I shouldn’t have gone down that rabbit hole. There are so many nuances to a tip vs. commission vs. how many hours an employee spends in a “tipped employee” capacity to tip pooling to an employer’s right to use a “tip credit” and pay the employee less.
I was really confused by Florida’s tip law!! OMG!!
I’m tapping out…
I worked for a small company way back when, and overheard the buyer say that he couldn’t calculate 17.5% until one of the owners told him that it was 10% plus half that amount plus half that amount again. I was flabbergasted! And we did have calculators!
the whole issue is one extremely large rabbit hole.
Federal laws - apply everywhere - “can we talk?” works.
state and local laws apply to blocks or states - and generally do not make a whole lotta’ sense to normal people.
we were in SanFran - they had a surcharge for plastic disposal/obscene usage.
another surcharge for employee health care
another surcharge for “cost” adjustments
then, reading along . . . I learned waitstaff must be employer paid minimum $15/hour.
and then the state law that all tips are the exclusive property of the waiter/waitress and may not be forced into a “tip pool”
thenceforth I reduced my tipping to 5% - ten% for really exceptional service.
if you absolutely must be paid $300k-$500k/year - get an MBA and learn how to shaft the system!
Yes… after my limited reading of the Federal Laws and just a small portion of the Arizona and California state laws, it has reinforced my position that I will NOT ever eat in a restaurant again. Between the hidden fees, forced tipping and social media shame if the server feels he/she was not tipped enough, I’m DONE!!
I told Sunshine if we travel anywhere this Fall, I’m taking along dinners that we can add hot water to, and instant coffee (for the mornings).
I picked up this electric kettle, which we’ll plug in at our hotel/motel room and eat our hot meals in our room.
The last time we drove cross country, we ate a little “Fast Food” but some of it disagreed with my stomach. So I won’t be doing that again.
Assuming you’re not just trolling, you’ll be missing out on one of the great joys of traveling–eating fantastic regional cuisine, or even non-regional food. IMHO, of course.
I’m not sure why you’re not skipping hotels for all the same reasons.
I can’t imagine traveling (and I do it a fair amount) and not partaking of the regional foods. That’s the whole point!
Maybe not “whole point” 
.
(Though my nephews might disagree, bec they are in town “to eat everything” – not to see me 
. There’s a pizza list, a bagel list, at least 2 dim sum visits + 1 “we should eat some thai this time”. I know I’m forgetting at least 5 other “top priority” things.)
Your Mileage is Gonna Vary!
I love interacting with restaurant owners and servers when I travel
Today, breakfast was included at the 3 star lodge where I’m staying.
I tipped the waitress in cash, even though it wasn’t required.
She helped us start off our day right and vice versa.
We are more interested in natural sights… National Parks, Hiking, Lake or Ocean views – outdoors type of stuff.
Those are the types of things on our “bucket list”.
I really enjoy eating food in restaurants that is too complicated to make at home, such as good dim sum. I’d always enjoyed Yank Sing, even though it was pricey. The last time I was there it was so expensive that I didn’t think it was worth it to me.
San Francisco prices are out of sight now, I guess because apartments are so high it’s hard to find staff. A modest one bedroom, no garage, in a safe neighborhood is at least $2,500.
So many places I like such as Tadich charge an extra 5% for employee health coverage.
I can still afford a delicious Super Chili Relleno burrito from El Farolito, no extra fees. Lunch dishes are a bargain at Eric’s Chinese in Noe Valley.
I’m very interested in that as well, but here I am on a food site, so obviously one of my top priorities is food.
All our vacation plans are made with a lot of attention to where we’re gonna eat. I have other passions - geothermal activity, ruins, art, music - but if there’s no decent restaurants, I ain’t going.
Not sure if this was mentioned but the CA legislature passed a bill that allows service fees in restaurants, specific exemption.
If the fees were transparent and went to staff, I might be okay with it. However there’s been plenty of mention that restaurants administrate the fees and there’s no disclosure. More than a few have suggested it’s bait and switch or wage theft. Added fees are very bad hospitality if you ask me. After a nice meal and perhaps a drink or wine…and they want you to do math? That’s baloney. Just add those “extra costs” into the prices of menu items, and then shut up.
Not to derail the thread, but when you mentioned “Ruins” I thought of the Casa Grande Ruins, which were very interesting. I enjoyed this National Park/Monument.
Casa Grande Ruins
That’s a tough way to live.
I feel for you.
I think that actually hurts you more than the restaurants you won’t be partaking at.
I’ll bet that if fees were eliminated and owners raised prices, perhaps people would order less, maybe no apps, no desserts.
I looked at an online menu for a Thai restaurant in the Kabuki Hotel in Japantown, SF. One eggplant dish was $39 + tax + tip + I don’t know if there were anymore fees. So, that comes to $49 for one dish, no beverage. I guess if you’re here with an expense account, it’s ok but how can an average person afford that?
I prefer to spend our “travel” budget on actual travel. Gas, accommodations, park entrance fees, etc.
There are quite a few destinations on our “Bucket List”.
We enjoy the journey and the destinations more than a meal.
I think it is a bit unfair to expect that a Thai restaurant has to be cheap. Nari has a Michelin star and I am not sure if you would have written the same if another Michelin star restaurant cooking French/Italian dishes would be in the same location. These prices for entrees are fully in line with other Michelin star restaurants in SF (and many non Michelin star restaurants covering Western cuisines).
I seek out those experiences.
There’s often good home style -cooking near the national and state parks. Sometimes even at lodges inside the parks.
I like supporting small business in small towns and rural areas. I like trying bakeries or restaurants that don’t have much of an online presence.
I was shocked that my cousin from Pittsburgh brought all her and her husband’s meals in their RV on a trip through Ontario and upstate Michigan. That’s how they roll. I want a change from my own cooking when I travel.
Why wouldn’t an average person be able to afford that?
A typical fast food order (e.g., McDonalds, or Chipotle) will easily run close to $20, if not over. And some people, especially the “average” person, will do that daily.
So a weekly, or maybe a monthly meal, that involves one dish at $49 is not out of the norm.
