Recently a family of four went out to dinner to celebrate their daughter’s birthday. They decided to go to the place that advertises itself as “the kind of place that’s been missing in the Huntsville area.”
The evening started off slowly, with the family waiting almost ten minutes to be greeted at the hostess stand, even though the restaurant was not busy.
Dinner followed, which was served with portions of the meal still cold.
The evening concluded with the bill being presented. Because the service was good but the food was not, the tip left was 10%.
On the way out the door, the owner, Woody Wallace, stopped the females of the family and asked if the service was acceptable. They responded it was good, and he responded that his waiters worked hard, and if they couldn’t tip 15% they needed to not come back to his restaurant.
This statement was the first time the owner had attempted to talk to the family, and his interest appeared to be to humiliate and intimidate the women he accosted as they were leaving the building.
Is this the kind of place that’s been missing in Huntsville? I believe this is a small, friendly town where women are treated with respect and people still have the right to choose the level of appreciation they show for the food and service they receive. TW’s Steakhouse certainly does not believe in these values, as their co-owner made perfectly clear.
I think the answer is TW’s is the kind of place we can continue to do without in Huntsville. Unless you wish to be accosted, embarrassed, intimidated, and ordered what sort of tip to leave for a small party, TW’s is not needed or wanted in this area. Woody can take his attitude and business to the “big city” where they don’t mind insulting women and bossing their customers.
I believe this restaurant should be required to post a sign informing customers of their minimum tip policy at or near the entrance to the restaurant. This would allow customers who do not believe in a minimum tip policy to choose to eat elsewhere. I find this much more acceptable than accosting customers as they leave the restaurant.