Bowser repealing minimum wage increases. What

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why can't they eliminate servers. Have customers pickup their food at the kitchen counter.

We're well on our way to that making up 75 percent of DC restaurants, with most of them national chains. The other 25 percent will be expense-account places. No middle ground because of I-82.

Yep, kiss locally-owned, affordable and neighborhood focused sit-down restaurants good-bye. They all are an endangered breed. Food halls, and other places without servers are going to be it for everything short of fine dining or Cheese-Cake Factory type places.

Maybe that's fine, but the I-82 backers either had no idea this would happen or were lying about it.

Strange. In my travels to Alaska, California, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington state, I could swear that I’ve eaten at many “locally-owned, affordable and neighborhood focused sit-down restaurants”. Yet all of these states mandate that restaurants pay all staff the standard minimum wage that applies to all other workers. Is there something special about these states that does not apply to DC or do you just habitually pull arguments out of thin air?

Ok, I'll bite. So why do you think all these restaurants are going out of business and blaming I-82? They are just closing their businesses to spite you? Something else is making them close and they just don't know their books?

What else has changed in DC and the US economically generally over the past few years that might cause restaurants to go out of business at an accelerated rate? And how frequently do restaurants go out of business even when times are good? I-82 was not optimal in that it phased in the change over four years. A better approach would probably have just been to unify the tipped minimum wage and regular minimum wage at once. That would have eliminated the possibility for the shenanigans that all of us who have eaten out at DC restaurants have been witness to. And those shenanigans have been an expensive own goal by the restaurant industry. I’d be willing to wager more than a few establishments have lost significant business by pissing off their customers by instituting junk fees to protest I-82. Other restaurants who have adapted by simply raising their menu prices or introducing a surcharge - with a clear policy that tips are not expected - have done much better.

This is so dumb, in so many ways. This was not a good idea that was just poorly implemented. It was a stupid, naive idea that no one should have ever taken seriously.

You’re calling other people dumb. How interesting. But you see two things happen at the same time and are convinced that one caused the other. And pass off the opinions of those who are literally invested in the issue as objective fact. The rest of us will take the results of economic studies of the issue over the views of failed restauranteurs, but thanks for your sharing your views about I-82 anyway. The restaurant owner lobby is very lucky to have you.

It wasn't that long ago when places like the New York Times were writing about the amazing restaurant scene in DC. Now all the stories are like this:

‘It’s just not sustainable’: D.C. restaurants pushed to the brink
In the wake of wage hikes and government layoffs, some owners say they can’t keep treading water.

April 14, 2025

https://www.washingtonpost.com/food/2025/04/14/dc-restaurant-closings-brooklands-finest-minimum-wage/


44 percent of DC-area restaurants surveyed say they’re ‘likely to close’ by the end of this year

https://wamu.org/story/25/04/04/44-percent-of-dc-area-restaurants-surveyed-say-theyre-likely-to-close-by-the-end-of-this-year/

[Anonymous]

A very large number of restaurants in our main strip area of NW DC have closed. The boarded up, vacant sites, one next to the other, are sad to look at.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A very large number of restaurants in our main strip area of NW DC have closed. The boarded up, vacant sites, one next to the other, are sad to look at.

Not to worry. There are marijuana dispensaries on the way.

[Anonymous]

The PP who noted MANY other states have no tipped wage and still have successful restaurant industries including plenty of locally owned restaurants had a good point. Let's engage with it honestly.

What makes DC different that might make this harder here?

I think a major issue is rents. Much of DC's commercial real estate is owned by developers and landlords who are insufficiently motivated to rent to restaurants at a rate that would enable them to both pay their employees a standard wage AND turn a profit (or even break even). DC does not penalize landlords for letting storefronts go empty for extended periods. So they can charge high rents and wait for someone willing to pay it. Restaurants who want to survive rely on the ability to pass the cost of labor into customers. I-82 gets in the way of that.

