Posted on 11/19/2009 7:01:10 PM PST by Mount Athos
If you’re frustrated by poor service at a restaurant, think twice before you decide to not tip. You may be in for a bit more than just a dirty look from the waiter.
"Nobody, nobody wants to be forced to pay a tip or be arrested for terrible service," Leslie Pope said when her happy hour ended in handcuffs.
Pope and John Wagner were hauled away by police and charged with theft for not paying the mandatory 18 percent gratuity totaling $16 after eating at the Lehigh Pub in Bethlehem, Pa. with six friends.
Pope claimed that they had to wait nearly an hour for their order and that she had to get napkins and silverware for the table herself.
“At this point I became very annoyed because I had already gone up to the bar myself to have my soda refilled because the waitress never came back,” Pope said.
After the $73 bill came, the group paid for food, drinks, and tax but refused to pay the tip. After explaining the bad service to the bartender in charge, Pope claimed he took their money and called police. The couple was handcuffed and placed in the back of a police car.
“I understand that, you know, we didn’t pay the gratuity, but it was a gratuity, it wasn’t something that was required,” said Wagner.
The owner admitted that the group waited unusually long for their food, but said the pub was extremely busy that night. He said managers offered to comp the food, a claim the couple denies ever happened.
“Obviously we would have liked for the patron and the establishment to have worked this out without getting the police involved,” said Deputy Police Commissioner Stuart Bedics.
Police charged them with theft since the gratuity was part of the actual bill. However, it is doubtful that the charges will hold up in front of a judge. The couple is scheduled to appear in court next month.
Some cops are more stupid than others. But then they may win the legal lotto for false arrest.
Sounds like a manager intent on closing his business.
To mis-quote Dickens, if that is the law in Philadelphia, then the law is a ass an idiot.
It doesn’t seem like a very smart way to advertise your restaurant.
Just damn.
That whole gratuity added is a crock for this reason. I know plenty of waitresses and waiters who would give the group crappy service and focus on smaller tables because they knew they would get their tip regardless.
However, having been a waitress, I also know how it is when a large group always thinks someone else is tipping...
bad move by some idiot manager at the pub..owner’s got some major league pr damage to fix..
In fact, this “mandatory gratuity” already appears to be getting them some very bad publicity.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/lehigh-pub-bethlehem
He said managers offered to comp the food, a claim the couple denies ever happened.
___________________________________________
And Nana doubts that it happened...
“You can have your $73 for the food etc back, but if you dont pay us $16 we will call the police...
The owner was $57 ahead and still called the police???
Sue...own the joint...
That was their first mistake
If the menu they ordered from had the mandatory gratuity printed on it, then they have to pay it if they got what they ordered. But it’s hard to see how the restaurant could possibly come out ahead by pushing the issue this far.
Don’t like the mandatory 18% gratuity? Don’t eat there.
Who eats at an establishment with a mandatory 18% gratuity? I can understand the mandatory tip when a large group comes it... sort of.
But a tip is a tip. If it is going to be a mandatory part of the cost of eating there, then clearly indicate this, include it in the prices, and specifically notify patrons that tipping in NOT necessary, as it is already included in the prices being paid.
But being arrested? Come on... are there not enough real crimes to try to handle without the police having to arrest someone for not TIPPING???? Hello!! are we still in the USA???
This is fun ck this out http://www.yelp.com/biz/lehigh-pub-bethlehem
Nothing compared to what will happen when they refuse to pay for Obamacare.
So whaddya think, is this a case of “no such thing as bad publicity” for the bar, or will people avoid the place because of this?
Whether the establishment automatically adds a tip to a bill for large parties is beside the point. A tip is a tip, therefore at the discretion of the customer. I don’t know about Pennsylvania, but that pub’s BS wouldn’t hold up for long here.
That caught my eye also. I say the manager is lying his butt off. No way you offer to comp $57 on food and then call the cops on a tip.
Sounds like the manager got his panties in a bunch and wanted to show someone up. This will kill this business.
I don’t see the restuarant winning this case, in the PR dept or the courtroom.
The restaurant failed to deliver the product they were selling. They broke the contract.
good point
Sorry, but that's another old wives tale.
“Who eats at an establishment with a mandatory 18% gratuity?”
Most of us do.
If you look at the fine print on most menu’s you will see this notice for groups of 6-8 or more.
Just because they add it doesn’t mean you’re obligated to pay it.
They got that right!!
I wouldn’t believe Snopes if they claimed the sky was blue.
