I 100% would after offering to pay the full bill as indicated in the menu. I bet 99% of the time they would just accept it too. Only a sucker would pay a random tacked on fee they never agreed to.
Stuff like this is on the menu and posted on the restaurant windows usually.
I agree tipping culture is insane and owners of restaurants use tips and fees to pass on labor costs to consumers, but this shouldn’t be a surprise to you.
Edit: not you as in op I was responding to but “you” being whoever is going to the restaurant
A lot of times I don’t read the drink sections of the menu because I’m not having a drink. Or I might skip the dessert section. Sometimes the special that the server tells me about sounds so good so I just say ‘I will take that please’ without looking at the menu at all. I don’t read menus cover to cover nor do I inspect all signage on a window…but I guess I will now when visiting the USA since apparently that’s the expectation. If I did notice such a thing before ordering, I would just not eat there.
And any mandatory fee is not a tip by definition so I see this as a completely different issue from tipping culture.
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It actually makes me realize that I should ask for the service fee ahead of time to make sure I can afford to eat at such restaurant.
That’s what a service fee does. Hides the true prices.
I 100% would after offering to pay the full bill as indicated in the menu. I bet 99% of the time they would just accept it too. Only a sucker would pay a random tacked on fee they never agreed to.
Stuff like this is on the menu and posted on the restaurant windows usually.
I agree tipping culture is insane and owners of restaurants use tips and fees to pass on labor costs to consumers, but this shouldn’t be a surprise to you.
Edit: not you as in op I was responding to but “you” being whoever is going to the restaurant
A lot of times I don’t read the drink sections of the menu because I’m not having a drink. Or I might skip the dessert section. Sometimes the special that the server tells me about sounds so good so I just say ‘I will take that please’ without looking at the menu at all. I don’t read menus cover to cover nor do I inspect all signage on a window…but I guess I will now when visiting the USA since apparently that’s the expectation. If I did notice such a thing before ordering, I would just not eat there.
And any mandatory fee is not a tip by definition so I see this as a completely different issue from tipping culture.