(Note this problem impacts other industries in DC -- there is a reason DC often lacks enough daycares or auto shops. Ever needed something and quickly realized you have to go to the burbs for it? This is a major reason why.)

But even though DC is very friendly to commercial landlords and barely regulates empty commercial spaces, it regulates the crap out of restaurants themselves and navigating that regulatory framework is expensive. Licensing in particular is really hard and many restaurants have to hire experienced staff just to make sure they can obtain their liquor license in a timely manner. ANCs can also be a hold up, and some are egregiously bad.

Other places that have eliminated tips have friendlier environments for the restaurant industry. DC is hostile to the industry so eliminating the tipped wage winds up being the straw that breaks the camels back. But it's not really the source of the problem.

Notice that there is no concern among commercial landlords about the restaurants closing. No WaPo stories of landlords lamenting losing good tenants or being unable to afford to own these spaces anymore? They barely care. Tax write off. It will now sit vacant for 10 years and they won't feel it at all.

[Anonymous]

I strongly agree with rolling back I-82. Servers earn more from tips than minimum wage and restaurants need a reprieve from the increased costs they’re paying across the board.

[Anonymous]

One other thing that makes DC different from other cities is that there’s a bit of a divide between where people live and where they work. I work close to the White House and the food scene there is terrible. There’s some very expensive places that aren’t great but very few places that I’d really like to eat at. All the new interesting restaurants are in the residential areas further north. I assume it’s tough for the businesses downtown because they don’t get enough dinner business.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s amazing to see DC politicians responding to market forces. Our politicians have spent most of the last decade acting like they could just push whatever far left flavor of the day.

This is what happens when we elect 13 people with exactly ZERO private sector experience. Not a single day in the business world among 13 lifetimes. From a statistical perspective this is about a 1,000,000,000 to 1 outcome, but somehow the voters of DC have pulled it off. Collectively, they are an incredibly unimpressive lot.

Another false claim that can be quickly debunked by browsing the biographies of the members.

Maybe it would be good to have more council members with deeper private sector experience. That is not for you or I to decide, however.

If you feel passionately about this and you have the experience you feel is so important for the council, please mount a campaign. But you might want to consider developing a closer relationship with the truth before doing so.

Ummm. DC nonprofit/attorney/consultant/community organizing is not the same thing as the private sector…

Have any of the Council ever have to make payroll, order inventory, pay rent, build something? Nope. They’re all unimpressive white collar, barely employable hacks.

You have a very special idea of what the phrase “private sector” means, one that accords with no conventional definition.

If you have done these things and think that your expertise would add value to Council business, please run.

Please enlighten us as to which councilman has private sector experience?

Various council members have worked as attorneys for private firms, Janeese worked as a waitress, Wendell worked for Sibley hospital and so on . . .

LOL! Only in DC would someone with “Director of Community Affairs” at a hospital be considered a “private sector” job. These folks washed out of the private sector, if they were ever in the private sector at all. Their incompetence is reflected in the policies they champion which almost always end up being anti business or pro criminal. They’re a national embarrassment.

I'm a lawyer, but how is being a Director of Community Affairs not a private sector job. Signed former investment banker. Are only corporate jobs private sector jobs? WTH.

In your time as an investment banker did they explain to you the difference between for profits and non profits? Because you may have lost your clients a lot of capital. The hospital he had the no show “community relations” job was was a NONPROFIT.

So now you let us know that you have a specific form of private sector experience in mind. The fact is that made a bold claim that no one on the DC Council had any private sector experience. This claim has been proved false. Please go about your day and try not to do it again.

+1. We are indeed fortunate that so many of our Council members left their thriving private sector careers to run for unpaid ANC commissions to ensure, with occasional success, that our leaves get pick up in time. They are truly an impressive group.

