A cover charge is an entrance fee sometimes charged at bars, nightclubs, or restaurants. It is collected upon entry or as an additional charge on the bill.
In restaurants, cover charges generally do not include the cost of food that is specifically ordered. In some establishments, they do include the cost of bread, butter, olives and other accompaniments, though the charge is payable whether or not they are eaten.
Etymology
A place-setting at a restaurant may be referred to as a "cover."OED , meaning 7 of "cover": "The utensils laid for each person's use at table; the plate, napkin, knife, fork, spoon, etc."N. Newnham-Davis, Dinners & Diners, 1899. ch. 1, collected from an earlier article in the Pall Mall Gazette "This is the menu for a dinner of six covers, a very admirable dinner"
Restaurants in English-speaking countries sometimes have a menu in French; in these and other restaurants the cover charge is sometimes described with the French word "couvert". This term and the related charge, originating in France, has been used with this meaning in English since at least 1899.N. Newnham-Davis, Dinners & Diners, 1899. ch. 1, collected from an earlier article in the Pall Mall Gazette "And the bill ... three couverts, 3s.; caviar, 3s., ..." The French word both means table setting and is the past participle of couvrir, "to cover";"Couvert" in Larousse French dictionary couvert or "cover" in the sense of place-setting derived from the French past participle according to the OED: "Cover (7): After French couvert, (1) ‘the covering or furniture of a Table for the meale of a prince’ (Cotgrave), the cloth, plates, knives, forks, etc. with which a table is covered or laid; (2) the portion of these appropriated to each guest".
History The couvert or cover charge has been levied for many years, certainly in English-speaking countries by 1899. In the US, the cover charge later became an entry charge where both entertainment and food and drink are provided, and carries the expectation of entertainment. The first such cover charge was introduced in 1913 by Louis Fischer at Reisenweber's Cafe in Manhattan,John Reisenweber's 1931 obituary in the Brooklyn Standard Union. "Reisenweber's was the first to initiate dancing for its patrons and was instrumental in introducing the modern cabaret. They also installed the modern "cover charge" in 1913, when the fee for witnessing their elaborate entertainment specialties was twenty-five cents, an exorbitant sum at that time." to cover the production costs of Ned Wayburn's revues held there. "To pay for Ned Wayburn's lavish revues in the Paradise Room, Reisenweber's imposed New York's first cover charge, a whopping twenty-five cents."
Business considerations Entrance charges In some cases, popular bars and clubs have a substantial excess demand; patrons are lined up outside the club waiting to get in. In this case, the club can gain additional revenue from customers by requiring an entrance charge.
Live events Some bars and clubs use cover charges only on nights when there is live entertainment or a DJ, to cover the costs of hiring the performers. Cover charges may be lower for lesser-known, often local, bands or entertainers than for better-known touring bands. Some expensive clubs have both a cover charge and a minimum drink requirement.
Many sports bars have a cover charge when they are showing a boxing or a UFC pay per view event, to help defray to costs of ordering the pay-per-view material.
Price discrimination Bars and clubs may lower or waive cover charges for some categories, such as:
College or university students with student identification Members of the club or of nightclub organizations or associations Early arrivals (before 11 p.m. or midnight) People who order food If the club is in a hotel, for hotel guests Some bars customarily or occasionally waive the cover charge for women in hopes that doing so will increase their number of female customers and thereby attract male customers as well. The bar usually allows the band or performers to provide a list of guests who will be admitted without paying the cover charge ("the guest list") Regular customers who usually purchase a large number of drinks. Bouncers sometimes waive the cover charge for their friends; without prior approval, this can be considered illegal.
Conversely, some bars may have higher cover charges for minors, who may not purchase or drink alcohol.
Revenue-sharing with performers
Bars and clubs have different policies for how the cover charge is shared, if at all, with the performers. Different revenue-sharing agreements are often negotiated by different performers. The range of revenue-sharing arrangements range from the band or performers retaining all of the money collected for the cover charge, to a split between the bar and the band, to arrangements where the bar retains all of the cover charge. A variant of these revenue-sharing arrangements occurs in cases where the bar also gives the band a share of the bar's alcohol sales receipts. Some bars may also agree to a guarantee, in which the bar promises to pay the band a certain amount even if this is less than the amount collected at the door.
Luxury cover charges Luxury clubs with unusual architecture and interior design and a unique atmosphere sometimes have cover charges even when there is no live entertainment or DJ. In these cases, the cover charge simply contributes to the club's revenues. For example, in 2005, Mike Viscuso's On Broadway, a glam-disco dining palace, had a cover charge of $15. Also in 2005, James Brennan's Stingaree, a glam restaurant and club/lounge, had a cover charge of $20.
Some high-end and luxury bars and nightclubs have yearly membership fees which can be interpreted as annual cover charges. For example, Frederick's has a $1,200 a year membership, the Keating Lounge has a $2,500 annual membership fee, and The Core Club has a $60,000 membership fee. A variant of these annual fees are "table charges" at some elite nightclubs, in which a customer agrees to spend a minimum amount in order to reserve a table in the club (e.g., $1,000 in the evening).
