Half Moon Bay restaurant owner defends pumpkin fest surcharge

After visiting Johnny’s restaurant, Bay Area journalist Stanley Roberts shared a post on X that he was surprised by an 18% “festival service charge” added to his bill. As of Wednesday, his post has gained more than 117,000 views and hundreds of comments from readers with mixed reviews.  

“Interesting story: I was at the Pumpkin Festival and stopped to get breakfast. While sitting at the counter the man next to me asked owner about the 18% surcharge on the bill. The owner looks at the man, but grabs my arm and says ‘it’s because some people tip poorly but not you.’ as she looks at me. Now keep in mind, I’ve never been there before and hadn’t receive my check yet,” the post read.

Johnny’s co-owner Betsy del Fierro has seen the post and told SFGATE that she stands by her decision to include the temporary 18% fee. Del Fierro, who revived the Original Johnny’s space this summer, said that she was moved to add the festival surcharge when she learned that past customers have left low tips during the busy pumpkin festival celebration, which brings thousands of guests to Half Moon Bay each year. Adding the surcharge was one way to ensure service staff were getting adequately tipped during the hectic week.  

“We’ve been delighted with our customers since we opened in July,” del Fierro said. “But sometimes festival guests in the past have left about a $3 to $5 tip. This is a living wage for our servers, and I think sometimes people forget that.”

In the comments of his post, Roberts said that there was no indication of a festival fee, but del Fierro countered that by saying that guests were made aware of the surcharge with a note on the menu and on their receipts. She added that while most customers were OK with the fee, servers were directed to remove the surcharge from anyone who objected it.

The social media post comes less than a month after another Bay Area restaurant was lambasted on Reddit for adding its own service fee to customer tabs. In September, popular Vietnamese restaurant Pho Ha Noi was criticized by a patron who complained about the 18% fee added to all party sizes, including solo diners. Like del Fierro, Pho Ha Noi owner Helen Nguyen defended the service charge, which she said she added to aid staff who commute long distances to work their shifts at her Palo Alto restaurant.

Service fees at restaurants have been widely debated in recent years and are subject to a new California law going into effect next year. Earlier this month, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 478 that in July 2024 will require businesses to disclose hidden fees or “junk fees” up front. For restaurants, that means that customers will need to be informed from the start what they will pay, according to Eater SF. SFGATE contacted the California Department of Justice for comment but did not hear back by publication.