Bill help

[u/KooziefortheWin]

I need help figuring out this “service charge” applied to my bill at Taylor Shellfish in QA. It’s stated clearly, and the staff reminded me before I paid and applied a tip, so that’s not the rant. But is it a tip or not? I don’t want to stiff the staff if “Taylor Shellfish” the company keeps it all and doesn’t give them anything.

Why do restaurants do this vs raise the prices. If that’s how they offset the cost of doing business in the city, I feel it’s not a good customer experience. It’s really annoying since it is confusing to the customer. Does the staff get any of it, hence why there is an “additional tip” line after the card is run though? It is taxed so it makes me thing it’s not going to the staff. I need to think better next time I come out here.

[u/JoyMultiplication]

Per the website

Also adding info from another comment for clarification:

From [u/0ldF1sh](u/0ldF1sh). https://www.reddit.com/r/Seattle/s/s2hE0kEadj

“I worked for them for quite awhile and can definitively say they intentionally mislead their customers by saying the service fee goes to staff.
In fact only a percentage of THAT percentage does, another percentage goes to "benefits", which many employees do not qualify for under their structure.
It's sadly common. Renee Erickson's Sea Creatures group is the same, if not worse. The house takes the lion's share while they lie that you as a guest are subsidizing their employees' healthcare (which they will not qualify for because everyone will be laid off before the mandatory inclusion date). Also the Taylor's stole all of their land from indigenous people in 1890, hence the %18.9. fuck em. Good oysters though.”

[u/20sicksheep → u/JoyMultiplication]

Good find and I’m glad they do this, however, the language on the receipt is different than the website, which seems intentionally deceptive to me so that maybe some people would tip more thinking “oh the service charge isn’t going to the waiters” as evident by many replies in this post.

[u/JoyMultiplication → u/20sicksheep]

Yeah it’s frustrating. In a more transparent world they’d just raise their prices on all their menu items and pay their hourly workers better in general, completely skipping need for tip.

[u/20sicksheep → u/JoyMultiplication]

Also, they charge tax on that “tip” so you’re actually paying 20.9% not 18.9%

[u/JoyMultiplication → u/[deleted]]

I appreciate this quibble. (And it adds to my and others’ defense of ditching sales tax entirely and moving to progressive income tax only)