Sydney restaurant defends adding gratuity to all bills as picture sparks outrage online

Aussies are fuming over a tiny detail on a Sydney restaurant’s menu – but the owner has defended the controversial decision.

Aussies are fuming over a Sydney restaurant’s menu that states a three per cent tip will be added to all bills.

In countries like the United States and Canada, tips are an integral part of the hospitality industry and wait staff rely heavily on them.

But in Australia, the expectation of tipping is received very differently.

When a picture was shared on Reddit on Wednesday of Italian restaurant Grana’s menu that stated “3 per cent gratuity added to all bills”, social media users expressed outrage and refusal to support a culture of mandatory tipping down under.

“If 3 per cent applies to all orders, just raise prices by 3 per cent. Considering how much this sh** pisses Aussies off, I’m surprised they would do this over such a small amount,” one top comment read.

“I dunno why restaurants do this when all it does is irritate customers. Like they could just bump their food and beverage prices up a few per cent and not talk about it and everything would be fine,” agreed another.

“I am sick of these American style ‘gratuity’ and all hidden charges are creeping up in Australian food scene. Soon diners will be the one expected to pay for the wait staffs livelihood, grrrrr,” said a third.

This picture of a Sydney restaurant’s menu sparked outrage online. Picture: Reddit

However, the Sydney-based hospitality group House Made Hospitality, the owner of Grana and several other restaurants, insisted the gratuity was optional when contacted by news.com.au.

“The optional three per cent surcharge at Grana, communicated at multiple stages during the booking process and again verbally when the bill is presented, is designed to reward our team for their dedication and hard work,” a spokeswoman said.

“It also serves to incentivise exceptional service and support increased tenure within our industry.”

The spokeswoman said diners could request to have the surcharge removed at any time with “no questions asked”.

“Gratuities are managed through a third-party program, which we believe is the fairest approach, ensuring every dollar goes directly to the team working during that shift,” she said.

“Our goal is to deliver a memorable dining experience for our guests while rewarding our team for their efforts. However, we fully respect that not all guests may wish to pay the surcharge, which is why it remains entirely optional.”

In addition to the gratuity, the menu listed a 10 per cent surcharge on Sundays and a 15 per cent surcharge on public holidays. It said a 10 per cent service charge would replace the three per cent gratuity for groups of eight or more.

Restaurants and cafes in Australia can charge additional fees and surcharges as long as they make it clear. Picture: news.com.au

Many critics assumed that the three per cent gratuity was mandatory, given the wording on the menu.

“Don’t ever dine at a place that does this. We seriously need to reject this culture. If you want to tip your waiter/waitress, then you should. Forced gratuity is a joke, you’re already assuming that you’ve provided me such good service that a tip is deserved? I’ll be the judge of that thank you very much,” one person wrote.

“Staff are paid minimum wage. So this is just gouging. I’d be walking out,” claimed another.

“At that point I’d refuse to pay. I’m either paying for the price on the menu or not at all,” someone else wrote.

Reddit users claimed they had also seen gratuity surcharges pop up on menus at other Australian establishments.

news.com.au understands that restaurants and cafes do not need to comply with component pricing provisions under Australian Consumer Law – which says a single total price must be made clear for goods or services – as long as they are transparent and clear about any additional fees or charges that may be imposed.

“Under the Australian Consumer Law, restaurants and cafes must display clear and accurate prices, and must not mislead consumers about their prices,” an ACCC spokeswoman said.

“Businesses must be clear and upfront about any additional costs such as surcharges that might apply, as well as when a charge is optional.

“Consumers that have concerns about the addition of charges can report the matter to their local fair trading or consumer affairs agency.”

Restaurants and cafes that add extra charges to purchases without disclosing them in advance are at risk of breaching the consumer law and ACCC encourages consumers to carefully look out for preselected extras included in the total price and make sure to deselect anything that is not wanted before making payment.