[Anonymous]

I think you can’t have a discussion about restaurants in DC without considering tourism and the effect that crime is playing. I can’t speak for the whole country but I can say honestly that I’d love to take my kids to DC for a vacation but I won’t do it due to the crime. Who wants to risk being carjacked or robbed or harassed on the metro or deal with the stench of pot just to see some museums. I think it’s also noteworthy that most of the country doesn’t feel welcome there due to the politics of the area (it’s well known that DC is 95% Democrat). It’s just not worth it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think you can’t have a discussion about restaurants in DC without considering tourism and the effect that crime is playing. I can’t speak for the whole country but I can say honestly that I’d love to take my kids to DC for a vacation but I won’t do it due to the crime. Who wants to risk being carjacked or robbed or harassed on the metro or deal with the stench of pot just to see some museums. I think it’s also noteworthy that most of the country doesn’t feel welcome there due to the politics of the area (it’s well known that DC is 95% Democrat). It’s just not worth it.

We are happy you won't come, because what you said is utterly absurd. And yes, DC is very democratic - thank God. That means that people are highly educated and you have more lawyers than anywhere else on earth.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The PP who noted MANY other states have no tipped wage and still have successful restaurant industries including plenty of locally owned restaurants had a good point. Let's engage with it honestly.

What makes DC different that might make this harder here?

I think a major issue is rents. Much of DC's commercial real estate is owned by developers and landlords who are insufficiently motivated to rent to restaurants at a rate that would enable them to both pay their employees a standard wage AND turn a profit (or even break even). DC does not penalize landlords for letting storefronts go empty for extended periods. So they can charge high rents and wait for someone willing to pay it. Restaurants who want to survive rely on the ability to pass the cost of labor into customers. I-82 gets in the way of that.

(Note this problem impacts other industries in DC -- there is a reason DC often lacks enough daycares or auto shops. Ever needed something and quickly realized you have to go to the burbs for it? This is a major reason why.)

But even though DC is very friendly to commercial landlords and barely regulates empty commercial spaces, it regulates the crap out of restaurants themselves and navigating that regulatory framework is expensive. Licensing in particular is really hard and many restaurants have to hire experienced staff just to make sure they can obtain their liquor license in a timely manner. ANCs can also be a hold up, and some are egregiously bad.

Other places that have eliminated tips have friendlier environments for the restaurant industry. DC is hostile to the industry so eliminating the tipped wage winds up being the straw that breaks the camels back. But it's not really the source of the problem.

Notice that there is no concern among commercial landlords about the restaurants closing. No WaPo stories of landlords lamenting losing good tenants or being unable to afford to own these spaces anymore? They barely care. Tax write off. It will now sit vacant for 10 years and they won't feel it at all.

We had a thriving restaurant scene for a *very* long time before I-82 came along.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think you can’t have a discussion about restaurants in DC without considering tourism and the effect that crime is playing. I can’t speak for the whole country but I can say honestly that I’d love to take my kids to DC for a vacation but I won’t do it due to the crime. Who wants to risk being carjacked or robbed or harassed on the metro or deal with the stench of pot just to see some museums. I think it’s also noteworthy that most of the country doesn’t feel welcome there due to the politics of the area (it’s well known that DC is 95% Democrat). It’s just not worth it.

We are happy you won't come, because what you said is utterly absurd. And yes, DC is very democratic - thank God. That means that people are highly educated and you have more lawyers than anywhere else on earth.

-1. You are very welcome here. There is a silent majority of DC, mostly middle of the road Ds, who are held hostage by loud, professional progressive activists like PP. We’re tired of the crime and blight too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Because servers don't want it.

My brother is a professional bartender in DC who routinely makes tips that equal out $50-$60/hr. A slow night for him is leaving with only ~$250 in tips. He makes $600-$800 per night Thur-Sat.

People aren't going to tip with a high hourly wage in place, and no one who has been in the service industry as a career is going to keep doing it for $17.95/hr.

Service industry workers and restaurant owners tried to tell TPTB that a higher minimum wage would not work for all establishments. For a McDonald's? Sure, but at Le Diplomate, Zaytinya, or The Hamilton, nope. They can't keep their skilled workers at that rate.

