Staff at top London restaurants consider legal action over cover charges | Harrods, The Savoy The Ivy

by Islingtonian

7 comments

  1. Funny that you posted this. I went to Harrods for a meal the other day, and was *shocked* to find I had to pay a cover charge in the form of a seating fee. It wasn’t discretionary either. And for that it’s worth, the service was *appalling*. Biggest pisstake.

    Now that they can’t keep service charges for themselves, these restaurants are coming up with new and inventive ways to bypass them.

    A simple law could end such extra charges. Call it a modern day Consumer Act.

  2. >Legislation that came into force in October requires business owners to hand over all tips and service charges to staff. However, a number of restaurants add a mandatory cover charge as well as a service charge and only pass on the latter to workers.

    If anyone is curious as to why those new fees are popping up. The service charges used be a scam to increase profits. Now that they aren’t anymore the restaurants are trying to normalise different fees that they can keep.

  3. Wouldn’t consider the Ivy a top London resistant. It’s the middle class version of Wetherspoons.

  4. The answer is simple, stop going. 

    There’s lots of places that I would like to go to, but if there is a service charge or cover charge I simply don’t. 

    If they aren’t making money they need to charge more, there’s no excuse not to. And while they’re at it have a no tipping policy and pay staff properly.

  5. Scott’s and Sexy Fish charge £2.00 per person cover charge. Sexy Fish refused to remove it, so we had the service charge removed instead. Scott’s quickly removed it, and the server was embarrassed by it. Same company, so not sure why the manager wouldn’t at Sexy Fish. We will never be back.

  6. Went to Miami last week and every meal had compulsory service charge added on at 20% minimum. You could then choose to add a discretionary tip. I was so fucking confused – I had to clarify what the difference was and nobody could explain it. Apparently service charge is shared across waiters and the tip is added as waiter-specific. I’m sorry but I’m not tipping that much money for what was very shitty service. Fuck Miami.

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