Joe's Crab Shack restaurant chain eliminating tipping

[Cookie Monster]

http://www.eater.com/2015/11/9/9700130/joes-crab-shack-no-tipping-policy

No tipping policy is slowly getting traction at restaurants. Just increase the prices 15% and pay a living wage to all your staff. Even if the waiters total income is slightly less, they appreciate the security of a fixed pay, not having to worry about slow days. It also simplifies accounting, as some states have complex tax laws about tipping and how can be shared (some restaurants have been sued for sharing the tips to kitchen staff).

Many problems with tipping. Usually the minorities waiters are tipped less. And nice looking girls are tipped the most, but at the expense of being sometimes sexually harassed.

I like the way Sushi Yasuda restaurant in Manhattan did it. Raising most of its prices, it appended this note to slips: “Following the custom in Japan, Sushi Yasuda’s service staff are fully compensated by their salary. Therefore gratuities are not accepted.”

[jtoler]

Its about time.

[GT21Megatron]

Pretty sure it has to do with the new EMV cards. Merchants are having to ask customers for tips because the upgraded machines will not print a tip line. This prevents fraud at the point of sale but basically makes for awkward conversations for employees to have with customers.

[pavyracer]

Welcome USA to what everyone else has been doing for a long time. About time to add the tip to food pricing. What took you so long?

[BigOrange]

Most Black people will hate this since now they are stuck with the tip being included and they can't just leave their $1 tip on their $25 tab!

[rkelly110]

While that's fine, if my waitress is rude or forgets my order or gives me slow service, my tip reflects that.
Opposite is true for good service.

Restaurants won't stop at a 15% increase in the cost of dinner. You can bet your sweet bippy that will be 25%
or more, especially at franchises.

[pavyracer]

While that's fine, if my waitress is rude or forgets my order or gives me slow service, my tip reflects that.
Opposite is true for good service.

Restaurants won't stop at a 15% increase in the cost of dinner. You can bet your sweet bippy that will be 25%
or more, especially at franchises.

When the waiter is bad I don't go back again to that restaurant. This forces the restaurant to train or hire better waiters.

[teaserpleaser]

When the waiter is bad I don't go back again to that restaurant. This forces the restaurant to train or hire better waiters.

Yeah I'm sure they noticed you didn't come back Pavy. C'mon dude you can't be this dull

[Boner_18]

Poor for consumers. Positive for low income waiters/waitresses. Poor for high earning waiters/waitresses. Probably a net positive... As a consumer and former high earning waiter i'm opposed.

[VeggieDog]

Eating at chain restaurants is -ev. I stick to local places with only 1 or 2 locations.

[goduke]

no incentive for the server to go the extra mile for a customer now. Now its pretty much just do enough not to get fired

[jjgold]

Tipping for jerkoffs

I never tip and never will

It is their jobs

[Slanina]

Tipping for jerkoffs

I never tip and never will

It is their jobs

Spoken like a broke and uninformed man. Shame.

[BrickJames]

Tipping for jerkoffs

I never tip and never will

It is their jobs

Thats probably exactly what they are doing into your food when you return

[BennyBigNuts]

Joe's Crab Shack is trying to be the trend-setter here, but I don't think it will last.

They are paying employees $14 an hour. Ok sounds good, but most waitresses at any comparable joint make way more than that hourly in tips, AND it's cash. Yeah, every once in a while you're going to have a party of 6 blacks who leave you nothing, but in the long run the respectable appreciative people cover most of the black and white trash.
No one's gonna be leaving their job anytime soon to want to work for way less at that place. I guess it could be attractive for high school and college kids, but then again, the service is going to go way down, turnover will be crazy, more of a pain in the ass with scheduling, etc.

These restaurants don't want to pay $15 hourly wages anyways. What will happen is under staffing, shittier service, and tons of businesses folding from it. Unemployment will go up. They predict less employee turnover but I would predict way more.

Don't most states still get away with paying waitresses $3 an hour in NY and Florida and others?

I'd be shocked if this catches on in our country, but it would be interesting to see.

