Blue Dream Curry, a downtown Asheville restaurant that just opened last fall, has announced that it has done away with tipping. This is the first local restaurant that I’m aware of to do aware with tipping.
The announcement comes amid an ongoing discussion about low wages in general in Asheville and low wages specifically in the restaurant industry.
Here’s the statement from Blue Dream Curry’s page on Facebook:
So proud to announce that in addition to our living wage, we now embrace a tipless system. What does it mean? Clear price structure, no hidden costs, and professionals who take pride in and are justly compensated for their service.
Tip-free dining has been a hot topic of discussion, and some New York City restaurants have begun implementing the policy as a way to pay both front-of-the-house and back-of-the-house employees a fair, livable wage. The policy often means higher across the board prices for food.
The Asheville Blade has been at the forefront of reporting on the restaurant worker wage issue locally. And AVL Food Fan Stu Helm and his co-host, restaurant owner Joe Scully, specifically debated the no-tipping issue recently in Stu’s AVL Food Fan podcast.