Some Restaurants Adding 'COVID-19' Surcharge to Bills, Dividing Customers
05/15/2020 11:20 am EDT
While White believes he might be the only restaurant forced to do this in his area, he is certainly not the only one across the country. Owners are also going out of their way to explain these extra charges are not meant to take advantage of the customer. In West Plains, Missouri, Ozark Cafe, KiKo Japanese Steakhouse and Bootleggers BBQ added 5 percent surcharges due to the coronavirus pandemic, reports KY3. The owners of these restaurants said the surcharges will only be temporary.
West Plains residents who spoke with KY3 understood why the charges were necessary. "I absolutely support it," Maylee Stewart told the outlet. "I think it's a good thing for us as a community to help support our local businesses. It's really not a lot. They're really not adding too much on to the total. I think mine was 66 cents today and I'd pay more if they needed it."
KiKo Japanese Steakhouse actually became at the center of a controversy when their COVID-19 surcharge was first noticed. A photo of a receipt went viral on Twitter, and the backlash continued on Facebook. The owners insisted the charge was not added to take advantage of anyone, explaining it was only to make up for the added costs of meat and poultry. They then announced the charge would be removed and now they will have to raise prices, but will try to offer deals. "We are even making a lots of good promo deal so you guys still can enjoy our meal with a low cost but due to prices going up & low margin we have to raise our prices," the owner wrote on Facebook.
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