[BrickJames]

I hate servers and bartenders, they all think they are better than the people they serve and think its some strange twist of fate that they ended up on the wrong side of the apron.

Pay em all minimum wage and dont tip em.

This is coming from someone who eats out 1-2 times a day so im very familiar with their behavior.

I always tip 20% no matter what just because I'm afraid of what these sickos will do for my food the next time I come in if I don't

[Ralphie Halves]

It's a novel idea, but we haven't seen if it works or not, or what service there will end up looking like when you completely take incentive out of the equation.

I hope it fails hard. The reason you're able to get those great happy hour prices at TGI Fridays is because your waiter is still making $2.13 an hour. Minimum wage went up, server wage stayed the same, for awhile at least. Not sure if it's that way now.

[gauchojake]

Sugarfish in LA has done this for some time now. The location I go to is always packed, the service is impeccable, and the sushi is world class.

[Bluehorseshoe]

Danny Meyer in NY just started doing this with his restaurants. His reasoning is..... It's not fair that front of the house people are getting WAY overpaid for what they're doing, while the back of the house gets underpaid for their work. He's trying to balance it out.

[DwightShrute]

[capone1899]

No one deserves $14 an hour to carry food and smile

[Kaabee]

Nobody really makes $2 per hour. Everyone gets federal minimum. If tips don't bring you over then the employer must.

[TheMoneyShot]

So many variables to the Joe's Crab Shack idea.

The idea is... the average customer saves 20% off their meal... hence no tipping. They are trying to see if this would make more people want to dine at their establishment.

Of course... the average waitress would only be making around $10 an hour after taxes etc...

Can't wait to see how long this lasts.

[chilidog]

I wonder how many countries don't tip? I've been to numerous countries outside of the States, and so far only the States has a tipping culture. If the rest of the world can figure out how to do it, I'm sure the States will figure it out one day (same with universal health care and betting on sports!).

[VeggieDog]

Danny Meyer in NY just started doing this with his restaurants. His reasoning is..... It's not fair that front of the house people are getting WAY overpaid for what they're doing, while the back of the house gets underpaid for their work. He's trying to balance it out.

I thought the waitstaff shared their tips with the others.

[Bluehorseshoe]

I thought the waitstaff shared their tips with the others.

It can't be shared with the back of the house.

By increasing prices and ending tips, Mr. Meyer said he hoped to be able to raise pay for junior dining room managers and for cooks, dishwashers and other kitchen workers.

[rpesi9955]

America.

[BrickJames]

I wish I had the balls not to tip I would look I'm right in the face when they looked at their bill and just smile and I've heard the stories about what they do to guys who don't tip so like I said earlier I just always tip 20% cuz they basically have a gun to my head, I don't need anything extra in the clam chowder

[meader99]

I thought the waitstaff shared their tips with the others.

I think it depends on the place, but I know in a lot of places waitresses do indeed share their tips with bartenders who provide the alcoholic beverages to the table.

[hankcream]

I hope their best wait staff say "f*ck that" and leave. This isn't Europe, employees that look better and provide superior service should be rewarded.

[capone1899]

I hope their best wait staff say "f*ck that" and leave. This isn't Europe, employees that look better and provide superior service should be rewarded.

Superior service....LOL. You write down a food order, fill up a cup, and pick up food....its not rocket science. Taco Bell workers have it harder than servers

[MoMoneyMoVaughn]

What the fuk is a Joe's Crab Shack?

[chilidog]

Superior service....LOL. You write down a food order, fill up a cup, and pick up food....its not rocket science. Taco Bell workers have it harder than servers

I always felt that the tips should go to the cooks, not the person that brings it to me. They didn't do anything special.

[DwightShrute]

the video in post #20 says it perfectly

[TheMoneyShot]

I know a girl who's been a waitress practically her entire life. She's been doing it since 18. She's 32 now. She must of worked over 50 bars, restaurants, airport, everywhere there's service/food. She told me sometimes the place gets HOT with people. Sometimes a place fizzles out. She told me she only works where she knows she's guaranteed $150+ a day. Otherwise she's not working there.