The clarification by the Union Consumer Affairs Ministry that service charge on food bills is not compulsory was met with much cheer from foodies across the city on Monday. The Ministry said a customer can choose to have the charge waived if not satisfied with the dining experience.
However, the industry had a mixed response to the Ministry’s statement.
Quantifying happiness
Joy Singh, the co-partner at Raasta Delhi and Mumbai, said: “As part of the industry, it’s tough to support this move. Moreover, the statement is not clear as one can’t quantify happiness. Besides, the said service charge is for the management that looks after a guest — from the entry door to the table — as a token of appreciation and makes a part of their salary.” By cutting the charge, Mr. Singh added, the law is making it tough for a server as minimum wage is not enough to survive.
With the growing cost of eating out, Delhiites felt this charge was arbitrary and that the decision to tip should be left to the discretion of the customer. “Very often we visit a restaurant and are not happy with the service. We are still forced to pay service charge for shoddy service. This move will keep the restaurant staff on their toes,” said Akshat Kumar, a media professional.
The Ministry had sought clarification from the Hotel Association of India, which said “service charge is completely discretionary, and if a customer be dissatisfied with the dining experience, he/she can have it waived”.
‘Not in our culture’
Sahil Gupta, the co-owner of TabulaBeach, The Hungry Monkey, and Arriba here, said the reason service charge exists in India is because tipping is not part of our culture. “In most other countries if someone does not leave a tip, it is actually frowned upon by the staff. In India, even if people have a good time, very few really tip unless there is a service charge included,” he said.
Extra appreciation
Mr. Gupta added that if a customer is not happy with the service, they have the right to pay less towards service charge. World over, restaurant staff make a living from tips and service charge also and not salaries alone.
“We would be happy to remove service charge from a bill if a customer wants us to. But we would like to remind everyone that each employee of a restaurant — from housekeeping to the manager— deserves some extra appreciation from customers for the work they put in,” he said.
