Danny Meyer has always been considered one of the most forward-thinking restaurateurs of his generation.

丹尼蔠尔(Danny Meyer)一直被视为他这一代思想最前卫的餐厅老板之一。

Even by his standards, though, the owner of such celebrated New York restaurants as Union Square Cafe, Gramercy Tavern and The Modern (at the Museum of Modern Art) has just taken an incredibly brave step. He has announced his decision to abolish tipping in his restaurants and increase prices accordingly. His peers salute him but are grateful that it is he who has taken the step rather than them.

然而，即便根据他的标准，这位纽约多家知名餐厅的所有者也刚刚迈出了无比勇敢的一步。他名下的餐厅包括联合广场咖啡馆(Union Square Cafe)、Gramercy Tavern以及位于纽约现代艺术博物馆(Museum of Modern Art)的现代餐厅(The Modern)。他宣布决定在他的餐厅取消小费并相应提价。他的同行们纷纷向他致敬，但让他们感到庆幸的是迈出这一步的是他，而不是他们。

Tipping is terribly misunderstood. In most of Europe, Australia and other parts of the world it no longer exists — and visitors from those countries earn an unwarranted reputation for meanness when they, in their ignorance, fail to tip in Britain and the US.

小费受到了严重误解。在欧洲多数国家、澳大利亚以及全球其他地区，小费已不复存在，来自这些国家的游客由于不了解这种习惯而没有在英国和美国支付小费，就被不合理地扣上了小气的名声。

In Britain, tipping or the payment of a service charge is mistakenly thought of as an extra payment or thank you to the server — whereas in fact it is an integral part of the pay structure of the restaurants they frequent.

在英国，付小费或支付服务费被顾客错误地视作额外付款或者对服务员的感谢，实际上，小费是他们光顾的餐厅的薪资结构不可分割的一部分。

The customer is actually colluding in what Will Beckett, director of the London-based Hawksmoor chain of steak restaurants, terms a “benign lie” whereby the restaurant avoids VAT and employer’s national insurance contribution on the amount that is levied through the service charge. The ultimate beneficiaries are the customers who would otherwise have to pay more for the services they enjoy. The situation is a muddle, but an innocuous one.

顾客实际上在共同编造伦敦牛排餐厅连锁Hawksmoor董事威尔贝克特(Will Beckett)所说的“善意的谎言”，即餐厅可以逃避服务费这一部分的增值税以及作为雇主应为这一部分交的国民保险供款。最终的受益者是顾客，因为否则的话他们将不得不为所享受的服务支付更多费用。这种情况有点乱，但无伤大雅。

In New York the situation is rather different. The “benign lie” has never really caught on and customers pay the staff directly for their service through the tip.

在纽约，情况则有所不同。这种“善意的谎言”从未真正流行过，顾客直接通过小费为餐厅员工的服务付费。

This levy is raised through a system of cajoles, threats and moral blackmail. No customer dares refuse to pay the (minimum) 15 per cent tip. The restaurateur may pool the tips, but only those who spend at least half their time with the customer — meaning the front of house team — are allowed to receive money from the resulting “tronc”. In Britain there is no such restriction; cooks and ancillary staff also receive money from the tronc.

这种小费是通过哄骗、威胁和道德敲诈收取的。没有顾客胆敢拒绝支付（最低）15%的小费。餐厅老板可能会把小费集中在一起，但只有那些至少用一半的时间与顾客在一起的员工（指前台员工）才被允许获得小费收入。在英国，则没有这种限制；厨师和后勤员工也会分到小费收入。

What Mr Meyer and any other enlightened restaurateur is recognising is that the commis chef in the kitchen is contributing as much to the customer’s pleasure as the charming schmoozer who is the face of the operation.

梅尔和所有其他开明的餐厅老板意识到，后厨的厨师助理为顾客贡献的愉悦感与面对面与顾客交流的富有魅力的服务员一样多。

The no-tipping move is a logical response to the skill shortage confronting restaurateurs in most leading world capitals. With no one prepared to foot the bill for apprenticeships and training schemes, there are not enough cooks to go round. Even star chefs in London and New York are having to pay higher wages to keep the myriad foams, smears, spherifications and gels artfully arranged on the plate.

全球多数主要都市的餐厅老板正面临技能短缺，取消小费之举是对此做出的合理回应。没有餐厅准备为学徒和培训计划买单，因此一些餐厅找不到足够多的厨师。甚至连伦敦和纽约的明星大厨，也不得不支付更高的薪资招聘人手把各种各样的乳泡、酱汁、球状及胶状食材艺术地盛放在盘中。

At Hawksmoor, Mr Beckett claims his staff earn a wage that corresponds to their vocational level. “Waiters and chefs earn as much as, say, policemen and teachers, and managers earn as much as doctors or headmasters.” If this comes as a shock, you will be gratified to hear that most London restaurants pay much less.

在Hawksmoor餐厅，贝克特声称，他的员工赚取的薪资与他们的业务水平相符。“服务员和厨师的收入与警察和教师一样多，经理的收入与医生或中小学校长差不多。”如果这令人震惊的话，那么听到多数伦敦餐厅支付的薪酬远远低于这个水平会让你感到欣慰。

In New York, the situation is very different: most chefs earn a great deal less than a policeman, while a waiter would give a Florida plastic surgeon a run for his money. It is this anomaly that Mr Meyer is seeking to address: the danger is that customers will balk at higher prices and the wait staff will revolt if their pay is cut.

在纽约，情况非常不同：多数厨师的收入远远低于警察，而服务员的收入却堪比一位弗罗里达州整形外科医生。梅尔正是希望解决这种反常现象：问题是顾客可能对涨价不满，同时如果服务员的收入下降，他们也会抵制。

As he launches himself like Sir Galahad at this heavily defended wall, a great many restaurateurs are going to be looking on from behind the parapet. Customers who are confused will have to keep their wits about them: always check to see if there is a service charge or if tipping is discouraged. Even if it is, habits take time to unlearn — and for the foreseeable future, a little gesture of thanks is unlikely to go amiss.

在梅尔像完美骑士加拉哈德爵士(Sir Galahad)一样冲向小费这堵防守严密的墙壁时，很多餐厅老板会站在墙后观望。感到困惑的顾客将不得不时刻保持警惕：总是查看餐厅是否收服务费，抑或是不鼓励小费。即便餐厅取消小费，抛弃习惯也是需要时间的，在可预见的将来，一点点表示感谢的举动总是会受欢迎的。