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Cash is still king in French restaurants, especially smaller cafés and bistros. Larger establishments usually accept credit cards, primarily VISA (Carte Bleue in France) and MasterCard, but rarely American Express. It’s almost impossible to use traveler’s checks in restaurants. When in doubt, call ahead or carry cash.
In most restaurants you won’t get the bill until you ask for it (l’addition, s’il vous plait), even if you finished your dessert and coffee ages ago. The tax and service charge (tip) are always included in the total, although you may not get an itemized bill in smaller establishments. Don’t be afraid to ask if you think there’s been a mistake, but don’t over-react if there is. In busy places where the servers rely on memory when taking your order, there can be errors – sometimes in your favor.
To tip or not to tip? The short answer is no, you don’t have to tip, since service is already included. When paying by credit card, there’s no line to add a tip, but the French tend to leave the loose change behind when they pay in cash. Since the servers aren’t expecting it, they won’t be calculating the percentage to see if you’re a cheapskate or not!
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