Junk Fees 101: Why Your Dinner Bill is 20% Higher

You order the $18 burger. You drink the $4 iced tea. You do the math in your head: roughly $24 with tax. Then the check comes. $36.50.

Welcome to the era of “Junk Fees,” where the price on the menu is merely a suggestion, and the actual cost of doing business is hidden in the fine print.

The “Wellness” Tax (And Other Lies)

It started with hotels and their infamous “Resort Fees” (paying $45 extra for the privilege of using the pool you already thought you paid for). But now, it has infected your dinner.

Restaurants are tacking on surcharges with names that sound like they were written by a PR firm on a retreat:

• “Kitchen Appreciation Fee” (Wait, isn’t paying the staff your job?)
• “Wellness Charge” (For whose wellness? Certainly not my wallet’s.)
• “Inflation Surcharge” (We know inflation exists. That’s why you raise menu prices. Hiding it at the end is cowardly.)
• “Service Fee” (Note: This is often not a tip. It goes to the house, not the server.)

The Law Is Catching Up (Slowly)

The FTC finally woke up and smelled the hidden fees. The “Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees” (effective mid-2025) was supposed to ban this practice, mandating that the price you see is the price you pay (excluding government tax).

But corporations are slippery. They are fighting back, claiming these fees are “essential” to their survival.

Here is the truth: If your business model relies on tricking customers into thinking the price is lower than it is, you have a bad business model.

How to Fight Back

You don’t have to take it.

1. The Menu Check: Look at the bottom of the menu before you order. If you see fine print about a 5% surcharge, you can walk out. (And you should).
2. The Dispute: If the fee was not disclosed before you ordered, you have the legal right to refuse it. Politely ask the manager to remove it. “I didn’t agree to this charge when I ordered.”
3. Vote with Your Feet: If a place hits you with a “Supply Chain Fee,” pay it, leave zero tip (just kidding, always tip your server, they are victims of this too), and never go back. Then leave a review warning others.

And speaking of deceptive pricing, if you think restaurants are bad, wait until you read about how grocery stores are faking the weight of your produce.

Written by: Companies Behaving Badly

The team behind it all.