It’s true that kitchens are the heart and soul of a restaurant. But it’s not really common practice to tip them.
So, when TikToker Kiara (@kiki.alchemy) encountered a “kitchen appreciation fee,” she was left flabbergasted.
Because automatic gratuities are usually applied to waiting staff, taking this already-controversial move and applying it to kitchen staff sparked a lot of debate in the comment section of the TikTok.
At the time of writing, the clip has amassed 317,000 views. It depicts footage of a receipt from Cafe O’Lei at the Plantation, which, among other things, includes a 3% “kitchen appreciation fee.”
As Kiara zoomed into the receipt, she asked via on-screen text, “What TF is a kitchen appreciation fee?”
“I’ve never heard of this before,” she added in the video description.
How Did Commenters Feel About It?
For some commenters, the very fact that this kind of gratuity was expected put them off from paying any kind of tip at all.
“Big NO for me,” one wrote. “I’m not tipping the kitchen staff now.”
“That tells me not to tip,” a second said. “I don’t care what the extra charge is, include it in the price or nobody is getting anything extra.”
“See, I think I’m getting old because stuff like this pisses me off,” a third admitted. “Pay your employees a fair wage and quit throwing every cost to the consumer.”
A fourth added, “It’s only $2 but the audacity.”
And a fifth declared, “Cancel tip culture 2026.”
Backing up this point, a sixth concurred, “Bro we need to cancel tip culture so bad. It should not be our responsibility to pay these workers.”
Kiara didn’t immediately respond to BroBible’s request for comment via Instagram direct message. We also reached out to Cafe O’Lei at the Plantation via contact form.
@kiki.alchemy I’ve never heard of this before 😭💸 #tippingculture #tip #resturant #bill
Has Tipping Culture Gone Too Far?
Cafe O’Lei at the Plantation isn’t the only business that is adding automatic tips to people’s purchases.
In a viral TikTok, Alexis Rose (@_apatch_) demonstrated how a single orange at an airport had a hidden cost.
“OK. Pretend I’m a 60-year-old, you know, mom, grandma, and I’m traveling, right? I want this orange,” he began.
He then proceeds to scan an orange for $1.69 on a self-checkout machine. Yet, the whole order’s total is $2.04 thanks to an automatic tip being added. This tip in turn works out at 18%. Although customers can amend this to add a 0% tip, Rose remains furious.
“Grandma doesn’t notice that there’s an 18% tip at the self-checkout,” he said. “What kind of scam is this going on, man?”
“Has tipping gotten [so] out of hand that they’re scamming?” he added. “This is a scam!”