By Megan Cerullo, CBS News
A Los Angeles restaurant has come under fire after a prominent podcaster took issue with an unfamiliar surcharge on his guest check: an extra 4% fee automatically added to the bill to help fund the workers’ health insurance.
While Alimento, the restaurant in the the Silver Lake neighborhood in Los Angeles, California, was singled out for the move, eateries across the U.S. are increasingly upcharging diners beyond the stated food prices on menus. Nearly one in six restaurants said they are adding fees or surcharges to checks to combat higher costs, according to a December survey from the National Restaurant Association.
Alimento’s owner Zach Pollack said on Instagram that the surcharge is common across the restaurant industry, noting that many Los Angeles eateries have instituted the practice since the Affordable Care Act passed in 2010, mandated that companies with 25 or more employees provide full-time employees with health insurance.
It’s also wise to read the fine print. Pollack noted that his restaurant offers to remove the charge at customers’ request, a fact it prints on every guest check.