A ‘dine and dash’ couple left a bistro without paying a £78 bill after complaining about their Eggs Benedict and drinking four glasses of wine and four whisky and cokes, the owners claim.
The man and woman ordered food and drinks from Josephine’s in Nottingham city centre and spent nearly two hours in the restaurant yesterday.
They ate half their Eggs Benedict before complaining and asked for the menu to order different dishes and more alcohol.
After their chicken platters, four glasses of wine and four whisky and Cokes, the woman told one of the staff she was going out for a cigarette before they both left.
Co-owners Jo and Steve Neale weren’t on the premises at the time and were told about the incident by a staff member.
The man and the woman were accused of leaving the bistro without paying their £78 bill
Jo said: ‘This has hit us hard as the bill was was high and as an independent it affects us terribly. Please don’t do this, we all have to make a living and this is just wrong!
‘We have the best team ever, they are all the hardest working, most polite girls I’ve ever employed and they go above and beyond for Steve and I.
‘It breaks my heart that the girls working today had to go through that. It wasn’t their fault and we would never blame them for the way some people conduct themselves.
‘We have fabulous customers who treat the girls great but when something like this happens it just disheartens you especially with hospitality venues having to work so hard as it is.’
The elegant tea room and bistro, in Upper Parliament Street, serves afternoon tea and early evening meals for theatre-goers.
In the past it has welcomed actors from the Theatre Royal opposite as customers.
In a warning to other cafes and restaurants, Jo said it was a couple in their 30s. The man had a ginger beard and the woman had her hair in a bun.
In a similar incident last December two men left Viet80s without paying a £114 bill.
The restaurant owner took to Facebook giving them 24 hours to return and pay the bill or they’d contact the police.
Josephine’s in Nottingham city’s Upper Parliament Street serves afternoon tea and early evening meals for theatre-goers
Ten days later, after their faces from CCTV were splashed on social media, one of the diners returned to the restaurant in Maid Marian Way to ‘explain the situation’ and pay up.
The incident at Josephine’s came just two days after they issued a ‘use us, don’t lose us’ plea.
The post said: ‘Too many independent restaurants are closing. As an independent we DO NOT have the financial backing that the big chain restaurants have, we rely on you.
‘An independent business relies on customers walking through the door to pay wages, rent, rates, gas, electricity, food stock, compulsory insurance, vat, tax and much more. We do not like charging more than we have to and it really hurts being told we are too expensive or receiving bad reviews when we try so very hard.’