Tipping culture has a word problem. The receipt says gratuity. The machine says 18. Somewhere between those two things, the meaning changed.

The hosts dig into what it means when muscle memory sends you to 18% because that’s where 15% used to be. Canadians are pushing back, and the team says the reason isn’t stinginess. It’s that an expectation is not the same thing as a thank-you.

A long weekend weather check rounds out the open, from Calgary’s late-season snow to Ottawa’s incoming 28-degree Monday. At least one team member thinks a hoodie on the patio is exactly the right way to celebrate.

Originally aired on2026-05-15