"Following the intense controversy provoked by our service charge system, we have decided to remove it starting September 12th, 2012. From that date forward, the traditional voluntary TIP system will apply."Why they're waiting until Wednesday to terminate it is an interesting question.
Stephane's added a 15% gratuity for tables up to 4 people, and 18% for 5 or more. Considering that almost nobody leaves less than a 15% tip at an upscale restaurant, this in itself isn't much of a "controversy". I actually like it, because it saves me money. When there is a mandatory tip, that's all they get from me. And I usually leave more than 15%.
The only reason a 15-18% gratuity would be a "controversy" would be if the restaurant had serious issues. You have to be pretty unhappy to leave much less than 15%. The food is overpriced without question, but the servers didn't do a bad job when I was there.
The truth is that people who "intensely" complained about a 15-18% gratuity aren't going to come back to the restaurant anyway, regardless of the policy. So this will have zero impact on the business. People will continue to go once and never return, as they do with any other place they don't like; mandatory gratuity or not.
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