There are some great comments (critiques?!) there. Thanx...
If that happened to me, my friends would be throwing bricks through their windows. A tip is not mandatory when receiving bad service, ever! I remember a group of us leaving a restaurant after not leaving a tip because of a horrible experience. The waitress followed us into the parking lot and complained. We all laid out our complaints, one by one, until she was in tears. Bad service is bad service and should not be rewarded.
This has to be the first restuarant in history that tried to enforce the rule.
One can always hope.
With these thoughts in mind, I will leave a generous tip for even mediocre service, and a penny for poor service … tip given, lesson learned … arrest not in my future, unless the restaurant wants a lawsuit. As for automatic tipping, (gratuity as part of the actual bill), sucks. You can great service or poor service and you must pay? Highway robbery.
They already have over 250 reviews at that website. Some are very funny, very negative.
Yeah, my mother once said that. Well, your loss for example.
Mandatory 18%?
Wow!
I would avoid going there.
Right! Why should we pay our tabs? The same with the cable company too. Just stop paying.
Not sure I believe the guy that owns the movie studio in Vermont, but whatev. Funny anyway!
I paid the bill, but on the way out I talked to the manager, just as a heads up about service. She looked up my receipt, and took off the entire charge off my card. Gave me her business card and told me to call her the next time and she'd make sure I had a good experience.
Went back a few weeks later with friends for my bday. Did not call the manager. Just went and had a good time. My friends, who had never been there were impressed with not just the food, but the service we had. Our waiter kept everybody's drinks topped when they got half way down. Brought a full cup to go, when we were ready to leave, for my friends daughter, as she was sucking down the root beer.
Left a generous tip, and stopped by the waiter as we were leaving to let him know we appreciated his service.
He will/should always have good tips.
My point being, the manager really was interested in the customer being taken care of, and returning.
Though my return visit had nothing to do with my previous experience, the waiter was spot on, and I actually had a better experience then normal.
Because of the waiters service, and the managers service on my previous visit, I can highly recommend Claimjumper restaurants.
Now after the article, who will want to go to the Lehigh Pub in Bethlehem, Pa.?
Except for one time, we had awful service, orders arrived wrong, food either cold or in one case, plain raw, and when the bill was presented, they had the mandatory tip added to the end. The person paying the bill struck out the tip line that the machine put on, wrote $5 on the tip line, and totaled and signed the bill.
The manager came over, gave him a copy of the final charge, where the mandatory tip was re-added as well as the $5 tip, and told him that if he tried to skip out on a bill again, the group as a whole would be barred from the restaurant.
We stood up as one, and left, and so far as I know, no one in the group, or anyone they had influence over, went to that restaurant again. As for the mandatory tip, American Express deducted the amount of the tip from the charge without any problems, agreeing completely with their customer that such charges are not acceptable, and stating that they are against the member agreement that merchants sign.
And indeed, had this group, instead of continuing the confrontation with on duty management at the time, simply paid it and then spoke with their charge card, it too probably would have been reversed without issue.
As for the management of the restaurant, and the claims of offering to comp part of the meal, why would you call the police, if that was the case? You could have just as easily considered $16 worth of the bill comped in food, and been satisfied that the gratuity was paid. Since that didn't happen, and they had the patrons arrested, then the claim must be false.
I used to live in PA, though I don’t recall this particular establishment. On two occasions, I left restaurants without tipping. Usually, I left a nice tip, but twice the waitresses were extremely rude. Not leaving a tip was like having the final word.
I’m perfectly fine with an establishment mandating tips, as long as they are up front about it. It’s a free country (though in mortal danger with a marxist now at the helm).
false or not, that statement going to be used as evidence in the courtroom, I’ll betya.
What I can’t understand is why businesses aren’t held to the same standard as a customer.
If a customer refuses to pay a bill, his/her credit record could be ruined, and in this case, two people were arrested... simply for refusing to pay a gratuity.
But, when a customer is ripped off, there’s little he/she can do to the business. I’m sure we’ve all been ripped off by unscrupulous businesspeople at one point or another. I can’t imagine the police arresting them if we called 911 to complain.
Wonder how soon that Pub is going out of business. I can’t believe the police would actually arrest this couple for not paying a tip.
You probably do all the time, you just don't know it. It is very common for the gratuity to be added automatically for larger groups.
I can see the restaurant losing business over this. I sure would not go there. I think the restaurant has made a big mistake by calling the cops and they should lose business.
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