Latest news with #waitstaff
Fox News
6 days ago
- Fox News
Woman drinking wine teaches pushy mother a lesson after family tries to intervene
A woman who was on an all-inclusive vacation in the Canary Islands said she took a stand against a mother who objected to her drinking alcohol at their shared dining table. Reddit user "nurseB89" shared her recent experience on a forum in which people question whether they're in the wrong. The woman said the hotel where she was staying had club-style seating, with eight people per table paired together "to encourage a sense of community and conversation." "Last night, I was seated first and had a glass of wine," the woman wrote. Soon after, she was joined by two adults and three children who were seated at her table. The mother of that family turned to the woman and said, "We do not wish to expose our children to women drinking alcohol." "I smiled and said perhaps they should ask to move tables if it was an issue, but I would be drinking the wine," the woman on Reddit wrote. "They noticed I was on my own and made passive-aggressive comments about this." Later, the woman got up from the table to get some food from the buffet – and when she returned, "the wine had disappeared," she wrote. A waiter came over and asked to see her wristband, an indicator of all-inclusive access. He said that "the family had told them I was underage and must have sneaked away from my parents," nurseB89 wrote. The waiter "was very apologetic and returned with a fresh glass of wine just as the family came back with their food." Instead of requesting to move to another table, the woman asked for the "full bottle, along with a couple of shots of vodka," she said. The family finally "stormed out" after she drank the shots in front of them, she continued. "What about men drinking alcohol? Is that OK?" The woman's story sparked over 2,000 comments, with others mostly agreeing with her and questioning the actions of the mother. "Then don't take your kids to places where alcohol is served," wrote one commented in part. "It's just WOMEN drinking alcohol. What the heck is that about?" wrote another. "It's clearly not an issue with alcohol as much as it is with women. Sheesh." Said yet another person, "What about men drinking alcohol? Is that OK?" Other commenters suggested the mother's morals seem misguided. "I can't believe this situation," wrote one Reddit user. "She doesn't want to expose her children to seeing someone drink alcohol, but she's willing to expose her children to her own lying!" "Lying or hypocrisy?" asked another user. "Bet the husband drinks and maybe she does when the kids are in bed. Trying to control someone else is sheer arrogance. Get another table, lady, and eat blindfolded." Etiquette expert Diane Gottsman, founder and owner of the Protocol School of Texas in San Antonio, told Fox News Digital that in her view, the mother's behavior was "inappropriate." "She should have gotten up and taken her family to another table." "On a vacation, where the tables are open for anyone to sit, a guest should be able to order whatever they would like," Gottsman said. "If the mother does not want her children exposed to alcohol, it's a personal, family preference and the rest of the table should not be expected to follow her self-imposed rule." Gottsman added, "If the mother was that opposed, she should have gotten up and taken her family to another table." Fox News Digital reached out to nurseB89 for additional information.
Bloomberg
19-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Bloomberg
Interested in a Luxury Sleeper Train Journey? Here's What It's Like
Even before I've had a drop of Champagne with my four-course meal, I'm teetering on my heels. I'm dressed to the nines in a floor-length gown, making my way down a wood-paneled hallway that could be straight out of Downton Abbey, though it happens to be on a moving train. The Belmond Royal Scotsman is gliding along at 65 miles an hour through the rolling Highlands of Scotland, rocking me gently until I make it to the cozy safety of my red velvet seat in the dining room. There, at a long table set with custom china for half the train's guests—about 16 of us—I'm served hand-harvested scallops and a tender cut of beef. It's a country mile from the usual bag of chips and can of Coke I'd scarf down on a train trip, I think to myself, admiring how the suit-wearing waiters can refill tall crystal flutes with precision, never spilling a drop. Then it occurs to me: Getting back to my stateroom is going to be even harder.
