Question

Some friends went out for a meal. The restaurant added 10% service charge to the cost of the meal. The total bill was £159.50 including the service charge. What was the cost without the extra 10%

Answer 1

To find the original cost of the meal before the service charge, divide the total bill of £159.50 by 1.10, resulting in an original cost of approximately £145.00.

Step-by-step explanation:

To calculate the original cost of the meal before the service charge was added, we first need to recognize that 159.50 pounds represents 110% of the original cost due to the 10% service charge. We can set up the following equation to represent this:

Original Cost + 10% Service Charge = Total Bill

Let x be the original cost of the meal. Then, 110% of x is 159.50 pounds.

1.10 × x = £159.50

Now, divide both sides by 1.10 to find the original cost:

x = £159.50 / 1.10

x ≈ £145.00

The original cost of the meal before the service charge was approximately £145.00.