PIC: This Dublin Bar Has Gotten In Serious Trouble For Its Tip Jar Sign

A busy bar with hard working staff deserves a tip jar. I was in a Dublin bar a few weeks ago where the tip jar was left on the counter near the beer taps and every minute or two, it would be shaken by the bartender in the customers’ faces.

Rightly so, they were firing out drinks by the truckload, so even 10 or 20 cent to show your appreciation wasn’t too out of order.

Notes are often left on the front of the jars in order to catch people’s attention. If they’re funny and give you a laugh, you’re more likely to part with change.

However, this Dublin bar has come under fire for their tip jar sign as people thought it was mocking the homeless.

The Belfry in Stoneybatter took to Facebook to apologise for the tip jar sign and stated that they never meant to offend anyone.

The statement reads:

“It appears that our tip jar at The Belfry may have offended some people which was never our intent.

“We change the witty notes on our tip jar every couple of weeks and for the past 3 weeks it has said ‘Any spare change for a Hostel?’ which is both a common phrase and one used by one of our bartenders who since arriving back in Dublin after working abroad for the past few months has found himself having to couch surf and stay at the Generator Hostel for almost 6 weeks because of the lack of accommodation and rent competition in the city.

“The note never mentioned the homeless nor was it meant to suggest anything of the sort. We at The Belfry recognise the plight of homelessness in our city and support a number of charities as have some of our staff volunteered for the likes of Focus Ireland and The Peter McVerry Trust in the past.

“We are however delighted that a harmless note on a tip jar in a neighborhood bar has sparked such a lively conversation and social media debate hopefully further highlighting the increasing struggle for affordable accommodation in our city.”

However, one commenter said that it was “a dick move making fun of people trying to survive in a city experiencing the boiling point of a critical homelessness crisis” adding that they should “apologise and donate money to Simon [Community]”.

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