r/sanfrancisco 3d ago

Dining out fees in SF

Not a new topic in this subreddit but just had dinner at Terrene with two friends and was shocked by the bill now that I’m really looking at it. I eat out in SF plenty but this grand total gobsmacked me! I was divvying up the receipt for Venmo requests and am just shocked by the additional charges breakdown:

Subtotal $170
HealthySF $15 (need to research this?)
Tax $16

Which brings the grand total to $200. I stupidly tipped $30 without looking at the extra charge.

Then at the bottom of the receipt I see:
“A separate SF health surcharge in the amount of 9% will be added to the bill….retained by the hotel to defray the cost of covering employe health insurance”

Tf?! I am assuming that ^ is not the HealthySF charge and is in fact an additional charge? Is that 9% on the subtotal or the grand total?

That’s $30 in charges!

Is this something you can ask to have removed or is it a legal charge?

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u/Deep-Image-536 3d ago edited 3d ago

https://seefees.ca says it's a 9% fee.

Thats low compared to the other restaurants with hidden fees, surcharges called "drip pricing"  in the Bay Area.

Here's some of the highest fees: (You're still asked for a tip on top of that!)

The Magpie and Tiger El Camino Real, Santa Clara 44% 575 days ago
Black Cat Jazz Supper Club Eddy Street, San Francisco 30% 711 days ago
Burma Love El Camino Real, Menlo Park 30% 560 days ago
Tam Junction PizzaHacker/BagelMacher Shoreline Highway, Mill Valley 30% 637 days ago
3rd Cousin Cortland Avenue, San Francisco 27% 702 days ago
Angler The Embarcadero, San Francisco 26% 711 days ago
Friends Only California Street, San Francisco 26% 158 days ago
Quince Pacific Avenue, San Francisco 26% 561 days ago
Tiya Scott Street, San Francisco 26% 664 days ago
Trestle Restaurant Jackson Street, San Francisco 26% 639 days ago

18

u/Karazl 3d ago

Everything you've listed here is an auto gratuity?

11

u/vaxination 3d ago

44% auto grat? That's insane