You’ve been there; eating at a restaurant when you suddenly notice the crowd of people standing by the door, waiting for a table to open up. You may have also remarked, “Looks like we got here just in time!”
A popular hotel eatery in San Francisco has instituted “congestive pricing” while the hotel hosts a healthcare convention.
Aside from the required $50-minimum order, if you dawdle over 90 minutes, you’ll get hit with a $30 surcharge. (Read the original article)
I’m unsure of how I feel. For starters, if you are already paying $50 guaranteed, the extra $30 might not be that big of a deterrent. But I don’t like the precedent it may set for regular restaurants; what if you show up early, or your party is late?
Then again, if I am one of the patrons trying to get a table, I’m all for getting people out who are just lingering and chatting away, clogging up a perfectly good table I could be eating at because I’ve been standing here for nearly an hour, my feet are hot, I’m starving, the rookie server is too timid to ask them to settle up because people are waiting…
Sorry, I tapped into a memory there. I guess I AM sure how I feel.