That is simply false. People who eat out still tip 20%+. Read Tom Sietsema's WP chat. The anecdata is universal.

What happened was that restaurant owners got greedy and thought they could dupe the public into paying a ton of made-up fees. And so a lot of us stopped eating out.

Not true. The new line items for “service fees” that never really indicate if that is a tip or covering the general increase in business costs. When I see that fee already tacked on I’m not tipping on top of that. Theee needs to be more transparency.

As for people whining that businesses should just pay the higher minimum or “they shouldn’t be in business” are idiots. How much are you willing to to pay for burger and beer? That cost is paid for in the following ways: lay off staff or pass along cost to customer. If you are fine paying $25 for a burger at a neighborhood joint go right ahead.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why can't they eliminate servers. Have customers pickup their food at the kitchen counter.

We're well on our way to that making up 75 percent of DC restaurants, with most of them national chains. The other 25 percent will be expense-account places. No middle ground because of I-82.

Yep, kiss locally-owned, affordable and neighborhood focused sit-down restaurants good-bye. They all are an endangered breed. Food halls, and other places without servers are going to be it for everything short of fine dining or Cheese-Cake Factory type places.

Maybe that's fine, but the I-82 backers either had no idea this would happen or were lying about it.

Strange. In my travels to Alaska, California, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington state, I could swear that I’ve eaten at many “locally-owned, affordable and neighborhood focused sit-down restaurants”. Yet all of these states mandate that restaurants pay all staff the standard minimum wage that applies to all other workers. Is there something special about these states that does not apply to DC or do you just habitually pull arguments out of thin air?

Ok, I'll bite. So why do you think all these restaurants are going out of business and blaming I-82? They are just closing their businesses to spite you? Something else is making them close and they just don't know their books?

What else has changed in DC and the US economically generally over the past few years that might cause restaurants to go out of business at an accelerated rate? And how frequently do restaurants go out of business even when times are good? I-82 was not optimal in that it phased in the change over four years. A better approach would probably have just been to unify the tipped minimum wage and regular minimum wage at once. That would have eliminated the possibility for the shenanigans that all of us who have eaten out at DC restaurants have been witness to. And those shenanigans have been an expensive own goal by the restaurant industry. I’d be willing to wager more than a few establishments have lost significant business by pissing off their customers by instituting junk fees to protest I-82. Other restaurants who have adapted by simply raising their menu prices or introducing a surcharge - with a clear policy that tips are not expected - have done much better.

This is so dumb, in so many ways. This was not a good idea that was just poorly implemented. It was a stupid, naive idea that no one should have ever taken seriously.

You’re calling other people dumb. How interesting. But you see two things happen at the same time and are convinced that one caused the other. And pass off the opinions of those who are literally invested in the issue as objective fact. The rest of us will take the results of economic studies of the issue over the views of failed restauranteurs, but thanks for your sharing your views about I-82 anyway. The restaurant owner lobby is very lucky to have you.

It wasn't that long ago when places like the New York Times were writing about the amazing restaurant scene in DC. Now all the stories are like this:

‘It’s just not sustainable’: D.C. restaurants pushed to the brink
In the wake of wage hikes and government layoffs, some owners say they can’t keep treading water.

April 14, 2025

https://www.washingtonpost.com/food/2025/04/14/dc-restaurant-closings-brooklands-finest-minimum-wage/


44 percent of DC-area restaurants surveyed say they’re ‘likely to close’ by the end of this year

https://wamu.org/story/25/04/04/44-percent-of-dc-area-restaurants-surveyed-say-theyre-likely-to-close-by-the-end-of-this-year/

On average and even in healthy markets, restaurants close and open all of the time. And it should be clear why restaurant owners would want to make the most alarmist case possible for regulatory relief, so we should all take these survey responses with a grain of salt.

