r/comics • u/tinyviewcomics tinyviewcomics • Aug 11 '26

OC "Americentricity" by Itchy Feet

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34.4k Upvotes

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557

u/Semper_5olus Aug 11 '26 edited Aug 12 '26

Okay, but the free water and garbage disposals are awesome

EDIT: my opinion has successfully been changed about garbage disposals

162

u/Gentle_Snail Aug 11 '26 edited Aug 11 '26

Many European countries do have free water such as the UK, the annoying trick is trying to remember which ones.

Britain, Spain, Sweden, and Portugal all have laws requiring it in most circumstances - though you normally need to specify ‘tap’ water like it's the magic word. If you ask for a carafe of water in France its also free, but I can’t remember if thats legal or cultural. 

In Britain and France specifically its a very strong historic practice.

61

u/Mogura-De-Gifdu Aug 11 '26

In France, water and bread must be provided for free by law if you're ordering a meal at a restaurant. At a bar or coffee shop, only water is supposed to be provided for free, but not if you only ordered beverages (most will still provide it for free).

But yeah, you have to specify you want the free water. Ways to ask are "une carafe d'eau" or "de l'eau du robinet" (not classy but very explicit), "Château-La-Pompe" (supposed to be funny but isn't). Depending on regions, the word for "carafe" varies. "Pichet d'eau", "broc d'eau", "pot à eau" or "pot d'eau" are the other usual ways to ask, so it might be tricky if you're trying to speak French and say no to a "broc" because you want a "carafe".

4

u/Wuz314159 Aug 12 '26

In France, water and bread must be provided for free by law

So France is just like Olive Garden. Ò_o

3

u/Crevetanshocet Aug 12 '26

Yes, a trick in restaurants is proposing water without precising the source. This way, you can give the client a bottle that they will have to pay.

But if they answer that they want a carafe, we can't refuse to give it for free.

3

u/Mogura-De-Gifdu Aug 12 '26

And as a client, if they bring back a closed bottle, immediately refuse it and specify there was a mistake (wether it was a true misunderstanding, a wilful one, or just you forgetting to specify early on you wanted the free water).

1

u/Crevetanshocet Aug 12 '26

Exactly, that's the good technique. A restaurant I worked for sold the water bottles 8€...

1

u/Longjumping-Word8336 Aug 12 '26

Water is still free in France (if you ask for une carafe) if you just order beverages, and they definitely have to bring it to you if those beverages were alcoholic

68

u/caribou_powa Aug 11 '26

For France : tap water is free in restaurant by the law.

An tap water in France is perfectly sanitary.

8

u/pm_me_fibonaccis Aug 11 '26

Suspicious addendum there. 

25

u/Moggtow Aug 11 '26

necessary addendum judging by the number of Americans who seem to believe tap water is toxic outside the US.

9

u/Gamesdammit Aug 11 '26

It’s because in some places in America tap water is dangerous.

6

u/SanjiSasuke Aug 11 '26

Likewise in some places in Europe.

3

u/CyclopsLobsterRobot Aug 11 '26

Pretty much anywhere with old infrastructure

3

u/meepmeep13 Aug 11 '26

The EU has mandated safe drinking water in every member state since 1998, and all member states are required to monitor and report on water quality throughout their population.

It is safe to drink water everywhere in Europe. In many places the tap water may not be pleasant (due - particularly in hotter countries - to the levels of chlorination required to achieve this), but it will be safe.

3

u/SanjiSasuke Aug 12 '26

  1. Not all of Europe is the EU.

  2. These requirements also exist in the US.

1

u/meepmeep13 Aug 12 '26 edited Aug 12 '26

These regulations also exist in non-EU countries, including the UK, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland. I haven't looked but I think they also exist in the majority of the non-EU Balkan states.

Now, they may not exist in e.g. Russia, Belarus, Armenia, but let's be honest nobody here is genuinely talking about those when they mean travelling to Europe from the US.

These requirements also exist in the US.

Great! I didn't say otherwise. I'm just pointing out the idea 'you shouldn't drink the water when you visit Europe' is a weird American belief that should have died out nearly 3 decades ago. The reason to not drink tap water in Europe is only ever because (in some places popular with american tourists) it sucks, not because it's dangerous.

In fact, safe water is widespread throughout the world now, thanks to decades of efforts from the UN.

