Restaurateur Diane Gross has seen fewer big spenders dining out in Logan Circle since a D.C. law forced her to pay waiters and waitresses almost double their hourly wage before tips.
The co-owner of Cork Wine Bar says that’s no coincidence: Many restaurants like hers have raised prices, reduced hours, simplified menus, trimmed staff and added service fees to offset a 45% increase in payroll expenses over the past two years.
She said these changes have unintentionally scared off customers and added to a post-pandemic trend of dwindling revenues, tips and foot traffic as people tighten their belts. Her servers currently earn $22 to $45 an hour after tips, down from $24 to $52 an hour before the 2023 wage hike.
“We’re going to lose a lot of mid-range, full-service restaurants like mine,” said Ms. Gross, who started Cork with her husband on 14th Street NW in 2008. “You’ll see more fast-casual, counter service and kiosk eateries spring up because it makes the numbers more profitable.”
D.C. voters approved a ballot measure in 2022 that bumped the tipped minimum wage from $5.35 an hour to $10 the following spring. It included periodic increases to bring tipped wages to the same floor as non-tipped wages — currently $17.95 an hour — by 2027.
Cork is one of hundreds of restaurants now asking the D.C. Council to accept Mayor Muriel Bowser’s proposal to revert to an inflation-adjusted minimum of $5.95 an hour before tips.
“It’s been a disaster and it’s scaring customers off,” said Steve Salis, founder and CEO of Catalogue, a restaurant group that owns the Honeymoon, Kramers, Ted’s Bulletin and Federalist Pig chains. “The wait staff is making less money in tips because people are paying service charges that they think are part of the tip.”
Mr. Salis, who also founded &pizza, said the tipped wage increase has become the main factor driving up his operating expenses by 25% to 32% since the pandemic.
According to operators, most of the city’s roughly 2,500 restaurants cannot afford to stay open for 13 to 16 days without profits, and can only survive two straight unprofitable months.
The Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington, a leading opponent of the tipped wage hike, said a record 74 eateries closed in the city last year. It projects that more than 4 in 10 of those remaining could shutter this year due to the cascading effects of federal layoffs, rising costs and tipped wage hikes.
“We want restaurants to survive and we want workers to thrive, leaving every shift with more in their pockets,” said Shawn Townsend, the restaurant association’s president.
The association released a survey this week that found 33.4% of likely D.C. voters reported dining out less often since the tipped minimum wage hike.
Polling firm Cygnal surveyed the 400 voters by phone and text message May 7-9 and reported that more than half cited higher menu prices and service fees at restaurants.
‘Deep cracks’
Known as Initiative 82, the District’s tipped minimum wage law eliminates the credit that allows tipped waiters to earn less than other hourly workers because of the assumption they will supplement their pay with gratuities.
The District’s minimum wage for non-tipped workers is among the highest in the nation. It jumped from $17.50 to $17.95 an hour on Tuesday and is expected to keep growing.
For tipped wages, the D.C. Council has paused a second increase from $10 to $12 that was also scheduled to start Tuesday. It will vote in September on whether to repeal the law or resume the increases.
One Fair Wage, an advocacy group supporting the law, insisted that local restaurants pretend “the sky is falling so they can keep workers poor.”
The group pointed to federal data showing the District hit a record-high 30,633 full-service restaurant workers in April.
“Jobs are up, tips are up, and diners are spending more than ever,” said Saru Jayaraman, One Fair Wage’s president. “The idea that we need to cut wages to save the industry is not just wrong — it’s offensive.”
Some recent reports challenge these claims.
Toast, a restaurant technology platform, recently ranked the District as the second least generous place in the nation, with its average tip of 17.5% edging out only California’s 17.3%.
While D.C. tipping has declined under Initiative 82, Toast found neighboring Maryland clocked in at 19.4% and Virginia at 19.3%.
Yesim Sayin, executive director of the nonpartisan D.C. Policy Center, which tracks local business sentiment, said such figures confirm “deep cracks” in the District’s economic outlook.
She said tipped wage hikes add to the economic pressure of recent federal layoffs and telework arrangements that kept 200,000 former daily commuters home in Virginia and Maryland during the Biden administration.
“I think a lot of businesses are worse off than before the pandemic, including restaurants,” Ms. Sayin said. “Establishments are getting smaller and more fragile. We don’t see a strong desire to move or work here.”
Dueling narratives
While wages have risen for some D.C. wait staffers, many more have reportedly lost tips or jobs over the past two years.
The D.C. Council’s vote to pause Tuesday’s tipped increase to $12 an hour came after Ms. Bowser proposed nullifying the law in her 2026 budget. Several council members have opposed full repeal, making it unclear whether she will get her way when they vote again.
Most city lawmakers did not respond to a request for comment.
Council member Matt Frumin, the Ward 3 Democrat who has insisted the restaurant industry is better off since Initiative 82, declined to comment.
But Council member Brooke Pinto, the Ward 2 Democrat who represents popular night spots such as Dupont Circle and Logan Circle, said she has “come to the view that the status quo cannot be maintained.”
“I have a responsibility as an elected official in our city to realistically evaluate the policy environment in the present day and pursue the best path forward for our city,” Ms. Pinto said. “Since the passage of Initiative 82, many workers have lost their jobs, consumers are regularly confused by higher prices and fees or priced out of dining experiences altogether, and our restaurants are struggling as a result of the changing landscape.”
Several restaurants have flagged the tipped wage hike as a reason for shuttering in recent months. They include Brookland Pint in Northeast and Haikan in Northwest, which closed in May and June, respectively.
More are on the way. Washington Business Journal reported Tuesday that Georgia Brown’s, a Black-owned eatery popular with former President Bill Clinton and ex-mayor Marion Barry in the 1990s, has put its Northwest building up for lease.
The publication said co-owner Ayanna Brown cited struggles with the impacts of COVID-19 and Initiative 82.
Upside, a D.C.-based retail tech company, found in an analysis of 800,000 card transactions at 117 local restaurants from April 2023 through April 2025 that average spending dropped by 2.5% and foot traffic by 5.1%.
According to the report, business declined fastest at the most expensive and highest-rated restaurants.
“Amid rising restaurant prices, consumers are opting for a meal at home or trading down their regular restaurant for a value-friendly option,” said Thomas Weinandy, Upside’s senior research economist. “When budgets shrink, even well-reviewed spots aren’t immune to cutbacks.”