That said, it's obvious that many things in recent years that have made it more difficult to run a restaurant in DC. An inevitably incomplete list would include supply shortages, increases in input costs, the rise of teleworking, crime (or the perception thereof), federal layoffs and the cratering regional economy, and so on . . .

I-82 is a disruption, no doubt. But we should be honest that, if the problem for restaurants is a lack of diners, rolling back I-82 isn't going to change much. Unless the restaurant is engaging in wage theft, they have to fully make up the difference between what wait staff make in tips and the regular minimum wage.

If, on the other hand, the restaurant is busy and the tips for wait staff would have allowed them to earn at least the regular minimum wage, the restaurant is going to be paying more in wage costs. But they are fully empowered to recoup these additional wage costs by adding a flat service charge (as Ashok Bajaj's restaurants, such as Bindaas, have done) or, better yet, increasing menu prices and adding a note to the menu that tips are appreciated but not expected.

The argument against I-82 by restaurant owners seems to be that, adding a service fee or increasing menu prices to offset their added wage costs would reduce diner spending. Given how much baseline inflation we've experienced in recent years, this is an argument that is hard to take seriously.

As a regular diner at DC restaurants, what I appreciate is price transparency and what I absolutely hate is a laundry list of fees and surcharges added to my check. Some restaurant owners have tried to foment opposition to I-82 by adding puerile "I-82 Fees" to diner checks and then turning around and claiming that the drop in business they experienced was due to I-82! Frankly, I'd expect more mature behavior from a four year old.

Again, restaurants in DC haven't had it easy over the past few years and not many of us deny that. That said, those restaurants that have adapted to I-82 in a mature manner have won the respect of the community. But the city will be no worse off if it loses those who need junk fees and lobbying to overturn popular initiatives to make a profit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why can't they eliminate servers. Have customers pickup their food at the kitchen counter.

We're well on our way to that making up 75 percent of DC restaurants, with most of them national chains. The other 25 percent will be expense-account places. No middle ground because of I-82.

Yep, kiss locally-owned, affordable and neighborhood focused sit-down restaurants good-bye. They all are an endangered breed. Food halls, and other places without servers are going to be it for everything short of fine dining or Cheese-Cake Factory type places.

Maybe that's fine, but the I-82 backers either had no idea this would happen or were lying about it.

Strange. In my travels to Alaska, California, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington state, I could swear that I’ve eaten at many “locally-owned, affordable and neighborhood focused sit-down restaurants”. Yet all of these states mandate that restaurants pay all staff the standard minimum wage that applies to all other workers. Is there something special about these states that does not apply to DC or do you just habitually pull arguments out of thin air?

Ok, I'll bite. So why do you think all these restaurants are going out of business and blaming I-82? They are just closing their businesses to spite you? Something else is making them close and they just don't know their books?

What else has changed in DC and the US economically generally over the past few years that might cause restaurants to go out of business at an accelerated rate? And how frequently do restaurants go out of business even when times are good? I-82 was not optimal in that it phased in the change over four years. A better approach would probably have just been to unify the tipped minimum wage and regular minimum wage at once. That would have eliminated the possibility for the shenanigans that all of us who have eaten out at DC restaurants have been witness to. And those shenanigans have been an expensive own goal by the restaurant industry. I’d be willing to wager more than a few establishments have lost significant business by pissing off their customers by instituting junk fees to protest I-82. Other restaurants who have adapted by simply raising their menu prices or introducing a surcharge - with a clear policy that tips are not expected - have done much better.

This is so dumb, in so many ways. This was not a good idea that was just poorly implemented. It was a stupid, naive idea that no one should have ever taken seriously.

You’re calling other people dumb. How interesting. But you see two things happen at the same time and are convinced that one caused the other. And pass off the opinions of those who are literally invested in the issue as objective fact. The rest of us will take the results of economic studies of the issue over the views of failed restauranteurs, but thanks for your sharing your views about I-82 anyway. The restaurant owner lobby is very lucky to have you.