Legal restrictions According to Massachusetts law, subject to a penalty of up to $50, no cafe, restaurant, or bar can require payment of a minimum or cover charge unless a sign is conspicuously posted with at least one-inch-high letters, stating that a minimum charge or cover charge shall be charged and indicating the amount. Children under thirteen may not be charged.ADMINISTRATION OF THE GOVERNMENT TITLE XX. PUBLIC SAFETY AND GOOD ORDER CHAPTER 140. LICENSES THEATRICAL EXHIBITIONS, PUBLIC AMUSEMENTS, ETC. Chapter 140: Section 183D. Minimum or cover charge Section 183D. No innholder, common victualler or person owning, managing or controlling a cafe, restaurant, or other eating or drinking establishment shall require any person to pay a minimum charge or cover charge unless a sign is conspicuously posted at every entrance to any dining room or rooms where such charge is required, in letters no less than one inch in height, stating that a minimum charge or cover charge shall be charged and also stating the amount of charge; provided, however, that no such innholder, common victualler or person owning, managing or controlling a cafe, restaurant or other eating or drinking establishment shall require a person under thirteen years of age to pay a minimum charge or cover charge. Whoever violates this section shall be punished by a fine of not more than fifty dollars. https://web.archive.org/web/20060611225425/http://www.mass.gov/legis/laws/mgl/140-183d.htm This law was put in place to resolve the problem of "secret" cover charges, which are indicated only in tiny text on the menu. Clubgoers would then find this cover charge added to their first drink order. In Illinois, bars cannot impose a cover charge unless the fee goes toward the cost of off-setting entertainment costs such as a live band.
Pane e coperto, a "bread and cover" charge, is nearly ubiquitous in Italy.Example of use of coperto in Italian In 1995, the Italian regional government in Lazio (which includes Rome) began requiring restaurants in the region to remove the charge for Pane e coperto from their bills. In 1998, the European Union ruled that the regional law was invalid, but the region is continuing to try to abolish the practice.19/07/2006 - No more "Pane e coperto"? https://www.inforoma.it/news.php
Ladies' nights in the United States
To attract more female customers, bars often have a "no cover for women" policy, sometimes on a ladies' night. In some cases these policies have been challenged in lawsuits as discriminatory, and are illegal in some jurisdictions in the United States.
A ladies' night is a promotional event, often at a bar or nightclub, where female patrons pay less than male patrons for the cover charge or drinks. State courts in California, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin have ruled that ladies' night discounts are unlawful gender discrimination under state or local statutes. However, courts in Illinois, Minnesota, and Washington have rejected a variety of challenges to such discounts.
Claims against ladies' nights under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution have failed under the state action doctrine.Hollander v. Swindells-Donovan, 2010 WL 844588 (E.D.N.Y. 2010). Similar actions have failed under the Civil Rights Act of 1871 (42 U.S.C. § 1983).Hollander v. Copacabana Nightclub, 580 F.Supp.2d 335 (S.D.N.Y. 2008).Comiskey v. JFTJ Corp., 989 F.2d 1007 (8th Cir. 1983). Ladies nights may have federal tax implications, though.U.S. v. Covey Gas & Oil, 171 F.2d 213 (10th Cir. 1949). Federal claims were also involved in the unsuccessful challenge in Washington (see below).
California The California Supreme Court has ruled that ladies' days at a car wash and ladies' nights at a nightclub violate California's Unruh Civil Rights Act in Koire v Metro Car Wash (1985)Koire v Metro Car Wash, 707 P.2d 195 (CA 1985). and Angelucci v. Century Supper Club (2007).Angelucci v. Century Supper Club, 158 P.3d 718 (CA 2007). The Unruh Act provides: "All persons within the jurisdiction of this state are free and equal, and no matter what their sex [...] are entitled to the full and equal accommodations, advantages, facilities, privileges, or services in all business establishments of every kind whatsoever [...]." The court considered the statutory defense that the promotions serve "substantial business and social purposes", but concluded that merely being profitable is not a sufficient defense. The court accused the Wisconsin Supreme Court of "sexual stereotyping" for upholding a similar practice.
Koire held that: "Public policy in California strongly supports eradication of discrimination based on sex. The Unruh Act expressly prohibits sex discrimination by business enterprises." Koire concluded: The legality of sex-based price discounts cannot depend on the subjective value judgments about which types of sex-based distinctions are important or harmful. The express language of the Unruh Act provides a clear and objective standard by which to determine the legality of the practices at issue. The Legislature has clearly stated that business establishments must provide "equal . . . advantages . . . [and] privileges" to all customers "no matter what their sex." (§ 51.) Strong public policy supports application of the Act in this case. The defendants have advanced no convincing argument that this court should carve out a judicial exception for their sex-based price discounts. The straightforward proscription of the Act should be respected.