“I would refuse to pay the bill”: Customer says they were charged a “quiet time” fee at a restaurant

A Redditor claimed they were charged a new kind of fee while dining at a nearly empty restaurant. The charge, which was added before the tip, appeared as a “Quiet Time Surcharge” on their bill. The story quickly picked up the debate, where users argued about whether the fee was even legal.

Redditor claims they were charged for eating during slow hours

In a post on r/EndTipping, u/michalwalks wrote they were “charged a ‘Quiet Time Surcharge’ because the restaurant wasn’t busy.” They explained that the restaurant seemed calm when they walked in, so they decided to give it a try. However, the bill included “an extra 20% pre-tip charge labelled ‘Quiet Time Surcharge.’”

At first, they assumed the line item was an error. “I ask the server what it is, thinking it’s a mistake. They look a bit sheepish and say something along the lines of: ‘management says when it’s not busy, you’re basically getting the place to yourself. It’s kind of like flying private instead of commercial.’”

The response left the diner stunned. “I had to laugh, but also… are you kidding me? I’m not ‘chartering a restaurant,’ I just wanted dinner. If anything, it’s less service work when the place is empty.”

According to their post, the idea of restaurants adding charges simply because they lacked customers seemed absurd. They ended by writing, “So now we’re at the point where restaurants tack on fees not because they’re busy, but because they aren’t. That’s wild.”

Reddit reacts with anger and sarcasm

Many Redditors argued the fee was both unfair and unenforceable. u/Zetavu commented, “All charges not advertised are illegal, and others can be removed. I would refuse to pay the bill until it was removed, get a receipt, and check the charge online.”

Similarly, one person suggested confronting the server directly. They wrote, “If there is no signage indicating the totally reasonable and not at all weird a** thing is going to be added to the bill, I would call the server over, ask him or her what it is, then tell them ‘remove it or I am going to refuse to pay and you and I can call the police together.’”

Other users chose a more sarcastic approach. u/Thrompinator quipped, “If this is a true story, I foresee much more quiet time in this restaurant’s future.”

However, some commenters vented frustration with tipping culture in general, a common refrain in the subreddit. User u/lastlaugh100 compared the fee to automatic gratuities, writing, “Used to be 18% auto gratuity for parties of 6 or more because it’s more difficult serving larger tables. Now they are doing the same thing if the place is empty. F*** tipping. It’s pure greed.”

Finally, another Redditor questioned how far such practices could go. “Is there anything restaurants won’t pass on to the customer? At this point, [expletive] it, you’re part co-owner with all the business expenses coming out of your pocket.”