3

u/devils_advocaat Aug 11 '26

Tap water in french ski resorts is amazing

2

u/feel_my_balls_2040 Aug 11 '26

You mean safe to wash or safe to drink?

1

u/Wuz314159 Aug 12 '26

Why would anyone think different? It's France, not some third-world shit-hole like Belgium. o_Ó

1

u/[deleted] Aug 11 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

4

u/caribou_powa Aug 11 '26

No, it's just to avoid the next american comment.

9

u/Winjin Comic Crossover Aug 11 '26

I tried at a couple places in Portugal and they really don't want to, claiming they don't do it. I feel like buffet style places make most of their sales on drinks that accompany the all-you-can-eat so I didn't pressure it further anyways

6

u/Same-Suggestion-1936 Aug 11 '26

It's wild to me you can just deny someone water. Especially considering the heat waves Europe faces. What if someone has no money and desperately needs some water? I swear if I knew a place wasn't giving out free water every time I go there I would use the bathroom and run the hand sink and flush twice out of spite

1

u/BeefistPrime Aug 11 '26

What if someone has no money and desperately needs some water?

I don't think US restaurants are generally legally required to give non-customers free water either.

2

u/Same-Suggestion-1936 Aug 12 '26

It's not legally required but you do it because it can mean life or death in the heat. And where are the homeless supposed to drink from? The river?

I have seen places charge for cups of ice. That kind of makes sense. You're paying to maintain the ice machine. It also is unfortunately a deterrent for the homeless hanging around like how they lock up bathrooms sometimes or at certain times of day. But water is insane to me. You need that daily to live and it costs next to nothing. It should be free and we all societally accept that it is because it would be wrong not to. Same as its federal law you can't actually be punished for giving out food that's still good you would have thrown away otherwise under the Good Samaritan Act, sure the business can make up another reason to fire you but I gave out so much bread and soup in a soup and sandwich shop and I was legally protected and if they wanted to fire me, good, screw you

1

u/Nymethny Aug 12 '26

I spent a little over a week in Portugal recently, I don't speak a word of Portuguese (besides the travel basics hello, yes, thank you, etc...), and I didn't pay for water at any restaurant. I don't remember ever being pressured to either, they'd just bring tap water, like it's the normal thing to do.

1

u/Winjin Comic Crossover Aug 12 '26

Oh, cool, wherever we went we had to buy. It's cheap but it's still there. I should try again

7

u/MaJuV Aug 11 '26

Am from Belgium. Defnitely not here. XD

5

u/Training_Watch8159 Aug 11 '26

In France, a carafe of water is free, as is a basket of bread.

4

u/MaybeAdrian Aug 11 '26

In Spain there are places that would try to not serve tap water with the excuse of "is not potable" in order to make you pay for a bottle.

2

u/kwispycornchip Aug 11 '26

In America it's mostly a cultural expectation- I kinda assumed it would carry over but I guess not always lol

4

u/Gentle_Snail Aug 11 '26

Tbh thats also how it is in the UK, except if the place serves alcohol they legally have to - but the cultural practice predates the law by a long time. The tradition of tap water is so wide spread that even places that don’t have to will.

For example unlike the rest of the UK I don’t think Northern Ireland even has this law, but everywhere will still give you tap water because its just baked into UK culture now.

1

u/kwispycornchip Aug 11 '26

I wonder if it's a longstanding tradition the US inherited from the UK 🤔 Very interesting!

2

u/Content-Bid7922 Aug 11 '26

My experience in Spain is that it depends on the area and restaurant. Tourist areas and traps and fancier places always try to serve you mineral water, but my local tavern serves tap water as default.

1

u/elevolent12 Aug 11 '26

yeah dunno sounds like a surefire way to get the waiter to hate you.

1

u/Gentle_Snail Aug 11 '26

In the UK is completely normal to ask for tap water in even the most expensive or fancy places, no waiter is going to care because it happens constantly. 

1

u/ContributionSad4461 Aug 11 '26

In Sweden you don’t ask for water at a sit down restaurant, it’ll be brought to you as soon as you sit. If you ask for water at a bar you’re getting tap unless you specifically ask for something else.

1

u/LoneWolf_McQuade Aug 12 '26

In Sweden it is also the norm to get a free refill when you order coffee (for filter coffee, not espresso)