Brooklyn coffee shops no longer allow tipping — but a latte will Now cost you $7

Brooklyn coffee shops no longer allow tipping — but a latte will Now cost you $7

Several local coffee shops are doing away with gratuities, removing tip jars, and, more importantly, prompts for automatic gratuities on iPad payment portals. These changes are being made in certain locations. The majority of customers are overjoyed.

“I don’t have to decide how much to tip, and I don’t have to do math,” exclaimed Anu Mohan, a thirty-four who works at a cancer hospital in technology development and frequents the trio of Legged Cat, a leafy cafe that opened in East Williamsburg over the summer period with a line at the bottom of the menu declaring that tax and tip are included and that the cafe is “proud” to provide a living wage to employees. Mohan is a frequent patron of the Three Legged Cat, a hip cafe that opened in East Williamsburg over the summer.

At a time when many people believe that gratuity grabs have gotten out of hand, the move comes at a time when New Yorkers are feeling pressure to tip not only at restaurants and hotels but also at hardware stores, dry cleaners, and even for exterminators.

The tipping practices of Anu and his wife, Cassandra Mohan, 37, who is employed in the field of public health, are not always in agreement.

For some customers, the absence of a gratuity at certain coffee shops may save them from having to deal with a hassle (or a disagreement with their significant other), but it does not save them money.

The price of a drip coffee at Three Legged Cat is $4.50, which is approximately one dollar higher than the prices at other shops in the vicinity. However, some of the nearby establishments, such as Sey Coffee, do not encourage customers to leave tips.

Katie Bishop, the proprietor of Principles GI Coffee Shop in Gowanus, stated that although many customers find the absence of a tip screen to be “refreshing,” she has received some criticism when it comes to the prices that she charges, which are $4 for a drip coffee and $7 for a cappuccino.

According to what she said, “[Customers] feel entitled to a drink that is half that price.” When someone asks me about my prices, I always respond with something along the lines of, “Would you like to know why my prices are what they are?”

In most cases, that is enough to calm them down.

The statement that she made was, “If not, they are not my target customer anyway.”

During the month of March, when Taylor Siok opened Passionfruit in Bed Stuy, he had the intention of eliminating the practice of tipping in order to provide employees with greater stability.

“My wife and I have been working in the tourism sector since we were 19 years old, and when it came time for us to open our own project, we wanted to be more forward thinking,” said Siok. “We wanted to be more innovative.”

He pays his employees “in the mid-20s per hour,” which includes compensation for work that does not involve direct interaction with customers, such as baking and closing. A rare occurrence in the hospitality industry, he also provides paid time off.

(In the city of New York, the minimum wage for workers in the food service industry is sixteen dollars an hour. The combination of a cash wage of $10.65 and a tip allowance of $5.35 is one way for employers to meet the requirements of this standard.

Emily Williams, the proprietor and founder of Til Death in Bushwick, decided to implement a rule that prohibited providing gratuities in order to avoid having to deal with customers who were disrespectful.

Williams explained that there would be people who were impolite, people who were on the phone, and people who expected us to be extremely flexible and compliant with whatever it was that they were requesting.

It would be necessary for us to be courteous to them and put on this performance in order to receive a tip… I would like to make you coffee, but I do not want to be expected to engage in a conversation with you about your vacation or anything else that you might want to discuss.

Williams claims that she is able to make a living without receiving tips, as she and her business partner run the shop on their own without employing any staff members.

Over the course of the last ten years, full-service restaurants in New York City have attempted unsuccessfully to implement “no tipping” policies.

Danny Meyer made the announcement in 2015 that his Union Square Hospitality Group would gradually eliminate tipping. However, in 2020, he brought back additional gratuities as a response to the financial difficulties that workers were experiencing during the pandemic.

It is impossible for us to predict how frequently people will eat out, nor can we estimate the amount of money they are willing to spend on food. At the time, he provided an explanation that stated, “[But] we are aware that guests are eager to leave generous tips right now.”

However, in 2018, restaurateur Andrew Tarlow reversed his decision to stop accepting tips at his popular restaurants in Brooklyn, which he had previously stopped accepting tips at.

However, owners of coffee shops claim that a no-tipping policy is more feasible for them.

“We encourage other businesses to give it a shot,” said Siok. “The model is working, and we encourage them to look into it.”

Michael Bewley, who is fifty years old and lives next door to Three Legged Cat, is the proprietor of a coffee machine company. He expressed his hope that bars will begin experimenting with no-tipping in the near future.

“I have other things to worry on than sitting there discussing with my partner or friend about whether we should do 18% or 15%,” he said. “I have other considerations to take into account.” On the other hand, I can’t recall the last time that my tip was based on the quality of service. It has become dependent on factors such as what you ought to be tipping, what other people in your party intend to do, and so on. There is no need for me to be stressed out; all I want is my coffee.

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