A TikTok user who goes by @vannibk says tipping culture in America has gotten out of hand, arguing that diners shouldn't be expected to leave a tip when they haven't received good service. At the time of publication, her video had received 186,100 views and 3,052 comments.
@vannibk, who identifies herself as Vanessa, begins by explaining that she took her mother-in-law out for her birthday at a nice restaurant with good food and a pleasant atmosphere. The group consisted of Vanessa, her mother-in-law and her two children, ages 6 and 2.
"We have digital menus, and I'm looking at it and I read the fine print. They're talking about gratuity, right? And they're like, oh, parties of six or more, we're going to add 18%. That's fine. We have five. There's five of us. No problem," she says.
They place their order, and although it takes a little while for the drinks and food to arrive, Vanessa doesn't think much of the delay. They aren't in a rush. However, she says their waitress isn't particularly attentive.
"When she greeted us, she was like real dry, but not rude," Vanessa says. She describes the waitress as nothing particularly special, adding that she didn't receive the warm, welcoming greeting she would have expected.
The food and drinks are great. But when the bill arrives, totaling $300, Vanessa notices that the restaurant has added an automatic 18% gratuity. This is the same charge she had read about on the digital menu, which stated that it applied to parties of six or more.
"So we call her over, and she's like, oh, you know, that's how it is. You know, when it's in the system and you go over $200, then we add the 18%. I say, yeah, but your menu says party of six or more. We're five. So it doesn't say anything about over a value," Vanessa explains.
The waitress offers to bring the manager to the table. When he arrives, Vanessa explains the situation, but he initially repeats the waitress's explanation, saying that's how the system works.
"And I said, you know, the system is not saying that. You don't have that in the fine print. So if you can state one thing, why are you guys making up a rule so you could charge me the automatic 18%?" she asks.
The waitress then explains that the charge is based on the value of the food, but Vanessa disagrees. She argues that nothing she ordered warranted an additional charge and that the service she received didn't justify the automatic gratuity either.
Eventually, the manager agrees with Vanessa and tells her she should call the restaurant and leave feedback about her experience.
They ultimately pay the bill, although Vanessa maintains that she doesn't believe the waitress deserved a tip for the service she provided.
Vanessa's Restaurant Gratuity Dispute Sparks a Debate Over Tipping Culture
Tipping culture in the United States is a contentious subject, particularly because many restaurant servers rely on tips to supplement their wages. However, some commenters felt Vanessa was being unreasonable by questioning the gratuity.
"Most servers make less that $3 an hour ... we make our money off of tips, and a lot of us work very long hours and holidays away from our families. 20% should be the minimum," one user commented.
"Customers are getting out of hand with the entitlement," another wrote.
Others, however, questioned the practice of calculating gratuity based on the total value of the food ordered.
"The server makes the same trips whether they bring a salad or a steak. Don't they? I don't see how tips are based on the value of items. At this point tips are MANDATORY now," one commenter argued.
The Daily Dot could not independently verify the events described by Vanessa. The account of the restaurant visit and the alleged gratuity dispute is based on the video shared by TikTok creator @vannibk.
