As if tipping wasn’t good enough. A bunch of restaurants here are automatically charging people about 18% of their total bill for what they call a “gratitude fee†for the duration of the Olympics. Essentially, it is supposed to help the business serve people better. Kind of silly I think as it doesn’t really make a tip optional anymore. I wonder if that means people like cab and bus drivers are going to request for an Olympic related fee too.
I guess most visitors wouldn’t know the difference though as they would assume that is just how restaurants bill here. Kind of reminds me of a TV show where there was a bunch of filmmakers wanting to make a movie and then the city introduced all these ridiculous fees like a “leaving town tax.†Guess when you get a swarm of customers there’s money to be made.
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