It wasn't that long ago when places like the New York Times were writing about the amazing restaurant scene in DC. Now all the stories are like this:

‘It’s just not sustainable’: D.C. restaurants pushed to the brink
In the wake of wage hikes and government layoffs, some owners say they can’t keep treading water.

April 14, 2025

https://www.washingtonpost.com/food/2025/04/14/dc-restaurant-closings-brooklands-finest-minimum-wage/


44 percent of DC-area restaurants surveyed say they’re ‘likely to close’ by the end of this year

https://wamu.org/story/25/04/04/44-percent-of-dc-area-restaurants-surveyed-say-theyre-likely-to-close-by-the-end-of-this-year/

On average and even in healthy markets, restaurants close and open all of the time. And it should be clear why restaurant owners would want to make the most alarmist case possible for regulatory relief, so we should all take these survey responses with a grain of salt.

That said, it's obvious that many things in recent years that have made it more difficult to run a restaurant in DC. An inevitably incomplete list would include supply shortages, increases in input costs, the rise of teleworking, crime (or the perception thereof), federal layoffs and the cratering regional economy, and so on . . .

I-82 is a disruption, no doubt. But we should be honest that, if the problem for restaurants is a lack of diners, rolling back I-82 isn't going to change much. Unless the restaurant is engaging in wage theft, they have to fully make up the difference between what wait staff make in tips and the regular minimum wage.

If, on the other hand, the restaurant is busy and the tips for wait staff would have allowed them to earn at least the regular minimum wage, the restaurant is going to be paying more in wage costs. But they are fully empowered to recoup these additional wage costs by adding a flat service charge (as Ashok Bajaj's restaurants, such as Bindaas, have done) or, better yet, increasing menu prices and adding a note to the menu that tips are appreciated but not expected.

The argument against I-82 by restaurant owners seems to be that, adding a service fee or increasing menu prices to offset their added wage costs would reduce diner spending. Given how much baseline inflation we've experienced in recent years, this is an argument that is hard to take seriously.

As a regular diner at DC restaurants, what I appreciate is price transparency and what I absolutely hate is a laundry list of fees and surcharges added to my check. Some restaurant owners have tried to foment opposition to I-82 by adding puerile "I-82 Fees" to diner checks and then turning around and claiming that the drop in business they experienced was due to I-82! Frankly, I'd expect more mature behavior from a four year old.

Again, restaurants in DC haven't had it easy over the past few years and not many of us deny that. That said, those restaurants that have adapted to I-82 in a mature manner have won the respect of the community. But the city will be no worse off if it loses those who need junk fees and lobbying to overturn popular initiatives to make a profit.

TLDR: good riddance to these restaurants.

You seem to know this industry well, can't wait to check out your concept that will fill these empty buildings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why can't they eliminate servers. Have customers pickup their food at the kitchen counter.

We're well on our way to that making up 75 percent of DC restaurants, with most of them national chains. The other 25 percent will be expense-account places. No middle ground because of I-82.

Yep, kiss locally-owned, affordable and neighborhood focused sit-down restaurants good-bye. They all are an endangered breed. Food halls, and other places without servers are going to be it for everything short of fine dining or Cheese-Cake Factory type places.

Maybe that's fine, but the I-82 backers either had no idea this would happen or were lying about it.

Strange. In my travels to Alaska, California, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington state, I could swear that I’ve eaten at many “locally-owned, affordable and neighborhood focused sit-down restaurants”. Yet all of these states mandate that restaurants pay all staff the standard minimum wage that applies to all other workers. Is there something special about these states that does not apply to DC or do you just habitually pull arguments out of thin air?

Ok, I'll bite. So why do you think all these restaurants are going out of business and blaming I-82? They are just closing their businesses to spite you? Something else is making them close and they just don't know their books?

