Jerry's Famous Deli is a large 24-hour deli that was established in 1978. There is outdoor seating and a huge area of indoor seating, which is beautifully done, and it offers catering, a deli, and a restaurant. The menu is also quite large in selection. There is a restroom on the second floor in the rear of the restaurant. There is an advertisement banner flying around South Beach.
Our waiter, Michael, took our order after being seated in a booth. I ordered a sandwich consisting of half-lean pastrami and half-lean corned beef. Our waiter asked if everything is alright within a few minutes of our food being served. Our water glasses were empty and weren't replenished until I was just about done with my meal. Our waiter was nowhere in sight. I finally went to the cashier to ask for the bill. She couldn't find our waiter, and then the night manager got involved looking for him. A bit of time passed by before my waiter appeared.
The bill was presented, and I was charged for two half sandwiches. I told him that he could have informed me that he would charge me for two half sandwiches instead of for one whole sandwich. He said he offered to make the sandwich mixed, and that changing it would be like stealing from the company. I ask for the night manager. The waiter then presented the corrected bill with a $4 discount. I, again, asked for the manager.
I disputed being charged for two half sandwiches instead of one whole sandwich and refused to pay the mandatory 15% gratuity. He agreed that I didn't have to pay and recalculated the bill, but the recalculation the manager performed was only about $1 less than the original bill amount. Something wasn't right. He didn't apply the discount. The manager performed another calculation using his mobile phone. He finalized the bill at $31.60. I gave him $32. He didn’t give me back change, and I was disgusted enough with this experience to insist on my change. I just wanted to leave. The food was okay, but be warned to inquire about the price.
I did the same thing in a Ben's in Carle Place, New York, and didn't encounter gouging like this place. There's no need for this type of a price-gouging practice. This place charges more for their food and does this on top of it.
There are plenty of customers that go there. I thought it would be a nice place to go to since the place looks very nice, but the staff and management just made it an unpleasant experience. This place has a minimum purchase amount of $5 per person in addition to a mandatory 15% gratuity charge. Gratuity is an option of the customer based on satisfaction and performance of their waiter’s duties. It is neither a tax nor automatic in my opinion, and I would call it Jerry's Infamous Deli, for its management.