California: Dine in Tax?
 

I ate breakfast at a Carrows this morning and when I checked my bill
found a 68 cent "Dine in Tax" on my bill. For the life of me I can't remember ever seeing this before. When I enquired about it they told me its a state wide thing. Since when?

Was this the sales tax or in addition to that? California has some weird taxes on food. Basically, if you dine-in, it's always taxed. Food that's heated, even if to go, is taxed (so coffee is taxed, but sodas may not be). Food prepared there, even if to go, is usually taxed. It goes on and on. As with most taxes, it's not very straight-forward. There shouldn't be a separate tax on top of the regular sales tax though.

Nowhere in Southern California should the tax on restaurant food be beyond the local sales tax (8.25% in LA County, 7.75% I believe in Orange). Is the 68 cents at these rates, and Carrows is just using some weird naming conventions from their POS system?

P.S. I just learned Carrows and Dennys are sister companies

Craig,
I think you are right. I checked my reciept and their is no other tax besides the dine in tax so I guess they just named it that.

coffee to go shouldn't be taxed. I don't get charged any tax when I visit the local Starbucks out here. The price on the menu board is the full price I pay.

In CA starbucks adds tax to the price of the beverage on the menu board.

hmm... Really? Coulda sworn the prices I saw are the same prices I see in Dallas, where I DO get hit with added on tax. (the prices are nice and even, in multiples of 5 cents)

I asked a Starbucks manager in Encino about the tax thing last year. he claimed they are absorbing the tax in the posted price, but are remitting it to "Ahnold and friends".

yep I think it even says on the board, includes state sales tax.

Like I said, it's a complicated tax code that requires hot things to be taxed even if to go. Buying a bottle of cold water to go, shouldn't be taxed though, as I recall. As someone else said, they've likely put the sales tax in the price on that coffee. Here's the whole CA restaurant tax thing for your reading enjoyment.

http://www.boe.ca.gov/pdf/pub22.pdf

I called the tax board about this sometime ago because I kept getting charged tax on a cold item I was regularly getting to go. Minor, I know, but I had the time and was curious. The guy explained some of the basics. I think this particular place was getting away with it because what they were selling to me cold was usually sold hot and was also made on the site.