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Lunch ends and the restaurant offers diners "a shot on the house". So far so good, providing it does not come from an unlabelled bottle. Because if it does, whether offered free of charge or not, this practice is not legal in restaurants in Spain.
According to article 10 on marketing requirements for spirits, Royal Decree 164/2014 of 14 March, they must always be presented and marketed properly packaged and labelled. Refilling in bars, cafés or restaurants is expressly prohibited and "the labels and seals must remain attached to the containers".
The Junta de Andalucía has warned of this and other practices in the catering sector ahead of Holy Week when cafés, bars and restaurants are traditionally busy. The Andalusian regional government has also pointed out other illegal practices in the industry, "which may be the subject of a complaint to the Consumer Affairs Administration", they report.
One of the most common is related to the consultation of menus. Consumer Affairs says that prices, as well as the services offered, must be displayed to the public on menus and price lists, and other means of advertising such as murals, blackboards or similar, which will display the information in Spanish.
"It is illegal for the bar or restaurant to offer the price list only through a QR code, because not everyone has a smartphone, which is necessary to read these codes and access the content, and the appropriate digital skills. The QR code should be seen as a complementary way to consult the menu, as well as the wall, blackboard or similar", they information explains.
Another illegal practice is the refusal of tap water on request. The bar or restaurant cannot impose the purchase of bottled water. On the contrary, it must always offer the possibility of consuming non-packaged water free of charge and complementary to the establishment's offer.
Customers cannot be forced to leave a tip. "Tipping is a voluntary decision", the advice points out. It is illegal to charge separately for an extra service or service charge. The prices must be complete and, in this case, it could not be considered as an extra service, but as a service that is implicit or included in the catering service itself.
Similarly, charging for the service of bread, snacks and the like is legal as long as it is informed "in advance, clearly and visibly" and is included in the price list offered to the customer.
It is common for the menu or price lists of some places and certain products to mention the expression "price according to market". According to Decree 198/1987 of 26 August 1987, this is expressly prohibited. In this respect, the Junta de Andalucía states that if the products are cold meats, cheese or other products that can be cut from a main piece, the offers will be made to the public by unit weight. If the products are seafood or shellfish, the offers will be made to the public, either by weight or by units, indicating, in the latter case, their number.
An advance payment may be requested in order to formalise a reservation, but the amount must be deducted from the final bill at the end of the meal.
As far as payment methods are concerned, the restaurant or bar cannot refuse to accept payment in cash or impose payment only by card. Cash must be accepted in any case, as long as it does not exceed 1,000 euros, which is the limit established by law.
A bar or restaurant may refuse or exclude payment by card and accept only cash payments. However, it must make this clear to customers in advance. It may also refuse card payment below a certain amount. In this case, it must also make this clear.
In accordance with the provisions of Royal Legislative Decree 1/2007 of 16 November, which approves the revised text of the General Law for the Defence of Consumers and Users, the necessary information in the commercial offer of goods and services must include the full final price, including taxes. Therefore, it is not legal practice for the prices on the menu to be displayed without taxes included.
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