Washington Post
23-05-2025
- Business
- Washington Post
‘No tax on tips' could backfire amid growing tip fatigue
Let's talk about tipping — again. Because just when you thought navigating who gets what and how much was complicated enough, Congress is about to make it even messier. The Senate's unanimous endorsement of the 'No Tax on Tips Act' — exempting those earning less than $160,000 — could ignite a whole new level of tipping resentment. Will consumers feel like they're subsidizing a government tax break? And what about the workers — wait staff, bartenders, delivery drivers, hair stylists, manicurists — who depend on tips to make ends meet. Will they face more scrutiny, even judgment, of their work? If this tax break makes it into the final federal budget, it could create a costly ripple effect for both the people who leave gratuities and those who pocket them, potentially leaving both sides feeling shortchanged. Here's how I see this playing out. A Bankrate survey last year found that Americans have taken an increasingly negative view of tipping, with roughly 1 in 3 calling it 'out of control.' 'There are so many people we don't tip for providing services,' one reader wrote after my column last summer on whether tipping had gone too far. 'We tip a taxi driver but not an airline pilot? We tip at the counter of a cafe but not a fast food joint? We tip waiters but not nurses? Even in states where the minimum wage has been raised to $12, $15 or $17, we're still tipping. The whole thing is dumb and, frankly, should be outlawed. Pay people an appropriate wage for the job they do, the product they deliver or the service they provide. The consumer should not be involved in the decision of how much an employee takes home.' Suspending taxes on tips will inevitably fuel customer frustration with the practice. 'If we hated 'tipflation' before, imagine what it would be now!' a Facebook user wrote. Many merchants now use cashless payment devices that default to a tip selection ranging from 15 to 25 percent. If you want to leave less, you have to use a custom tip option with the worker staring at you while you do the math. This can be awkward and intimidating for a lot of folks. In the Bankrate survey, 34 percent of Americans said they are especially annoyed by pre-entered tip options on payment screens. This proposed tax incentive will 'expand the use of tipped work — a system rife with discrimination and worker abuse — potentially leading to consumers being asked to tip on virtually every purchase,' according to an Economic Policy Institute report. Tipping transfers some of the responsibility of providing a living wage from the employer to their customers. This has caused resentment among many consumers who liken tipping to subsidizing employers. Some experts say employers might be more inclined to keep base wages low if a significant portion of an employee's income comes in the form of untaxed tips. This could shift a larger share of a worker's compensation onto customers, and create financial instability should tipping habits change. This measure also could undermine efforts to raise the federal minimum wage, which has stood at $7.25 an hour since 2009, the Economic Policy Institute said. 'Not taxing tips could further undercut efforts to raise compensation for rideshare, delivery, and other gig/app-based workers who receive tips,' the nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank said in its report. Tip amounts are generally discretionary, which creates uncertainty for the customer and the service worker. Many consumers already are unsure about the appropriate amount to tip. With a new tax break, some my feel justified in tipping less, which could result in greater fluctuations in workers' earnings. There's a subreddit — r/EndTipping — for people who dislike or want to abolish tipping. It has 35,000 members, who often argue that tipping is an unfair and inconsistent way for workers to earn a living. They frequently call on businesses to pay their employees more instead of relying on customer tips. 'Now that it looks like the government in the US will effectively pass a 'no tax on tips', will this alter how much you tip in full service restaurants, etc?' one user posted recently. Here are some of the responses: Others suggested reducing the amount you tip to account for the tax-free income. Under the proposal, eligible employees would get a federal income tax deduction for cash tips up to $25,000 a year. However, it's important to note that many lower income families may not get a large financial boost from the tax break. 'About 4 percent of families report tips to the IRS, and those who do are disproportionately young, unmarried, and lower-income, according to an analysis of the proposal by the Budget Lab at Yale University. 'This means that many tipped workers do not pay income tax to begin with and would not benefit from a new deduction.' If implemented, the 'no tip on tax' proposal will amplify customer tipping fatigue, fuel frustration over wage subsidization, and further highlight a practice that is unpopular with many Americans.
Daily Mail
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Real Housewives star who owns £5.5m castle in Kent is blasted for 'rude and arrogant' comment to waiter in Cannes restaurant
A multi-millionaire reality TV star has been labelled 'rude and arrogant' after she dismissed a waiter in a restaurant in Cannes who tried to serve her pizza. Dr Ann Kaplan Mulholland - who has a reported net worth of £500million - moved to the UK with her husband three years ago to invest in a castle in Kent and has been attending some of the biggest European red carpet events. Last week, the Real Housewives of Toronto star attended the Cannes Film Festival in France with her friends and decided to go out for a meal. The group were sitting down outside in a restaurant when one of the waiters helped the socialite to a slice of pizza. Ann, 64, then looked at the waiter with a blank expression as he placed it down on her plate and said: 'Do I look like I eat carbs?' The member of staff appeared shocked as he removed the pizza from her plate before awkwardly walking away from her. The entrepreneur then turned her back to him and continued speaking to her pals, before later uploading the footage onto her own Instagram account, with the caption: '#SoClose'. Influencer Joey Swoll reposted her clip and said: 'You can tell a lot about someone from how they treat the waitstaff at a restaurant.' He went on to say that Ann was 'arrogant' and said that 'she did not know