What else has changed in DC and the US economically generally over the past few years that might cause restaurants to go out of business at an accelerated rate? And how frequently do restaurants go out of business even when times are good? I-82 was not optimal in that it phased in the change over four years. A better approach would probably have just been to unify the tipped minimum wage and regular minimum wage at once. That would have eliminated the possibility for the shenanigans that all of us who have eaten out at DC restaurants have been witness to. And those shenanigans have been an expensive own goal by the restaurant industry. I’d be willing to wager more than a few establishments have lost significant business by pissing off their customers by instituting junk fees to protest I-82. Other restaurants who have adapted by simply raising their menu prices or introducing a surcharge - with a clear policy that tips are not expected - have done much better.

This is so dumb, in so many ways. This was not a good idea that was just poorly implemented. It was a stupid, naive idea that no one should have ever taken seriously.

You’re calling other people dumb. How interesting. But you see two things happen at the same time and are convinced that one caused the other. And pass off the opinions of those who are literally invested in the issue as objective fact. The rest of us will take the results of economic studies of the issue over the views of failed restauranteurs, but thanks for your sharing your views about I-82 anyway. The restaurant owner lobby is very lucky to have you.

It wasn't that long ago when places like the New York Times were writing about the amazing restaurant scene in DC. Now all the stories are like this:

‘It’s just not sustainable’: D.C. restaurants pushed to the brink
In the wake of wage hikes and government layoffs, some owners say they can’t keep treading water.

April 14, 2025

https://www.washingtonpost.com/food/2025/04/14/dc-restaurant-closings-brooklands-finest-minimum-wage/


44 percent of DC-area restaurants surveyed say they’re ‘likely to close’ by the end of this year

https://wamu.org/story/25/04/04/44-percent-of-dc-area-restaurants-surveyed-say-theyre-likely-to-close-by-the-end-of-this-year/

On average and even in healthy markets, restaurants close and open all of the time. And it should be clear why restaurant owners would want to make the most alarmist case possible for regulatory relief, so we should all take these survey responses with a grain of salt.

That said, it's obvious that many things in recent years that have made it more difficult to run a restaurant in DC. An inevitably incomplete list would include supply shortages, increases in input costs, the rise of teleworking, crime (or the perception thereof), federal layoffs and the cratering regional economy, and so on . . .

I-82 is a disruption, no doubt. But we should be honest that, if the problem for restaurants is a lack of diners, rolling back I-82 isn't going to change much. Unless the restaurant is engaging in wage theft, they have to fully make up the difference between what wait staff make in tips and the regular minimum wage.

If, on the other hand, the restaurant is busy and the tips for wait staff would have allowed them to earn at least the regular minimum wage, the restaurant is going to be paying more in wage costs. But they are fully empowered to recoup these additional wage costs by adding a flat service charge (as Ashok Bajaj's restaurants, such as Bindaas, have done) or, better yet, increasing menu prices and adding a note to the menu that tips are appreciated but not expected.

The argument against I-82 by restaurant owners seems to be that, adding a service fee or increasing menu prices to offset their added wage costs would reduce diner spending. Given how much baseline inflation we've experienced in recent years, this is an argument that is hard to take seriously.

As a regular diner at DC restaurants, what I appreciate is price transparency and what I absolutely hate is a laundry list of fees and surcharges added to my check. Some restaurant owners have tried to foment opposition to I-82 by adding puerile "I-82 Fees" to diner checks and then turning around and claiming that the drop in business they experienced was due to I-82! Frankly, I'd expect more mature behavior from a four year old.

Again, restaurants in DC haven't had it easy over the past few years and not many of us deny that. That said, those restaurants that have adapted to I-82 in a mature manner have won the respect of the community. But the city will be no worse off if it loses those who need junk fees and lobbying to overturn popular initiatives to make a profit.

TLDR: good riddance to these restaurants.

You seem to know this industry well, can't wait to check out your concept that will fill these empty buildings.

Good riddance to wage thieves and diner dupers.

The rest of us are looking forward to giving our money to responsible restauranteurs.