Service charge waiver a bad idea, say restaurateurs

A day after the central government said customers have the option of not paying the “service charge” part of hotel bills, major eatery owners said the move could impact the morale of staff. They said if a customer is not satisfied with service at a hotel or restaurant, he or she can demand a lower service charge. However, waiving off the entire service charge was unfair and also difficult to implement, they added.

Rahul Singh, CEO and founder of The Beer Café, said service charge was a common practice globally. According to him, this is an emolument for all staff members, who work through odd hours, holidays and weekends to provide a perfect dine-in experience for the customer.

“If the guest is not satisfied with a particular item, we anyway replace it or not charge for it,” Singh said.

Joy Singh, co-partner of Raasta in Delhi and Mumbai, said service charge was 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.

In a statement issued on Monday, the Department of Consumer Affairs said it had received a number of complaints from consumers that hotels and restaurants were levying service charge between 5 and 20 per cent in lieu of tips, and that a consumer was forced to pay it irrespective of the kind of service received.

To this, Sahil Gupta, co-owner of TabulaBeach, The Hungry Monkey, Arriba — Mexican Grill & Tequilleria, said all over the world, restaurant staff make a living based on tips and service charge and not salaries alone. Gupta said his chain would be happy to remove the service charge, if a customer requested.