how to act like an adult at a restaurant'. Joey proceeded to accuse Ann of thinking that she was 'better than people' because of her wealth and status as a TV personality. The bodybuilder said: 'For you to take a video of that man, to post it online, to try to shame and embarrass him, and all for what? Some likes and attention on social media? Seriously?' The video of Ann - which has now been deleted from her Instagram page - racked up more than eight million views on Joey's TikTok and more than 10,000 people commented on the situation. One wrote: 'Someone's father just trying to do his job and feed his family.'' Another penned: 'And SHE posted it on her own social media. She really saw nothing wrong with it,' while a third said: 'How rude is she.' A fourth commented: 'I feel bad for that guy. Please be kind [to] everyone.' However, this is not the first time that Ann has posted videos of her speaking to restaurant staff while dining out. When she was at the The Royal Mansour - a five-star hotel in Casablanca - the multi-millionaire was sat at a table in an eatery when staff came to wash her hands - a Moroccan tradition. As soon as one of the men began pouring the water over Ann's hands, she seemingly pretended to scream in pain, which appeared to confuse the waiters. They giggled, apparently not knowing how to react to Ann, as her friends laughed at her joke before she took one of the towels to wipe her fingers. She captioned the clip, which was posted at the start of May: 'Hand cleaning hack. They even wash your hands for you at the table! Now that's hot! #greatservice #Finedining at #itsfinest at The Royal Mansour - Casablanca new 5-star hotel (and 'yes' the staff had fun taping this)' FEMAIL has contacted Ann Kaplan Mulholland's agent for comment. Ann and her husband Stephen, a former plastic surgeon, have claimed non-dom status in the UK for the past three years, during which they bought a medieval castle and invested a purported £25m to transform it into a luxury wedding venue. Speaking to MailOnline at the start of the month, the CEO of iFinance Canada, attacked 'reckless' Rachel Reeves over the 'astronomical error' of trying to extract more tax from the ultra-wealthy who are domiciled abroad for tax purposes. The couple intend to keep Lympne Castle in Kent, where around 100 people are employed, but plans for future British ventures including a new credit finance business have gone up in smoke along with their tax exemptions. Instead of remaining in Britain and being forced to pay UK tax on their foreign income under a new tax regime, millionaires and billionaires are thought to be fleeing abroad, after Labour pushed ahead with a proposal first tabled by Conservative chancellor Jeremy Hunt. Speaking to MailOnline from her Las Vegas penthouse, Ann said the decision to leave the UK had been motivated 'purely' by the end of the regime alongside changes to inheritance tax (IHT) that would have sapped millions from her children's fortune. She said of the change: 'It doesn't make any sense. It's not that we're not willing to pay taxes: we do pay taxes in the UK, we employ over 100 people. 'We bring clean capital to the UK, we've invested in businesses in the UK, we pay tax in the UK. But it's like they don't really want the wealthy in the UK, which I think is a big error. 'There's an opportunity for 'Reckless' Reeves, as I call her, to try to save this.' Late last year, she mulled over writing to King Charles III seeking permission to create her own nation state in the grounds of the castle, so she could escape the non-dom clampdown. She ditched it when she realised it was an impossible ask. Instead, she and Stephen plan to move to Italy's swanky fashion capital Milan by next year - following in the footsteps of Aston Villa owner Nassef Sawiris, who left London earlier this year. The European country has an attractive non-dom regime where the super-wealthy are charged a flat annual rate of 200,000 EUR (£171,500) plus 25,000 EUR (£21,400) per family member in order to shield their foreign assets. Ann and her husband attracted widespread media attention when they snapped up crumbling Lympne Castle in Kent for a steal at £5.5million in 2023 after the last of their children flew the nest. The price tag was snipped amid concerns over the huge amount of investment needed to bring it up to scratch - a brief on which she was more than able to deliver. She has since invested around £25million in revitalising the castle and opening a restaurant, the Naughty Dog, on site. She says she now employs around 100 people on the site, and has filmed a new reality series currently airing in the US that follows the renovation journey, entitled Queen of the Castle. 'I felt so at home in the UK: I joined the church, joined the community, I play Scrabble with people - we love living here,' Ann continued. Ann started loan firm iFinance in 1996 and sold it in 2022 after growing it into one of the country's biggest lenders. She boasts a doctorate in finance as well as an MBA and other industry qualifications. The businesswoman says she is bothered by the fact that she has to leave the UK to avoid 'demolishing' her businesses - as she has grown fond of her new home. 'I would do anything to stay but not demolish my businesses globally at the same time. I love it here, and I'm part of a community,' Ann said. 'I love my life in England. It's a beautiful country - who wouldn't love it there? 'It was a big decision to move to the UK. We could have gone anywhere but we chose the UK, and we chose to invest in it and make it our home, and part of that choice was because of the non-dom regime. 'But the government is not listening, or are not recognising the impact this is going to have on the economy.'
Washington Post
21-05-2025
- Business
- Washington Post
In D.C.'s new world of eating out, when is a service fee a tip?
In 2022, D.C. voters approved Initiative 82, a ballot measure that makes restaurants take more responsibility for paying their tipped workers instead of having wait staff rely on customers' generosity. But after two years of operating under the new system, in which restaurant workers get a minimum of $10 per hour rather than the old tipped wage of about $5 an hour, there's trouble in the eateries of the capital city. Dining out in the District has become akin to flying on Spirit: The price is rarely the price. When the check comes, it's often so laden with explanations of new service fees — levied by restaurant owners trying to afford the new pay scale — that bills now rival CVS receipts in yardage.
