How a Horrible Fine Dining Experience Taught Me Key Lessons in UI/UX Design

Lisha Dai
3 min readJul 12, 2024
In a Finnish dining scene, a comic illustrates a tipping dilemma. A server asks a diner to select a tip amount on a payment machine, leaving her surprised. Later, holding the receipt, she anxiously wonders about tipping norms in Finland where it isn’t customary, feeling pressured by the server’s watchful gaze.

I was in a charming restaurant in Finland with an ambience promising a delightful evening. The food was decent, and the service was passable. But then, a seemingly small detail turned my entire dining experience sour.

Our starter, main dish, and dessert.

As we wrapped up our meal, I encountered a payment machine that defaulted to a 5% tip.

“Oh, I don’t think there is such a habit of paying tips in Finland. But is it rude if I click away from this?”

In Finland, tipping isn’t customary. However, in this restaurant, I was prompted to leave a tip without the option to skip. I had to manually enter ‘0’ to avoid tipping, which felt awkward and pressuring. Reluctantly, I paid the tip.

Tipping with the machine involves multiple steps, including manually entering 0, whereas not tipping only requires one click.

After paying, my dissatisfaction grew. I remembered the missed water service and the lack of explanation about the dishes. My irritation stemmed from the forced tip, a negative end to an otherwise average experience.

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Lisha Dai

Hello, I am a passionate product designer and a storyteller based in Finland. I would like to use comics to share my design learnings with you all ❤