Originally Posted by
BamaVol
You're going to pay for the cost of the service one way or another, since no one works for free. I prefer one way. You're entitled to prefer another. Maybe there should be a choice; flat 18% service charge or tip what you think the service was worth.
Why an 18% service charge?
How about
: "The restaurant pays its staff a wage they can live off of, lists an all-inclusive price and you tip whatever you like if you think the service was worth it." This way everyone's being up-front and honest to everybody else and you don't need an accounting degree to settle your restaurant bill.
As for the waiters, this gives them some degree of financial security (in form of a decent, predictable wage) while still retaining the possibility to super-charge their earnings by going the extra mile for their customers.
Why overcomplicate things unnecessarily?