Do tips result in better performance by restaurant workers, or is it a dehumanizing tradition whereby the earnings of hardworking people are determined by customers whose personal agendas get in the way? Perhaps it is some of both, and that has led some restaurants to end the practice tipping altogether.
The most recent example is famous restaurateur Danny Meyer's Union Square Hospitality Group (USHG), which announced it will end tipping at its 13 restaurants beginning next month.
"We believe hospitality is a team sport, and that it takes an entire team to provide you with the experiences you have come to expect from us," Mr. Meyer wrote in a letter posted online. "Unfortunately, many of our colleagues — our cooks, reservationists, and dishwashers to name a few — aren't able to share in our guests' generosity, even though their contributions are just as vital to the outcome of your experience at one of our restaurants."
Photo: Union Square Hospitality Group
To pay for the end of tips, USHG will raise prices in its restaurants so that it can pay its workers more equitably. A piece on The New York Eater speculates that the action is intended, in part, to address a shortage in cooks (who are left out when tips are shared) by paying them more.
The big question is whether the industry will follow the lead of Mr. Meyer and others who have ended the practice of tipping in their establishments.
"Danny has a lot of trust out there with his customer base," celebrity chef and restaurateur Tom Colicchio told The New York Times, "and if they're willing to pay higher prices, it's going to make it easier for everybody else. That's still my biggest concern: whether the dining public is up for it."
- A Letter From Danny Meyer - Union Square Hospitality Group
- Danny Meyer is eliminating all tipping at his restaurants and significantly raising prices to make up the difference, a move that will raise wages, save the hospitality industry, and forever change how diners dine. - The New York Eater
- Danny Meyer Abolishes Tipping - The Atlantic
- Danny Meyer Restaurants to Eliminate Tipping - The New York Times (tiered sub.)