In fairness to the restaurants here, they buy their "tickets" or order forms ... or whatever you call them from local stationary shops. They all come with "Tax" printed on them and this is the area almost all of them use to insert their service charge. I am not excusing them, I am just explaining why they do it.
Most of the websites tell you that the service charge is included on the bill, but some don't. You have to
ask because
some of the servers aren't exactly up front about it. Slimy I know, but it is what it is. A simple sign some place visible to customers advising them that a gratuity is included in their bill would be very helpful.
One of the beefs I have is with restaurants that serve the exact same item at lunch as they do for dinner (same quantity too) but charge more for it at dinner. That's just a money grab and because of that, I won't eat dinner at those places. That is pure greed ... nothing more.
Charging $4.00 for a beer I can understand ... but more than that is getting a little crazy, particularly in some of the roadside and beach shacks. In high end restaurants with a great view,
proper tables with
comfortable chairs that aren't made of plastic, fabulous ambience, great service and high overheads, you should expect to pay more.
Sadly, it seems that greed is driving some restaurateurs and other businesses too. They aren't satisfied with a decent profit, they want more, more, more.
Having said that, I have been spending a lot of time and money in restaurants over the past 8 months as I have been busy building pages for all the restaurants in the BVI. There are still a lot of really good places with reasonable prices around, you just have to ask the right questions before sitting down and ordering your meal.
I agree ... Capriccio's has some of the best value around and great food too. The Clubhouse is my absolute favourite and Hog Heaven on Virgin Gorda is right up there as well. I like Sharky's, D'Best Cup in Soper's Hole, Brandywine is terrific and offers fabulous service too. And I personally think D' Coal Pot is wonderful. Pirate's Bight is getting up there on my list of favourites as well.
I also like the Watering Hole in Road Town, Captain Mulligan's at Nanny Cay, Dove Love, Emile's and Red Rock in East End.
Other places often offer spotty or poor service, ridiculous pricing or food that often disappoints and is inconsistent.
One thing that doesn't change is that restaurants that don't have a continual supply of "one time tourists", don't offer good service and good food ... simply don't do much business in the off season and that is why they charge ridiculous fees at the height of the season. They need to make a killing in high season in order to make it through the long, hot summer.
THAT is part of the reason why many places close over the low season. Without the unsuspecting tourist to pickpocket, they don't have the local trade to keep them going. If you see a relatively busy restaurant in low season, chances are they serve good food at reasonable prices ... year 'round. Of course some close so the staff can take a much needed holiday for part of the time too. But some close for 2 to 3 months! In my opinion, that says a lot about the restaurant and their ability to provide what people actually want.
If I were in that business and believed in my product, I would be open at least 11 months a year. I think 4 weeks is more than enough time to recharge your batteries.
But charging a
[color:"red"]service charge[/color] on
[color:"red"]take out[/color] food ... that just takes the cake! No way would I pay that. No way in the world.
Guess I can add one more question to ask in future! <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Grin.gif" alt="" /> Thanks for the heads up Mal.