^^^ Bingo!
This is a DISASTER!
One of the big draws for my wife and I on a WDW trip is the DDP, making the reservations and enjoying the excellent food and service. We have ALWAYS received great service and had wonderful food at the WDW restaurants we have visited. However, if they are trying to keep people "on property" through their dining then Disney is failing MISERABLY with this change.
This single action renders the DDP worthless. Why spend the same amount for the DDP when you can spend cash and have the selection of ANYTHING ANYWHERE without the limitations of choice on the DDP. I argue that you can avoid the DDP altogether and still eat the same food at the same locations for practically the same amount of money overall.
I am one of those rare individuals that believes and always has that tipping is an antiquated/outdated cultural dinosaur. Restaurants, indeed any business, should not expect me to subsidise their employees paycheck over and above the provided service/product. When you go to Kinko's and the assistant behind the counter takes your copy order and brings you the resulting copies do you feel you should give them a tip? When you get your oil changed at Jiffy Lube do you feel you should give them a tip? When you pick up your dry cleaning do you feel you should give them a tip? Why not? Please don't misunderstand me, I am not against the concept of tipping itself. Indeed, I am more than happy to tip if the service was above and beyond. However, I am against the inherent, automatic understanding we have in our culture that when it comes to food in a restaurant, we should give the server something over and above the cost of the food. People always say to me, "But Alan, servers don't make enough with their salary alone. They rely on tips to make up the rest." Do you not see the error inherent in this statement? "don't make enough with THEIR SALARY". The restaurant should be paying their servers salary... not me. "But that would mean they would have to raise the prices on the food", you say. Well, if your FORCED to pay 18% but the food is 18% cheaper then you are paying it ANYWAY! So what's the difference? Restaurant businesses are simply milking this old cultural idiocy so they don't have to pay their servers as much Is this not clear to us all? But then these business can fall back on the concept. Why pay more when the suckers coming in the door will pay the rest of their salary costs for them because of some outdated, ingrained foolishness?
Clearly the reason they arn't simply adding the additional gratuity into the cost of the food is for the same reason that stores sell products for 12.99 instead of 13.00. Because, psychologically you think of 12.99 as 12 not 13 even though it is a mere .01 cent away. "$24.99 plus gratuity" seems much better than "$29.49" when they are the same thing.
The reservations issue is easily solved by requiring a credit card and charging a "service fee" if you don't show for the ressie.
As for the idea that getting a tip or not will result in a level of service, I say that good service comes from proper management of people and paying them appropriately in the first place not by relying on tips. If you have a server under your charge that is giving poor service, then your job as their manager is to correct their behavior or fire them. It's that simple. I don't know about you but I have been to great McDonalds with excellent service and I have been to crappy ones with horrible service and they are being paid approximately the same at both. Management is key critical to the success of any service oriented business.
First they take the Appetizer, then they start this foolishness over the Gratuity. The only thing this change will accomplish is to put dining in wonderful settings with great food out of the reach of more Disney park goers. Shame on you Disney!
