True, but the social-media bubbles and COVID lockdowns really are a new phenomenon that did not exist a decade ago. And I'm older than many folks here (late Gen Xer/early Millennial) so I've been saying "kids these days" for a while now.

Well it would be a hell of a lot more than she does now. Wish I could make $250,000/yr and yet not be expected to produce results. She's the one in charge, whatever happened to "the buck stops here"?

Yes that was my point - tipping is nice but generally not expected. Compare that to the US where 20% is now apparently the bare minimum and you're considered nothing short of a monster if you don't tip (and many people will roast you for even 15-18%, I've seen it happen).

I am hoping that the new initiative will nudge people towards the European model but am afraid it's too ingrained.

EDIT: and again service fee and VAT is rolled into the price. If that burger is €15 on the menu, you pay €15. None of this deceptive adding a service charge, then adding sales tax, then expecting over 20% more on top of all that. You get banged both ways in the US too, the only difference is Germans are at least transparent about it.

If there is a service fee, it's rolled into the price. None of this "it isnt the real price" BS. And 5-15% is not expected in most of Europe. I live in Sweden, previously Germany and have visited a large portion of the continent and have never paid more than a few Euros unless it's truly exceptional service. All of my local coworkers do the same, we don't need US tip culture here.

Not sure why you're being downvoted, it's true. And tip culture is really a terrible practice - pay your employees a fair wage, set your prices accordingly, any tip should then be optional (no expected 20+%). That's how it's done in the rest of the world (here in Europe I just round up and rarely tip more than a few dollars), and quite frankly it makes eating out a much more pleasant experience.

>Trying to solve an employer/employee problem by putting it on the customer through tip inflation is going to result in more customers staying home in the long run and that's bad for restaurant owners and servers alike.

Absolutely. I have always hated tip culture with a passion (it's so stupid, just charge what I'm supposed to pay), all this service fee BS makes it even worse. Really just turned me off to going out to eat or drink at all post-COVID, I rarely do anymore except for the occasional take-out. I have sympathy for restaurant workers but I also have no doubt many others feel the same way and are just fed up with dealing with it.

The fact that it's not just a thing but that many "influencers" make big money doing this crap is even worse. Then again, I generally hate social media and don't really get the appeal of following random people who post low-quality garbage.