Joe’s Crab Shack, a place you probably wouldn’t eat at anyway, has become the first restaurant chain to forbid tipping at 18 of its locations in the United States.
“We believe that consistently great service should always be included in the menu price, so we are taking the responsibility for paying the service staff,” said Joe’s Crab Shack CEO Ray Blanchette. That sentiment, of course, isn’t so much a praiseworthy concept as it is a telling sign of the antiquated model of the restaurant industry.
The debate over tipping has heated up over recent months, with one powerhouse Manhattan restaurant group, Union Square Hospitality Group, also moving towards a no-tipping policy.
Don’t think eating out will get any cheaper, though – where money is lost in one way, it’s made in another. Servers, hosts and bartenders will be paid a higher wage at Joe’s Crab Shack (around $16/hour), an increased labour cost that will be offset by a raise in menu prices. The company says this increase is less than the average 20 percent tip a guest would shell out anyway.
Restaurants of Union Square Hospitality, meanwhile, will see menu prices rise by around 20 per cent, so it all evens out either way.
What do you prefer – the current tipping model or higher menu prices with no obligation to tip? Let us know on our Facebook page.
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