Tipping is off the table at this Toronto restaurant
A Toronto restaurant introduced a surprising new rule that reduced the cost of a meal and raised the salaries of staff – tipping is no longer accepted.
“We realized we can just skip the tipping,” Hong Dai with WoodHouse BBQ simply put it.
Twelve years ago, her husband Jacky opened the restaurant to create a place in North York that replicated the atmosphere of a market in northern China, grilling lamb, pork belly and chicken skewers on a charcoal barbecue.
“Because both Jacky and I are first generation immigrants, we know how hard it is to feel at home, at ease,” Dai said, adding that all of their staff are new Chinese immigrants. “This restaurant is more than just a business for us, it’s more like our living room.”
In the wake of the pandemic, they pondered how to repay their gratitude to customers who kept them afloat, with some now struggling with the skyrocketing cost of living. They came up with an idea and set it into motion last month.
Hong Dai with Wood House BBQ poses in a photo at the restaurant in North York. The restaurant introduced a no-tipping model, plastering posters on their walls and sharing the news on social media. “Tipping is no longer accepted,” the signs said. In its place, they introduced profit sharing, promising staff would earn at least the same amount as before, if not more.They also redirected their marketing budget towards staff bonuses.
“We do bookkeeping every month, and we do our profit sharing every three months, and part of the net profit goes to our staff according to work hours. That’s including front of house and back of house,” Dai said.
So far, staff have gotten a little more than they would have with tips, Dai said. “They are happy with it,” she added.
Meanwhile, prices have stayed the same, with four meat skewers ranging from $5.95 to 17.95, depending on the selection, and spicy clams with toasted naan sitting at $24.99.
Wood House BBQ's owner smiles from the kitchen, where he also works as a chef in the restaurant. For customers who want to show support to the restaurant, Dai asks them to leave five-star reviews and encourages them to donate a meal from the restaurant to a member of the community in need, through their partnership with Nourishing our Neighborhoods.
While the no-tipping model has worked out for the small family-run spot so far, she acknowledged that it might not work for every restaurant.
“We value connection over tips. Even before we announced the no-tipping policy, I always skipped the tipping option on the payment machine when I personally knew the customers and I always say, ‘You don’t need to tip your friends,’” Dai said.
Customers at Wood House BBQ gather in the North York Chinese restaurant. A block away from WoodHouse BBQ, Dai runs a coffee shop, Another Land Coffee, where they are also adopting a no-tipping policy and replacing it with profit sharing.
Ultimately, she said, “We all want to make it a better place to live, one meal at a time. “
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Speaker kicks Poilievre out of Commons over unparliamentary comments
Speaker Greg Fergus kicked Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre out of the House of Commons during question period today.
Man dies after suffering cardiac arrest while waiting in ER, widow wants investigation
When an ambulance took David Lippert to the hospital in March of 2023, the 68-year-old Kitchener, Ont., executive was hoping to find out why he was feeling weak and unable to walk. Some 24 hours later, he was found unresponsive in the ER.
Baby, grandparents among 4 people killed in wrong-way police chase on Ontario's Hwy. 401
A police chase which started with a liquor store robbery in Bowmanville Monday night ended in tragedy some 20 minutes later when a suspect fleeing police entered Highway 401 in the wrong direction and caused a pileup which killed an infant and the child's grandparents, as well as the suspect, investigators say.
Freeland previews omnibus budget bill, proposed capital gains tax change left out
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will be tabling yet another omnibus bill to pass a sweeping range of measures promised in her April 16 federal budget, though left out of the legislation will be the government's proposed capital gains tax change.
Air Canada walks back new seat selection policy change after backlash
Air Canada has paused a new seat selection fee for travellers booked on the lowest fares just days after implementing it.
McGill requests 'police assistance' over pro-Palestinian encampment
McGill University says it has 'requested police assistance' about the pro-Palestinian encampment on its lower field.
Judge raises threat of jail in hush money trial as he holds Trump in contempt, fines him US$9,000
Donald Trump was held in contempt of court Tuesday and fined US$9,000 for repeatedly violating a gag order that barred him from making public statements about witnesses, jurors and some others connected to his New York hush money case. And if he does it again, the judge warned, he could be jailed.
Court upholds Milwaukee police officer's firing for posting racist memes after Sterling Brown arrest
The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that a former Milwaukee police officer was properly fired for posting racist memes related to the arrest of an NBA player that triggered a public outcry.
Witness details deadly wrong-way police chase on Ontario's Hwy. 401
A driver who witnessed a wrong-way police pursuit on Highway 401 moments before a fatal crash said he was hoping the chase would have been called off before lives were lost.