Food only.

I'm positive when I visited the kitchen in Edinburgh it was a £150 cover charge. This did get you a 5 course tasting menu tho. Drinks obviously extra.

Plus remember the service charge you can ask to be removed at your discretion."

No the cover charge on many restaurants some very ecpensive is usually around £2. And yes I csn ask to remove tbe service charge but I like the opt in, not the opt put approach as that feels to me to be the right way around.

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By *asterfulsoulMan
3 days ago

Manchester

It's nice that they tell you in advance, at least. But service charges are morally wrong and frankly they should be banned - they're often not going to the staff anyway, if they are then it's often not equitable, and regardless the staff should just be paid properly instead of having to rely on the generosity or "discretion" of customers.

If you can, make a point of saying you won't be going and that they need to pay their staff properly.

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By *iamondsmiles.Woman
3 days ago

little house on the praire

We went somewhere and the cover charge was £30 each

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By *obilebottom OP   Man
3 days ago

All over


"We went somewhere and the cover charge was £30 each"

That is like an entrance fee, unless you got something for that.

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By *ophieslutTV/TS
2 days ago

Central

I dislike supplementary charges and prefer to avoid businesses that won't structure their pricing to be inclusive. It's an unfair practise and makes things more complicated than is necessary, probably because of their contempt for customers.

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By *ou only live onceMan
2 days ago

London

Yes! Weren't they a thing in the 80s?

Seems they're making a comeback - was recently in a chain restaurant and it was on our bill at the end without warning. Utterly bizarre, and very annoying.

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By *ou only live onceMan
2 days ago

London


"Yes! Weren't they a thing in the 80s?

Seems they're making a comeback - was recently in a chain restaurant and it was on our bill at the end without warning. Utterly bizarre, and very annoying."

I mean cover charge ^.

Service charges less annoying - still rather they're not there and you can choose your own tip, but they at least go to staff...

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By *icecouple561Couple
Forum Mod
2 days ago

East Sussex

It annoys me that I'm charged for booking my train ticket or paying for my parking via an app.

We haven't been subject to a cover charge for years.

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By *ove2pleaseseukMan
2 days ago

Hastings

Cover charge is basically a booking fee. So if a restaurant has say 40 seats / covers it charges for the seat. But just think if people book and don't show its the restaurant that looses money. As the table / covers might be empty for some time. And if it a 2hour cover might not be used at all.

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By *ove2pleaseseukMan
2 days ago

Hastings


"It annoys me that I'm charged for booking my train ticket or paying for my parking via an app.

We haven't been subject to a cover charge for years. "

It's a bit like Corkage where you take your own alcohol to a restaurant.

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By *ildbillkidMan
2 days ago

where the road goes on forever

Over here ,waffle House a restaurant that specializes in breakfast,now is charging extra for eggs,since the price has gone up, the regular price for your meal and a added price for the eggs

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By *orcsmatMan
2 days ago

Kidderminster


"It annoys me when a theatre charges a booking fee when I have booked online myself. "

I think that's usually the agent charging a fee not the theatre.

Trainline do the same. For local trips I can go to the station and pay the same fare at either the counter or the machine with no fee.

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By *arakiss12TV/TS
2 days ago

Bedford

It should be refundable or dropped when paying the bill as you've taken the trouble to turn up for your meal, otherwise it's legal extortion.

Not enough people make a fuss about it.

I think it's required by law for the restaurant to state on its website all surcharges and on menus etc prior.

A place I worked a had Xmas chinese eat as much as you like. They stuck a service charge on a buffet where you served yourself collected your own cutlery.

Well, talk about WWIII. One of the girls in our party wasn't having it and it erupted. The Chinese assistant manager kept repeating yelling Service Charge and Cover Charge, our girl kept shouting fuck off we serviced ourselves. Face off between resturant staff and our party ensued. It became the focus of attention for other customers.

After what seemed forever the bill got sorted. The food was average which made matters worse.

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By *ildbillkidMan
2 days ago

where the road goes on forever

This is not restaurant related ,but some grocery stores are now putting a limit on how many eggs you can buy in one day,

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By *nywhereyouwantMan
2 days ago

Weston-Super-Mare

I’m in agreement and choose to take my money elsewhere. Unfortunately as we become more ‘Americanised’ stupid booking fees on things you can’t avoid are becoming the norm. For example a £75 gig ticket with a £5 booking fee should just be a flat £80. What’s next are they going to add on the roadie’s fee and the lighting fee and the electricity fee?

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By *inkShyWoman
2 days ago

near Windsor

I'll tell them to remove the service charge, I couldn't care less what they think of me.

Then I will pay the waiter/waitress it directly in cash if they earned it. Sometimes it's more than the service charge, sometimes less, sometimes none.

It has at times caused a scene especially in London 😄

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By *batMan
2 days ago

Alicante, Spain. (Sometimes in Wales)

I work in Italy a lot.

There’s nearly always a cover charge. It’s not for bread or water at the table, but goes all the way back to the “olden days” when people stayed at wayside Inns, but brought their own food. The cover charge was literally for using the table.

Gbat

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