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A high-end sushi restaurant known for its fresh fish and perfectly seasoned rice has served up another perk - it doesn't accept tips.
In an affront to the American dining industry, critically-acclaimed Japanese eatery Sushi Yasuda banned gratuities and raised menu prices last month in line with European and Australian practices.
Scott Rosenberg, owner of the Midtown Manhattan restaurant, said employees don't need tips because they're paid well.
Here’s what guests see on menus and receipts:
'Following the custom in Japan, Sushi Yasuda’s service staff are fully compensated by their salary. Therefore gratuities are not accepted. Thank you.'
Diners who try to leave a tip are refused.
Rosenberg told The Price Hike scrapping tips improves the customer's dining experience.
'I’ve always dreamed…wouldn’t it be great not to have to worry about tipping?,' he said.
'Look at your bill, make sure that it’s correct and sign the check if you’re good, and you won’t have think and calculate and do a math equation at the table.
'The risk is that your prices appear to be high on the menu.
'But if you have faith in what you’re serving, and how you’re serving it, you know that when your customers have a good meal and look at their final tally it’s going to be around the same.
'What our customers find is that they’re essentially paying the same, maybe a touch less, because we’re a little more conservative about how we adjusted our prices.
'Your service staff, for those who want to pursue that as an ongoing career, they have stability, they become part of a family and that’s special. You have to be all in if you’re a salaried professional.
'In a restaurant, wouldn’t it be nice if you could get lost in the whole experience all the way through the meal, not until that last step, when you have to look at the check, do some math, do some calculation.
'Why not just take your check, see the number, and sign it if you’re good with it. To me, it extends the fullness of the experience a little bit more.'
American diners are used to adding up to 20 per cent to any dinner bill - more if the service is particularly good - to compensate wait staff for their services.
That's because service workers are generally paid poorly, with some hourly rates starting at the tipped minimum of $2.25 per hour compared to the non-tipped minimum of $7.25.
Rosenberg believes his might be the only U.S. restaurant that has scrapped tipping.
However The Price Hike mentioned several eateries that add automatic service charges as part of pre-paid dining systems, including Alinea, Next, Atera and Brooklyn Fare.
Source
To a degree I'm cool with this.
I'm trying to see why I wouldn't be.
Suppose it only comes into play if I had crap service and then wouldn't tip :/
Would you feel that your dining experience would be improved wholistically as this owner and many others?
