The menu of a restaurant in Winston-Salem, NC, says a gratuity of 15% will be added to parties of six or more. A former customer says she was in a party of three and saw that an 18% gratuity had been added, which she complained about but paid. She said the next time she showed up, she was met at the door by staff and told that she had to agree up front to pay 18% or she couldn’t eat there.

That sounds pretty outrageous, but the restaurant’s manager told local news station WXII that she’s a repeat offender when it comes to undertipping, and that nobody in the kitchen or on the floor wants to serve her anymore.

Anyone who’s worked in a restaurant probably knows someone who always undertips, but what’s the best way to deal with it? Assuming the manager’s allegations are true, it’s not like the customer was breaking the law–after all, an undertipper is playing by the rules if the rules state that tipping is optional.

In this case, the woman says she never tipped inappropriately and that she’s considering suing for slander: “I have always left a good tip at Kanpai Restaurant , even when I was given poor and less than honorable service,” she told WXII.

“Customer Called Poor Tipper; She Calls For Boycott” [WXII.com]
“Woman Called Poor Tipper Procures Lawyer” [WXII.com]
“Banned for ‘bad’ tipping” [CNN]

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