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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

...to be shocked that i was charged for 9mo DD?

137 replies

PorcelinaOfTheVastOceans · 27/02/2011 10:00

Was just going through some old receipts from a couple of weeks ago and came across one from a buffet at an asian restaurant. There was the cost of my food and drinks, but then a charge at the bottom for 'small buffet' - £2.50 - which can only be for 9mo DD!

I know £2.50 isn't exactly breaking the bank, but she ate about two fistfuls of plain naan bread as I'd bought food along for her. I know it's my own fault really, I never even thought to check... Blush

OP posts:
shewasashowgirl · 27/02/2011 14:40

YABU

Isn't that the whole point of those buffets it's one price eat as much as you like. If you'd gone a la carte you'd have been charged for what you consumed.
As others have said they can't monitor what everyone does or doesn't eat and change the price accordingly. That is the whole point of those buffets.
I know this is irrelevant to your AIBU but I personally think those buffets are fairly disgusting though and don't know how anyone can eat in them.

YouGoGlennCoco · 27/02/2011 14:40

ffs TWO POUNDS 50?! and you are moaning
get a grip

theyCallMeHer · 27/02/2011 14:41

Ah so long as you cleaned up, from what you had written it seemed like you had just left it with a 'kids will be kids' shrug.

squeakytoy · 27/02/2011 14:45

Having reread, I think the problem is that op had no choice in the matter. They didn't know about the charge, it wasn't written up, they weren't even told about it when paying

That isnt how I read it at all. The Op admits that she didnt check the bill and query it at the time even though it was on there.

shewasashowgirl · 27/02/2011 14:49

Madamedefarge

I totally agree with you, especially the lower end restaurants they rely on turning covers because their profit margins are so low.
Bit like Primark pile it high sell it cheap relying totally on turnover of customers and volume sales.

Normally the higher end child friendly restaurants will not need to charge these small amounts because they sink these costs into their higher margins.

MsScarlett · 27/02/2011 14:58

Sorry it was well back in the thread, but lol at "bumo"! Grin

Original poster
PorcelinaOfTheVastOceans · 27/02/2011 15:02

oh dear, i don't think i've made myself very clear Blush

they never mentioned the charge for DD, maybe they didn't think she would eat anything, saw me pass her a bit of naan bread from my plate and added it on. we shall never know. but it would have been nice to have been told, i know from experience i would have told a customer if something was added to their bill.

it's not the price that shocked me, i just didn't expect to be charged for such a little one. as i said, the only experience i have of it is where i used to work and we would never have charged, i just thought that was the done thing, silly me!

do all buffets charge from such a young age?

OP posts:
Original poster
PorcelinaOfTheVastOceans · 27/02/2011 15:03

lol msscarlett, shhhh! Blush

OP posts:
MmeLindt · 27/02/2011 15:21

Porcelina
It would not have occurred to me to check if a 9mth old would be charged. I would have assumed that they were free of charge.

MmeDefarge
It is difficult though. We were at an Italian restaurant on Friday night. DH and I had a pizza, the DC shared a plate of spaghetti carbonara. With drinks and coffee, it was certainly cheaper than if 4 adults had been sitting there, but then we only stayed an hour. A party of adults would have spent more, but also blocked the table longer.

MadameDefarge · 27/02/2011 15:32

gwendolyn, you no nothing about catering or the food business. Please don't bother making stupid comments. I provide home cooked food at very reasonable prices. Charging £20 does not solve the problem of selfish diners.

worraliberty · 27/02/2011 15:36

but it would have been nice to have been told, i know from experience i would have told a customer if something was added to their bill

Surely it's up to you to ask how your child will be catered for? If they were to say to every customer with a baby "Btw there's a £2.50 charge for their food" they'd probably be met with insulted looking customers and the reply "Well I didn't expect something for nothing you know."

They can't win really.

MmeLindt · 27/02/2011 15:39

And, btw, I agree that two adults with 6 children blocking a table for 2 hours is taking the piss. I would never do that.

MadameDefarge · 27/02/2011 15:40

MMe Lindt, it is indeed a question of judgement. I add service charge, I cook off menu fpr kids, I have high chairs, my waitresses go if they don't pander to the kids, we have toys...If its quiet I am happy for people to hang around for as long as they like, but the flip side is say on a Friday night, when I make the most money, blocking tables for up to two hours costs me more than the cost of food sales lost, iyswim.

I agree that the OP should not have been charged a buffet charge for her dc. that is wrong. But she needed to query it at the time, because quite possibly it was a genuine mistake, and taking it as a deliberate attempt to rip her off is ungenerous to say the least.

Small independent food businesses like me find it hard enough, without folk behaving as if we were starbucks or Pizza Hut who can afford massive discounts and promotions. But despite that, I do my very best to accomodate all my customers. I never hurry anyone, I want their business. But its a two way street, if you want a very good quality, low cost eatery near you, don't take the piss. Because it can mean the difference between being viable business and going under. That is what I wish people would understand.

MadameDefarge · 27/02/2011 15:41

sorry, I meant, I DONT add a service charge!

shewasashowgirl · 27/02/2011 15:42

If you go to a decent restaurant you can expect them to let you know there's a charge or not as is more probably the case.
If you go to a Chinese buffet you're probably best fending for yourself on information about costs as well as serving yourself Wink

northerngirl41 · 27/02/2011 16:44

I don't think it's that unreasonable - your child used their facilities, took up space (even if you left her in the buggy and didn't use the highhair), she ate some of their food and also probably made some mess whilst doing it which their staff had to clean up. All costs to the restaurant - which they need to recoup somehow.

privategodfrey · 27/02/2011 17:06

YANBU if you just gave her a piece of crust off your plate. It would have been different if you had put a whole naan on a seperate plate for her.

At our local Asda cafe (yes I know, tres chavvy of me) there is a regular meet-up of 3 women and 5 toddlers. The women use all the available highchairs and bring food for their DCs. They drag 2, sometimes 3 tables together and sit there for hours nursing their 'free refill' cup of coffee.

Not a huge problem you might think apart from the fact they do this at lunchtime, busiest time for the cafe and creates a shortage of seats for people who are actually spending more than a pound each.

They also do all their shopping first and bring their trolleys in the cafe too, parked next to their table(s) making it difficult for anyone else to get past. Seriously pisses me off Angry

mayorquimby · 27/02/2011 17:09

why are you shocked they charged you for food your child ate?

ChaoticAngelofAnarchy · 27/02/2011 17:27

I wouldn't mind paying the £2.50 per see but I would expect to be informed in advance.

frasersmummy · 27/02/2011 17:40

Our local chinese buffet charges by height - up to a cetain height is child price and over is adult price. They have signs up saying that if a person is not eating you have to tell them on arrival otherwise they will be charged ... babies or not!!!!
So you can have a table for 2 plus highchair and if you say but baby is not eating you wont be charged

I was told in our local pizza hut its a judgement call of the server whethere young kids are chargeable or not .. but they certainly dont charge for kids who need a highchair.
The best laugh about this is that at a year old ds could pack away more pizza and pasta than he can now at 5 when obv I pay for him

i think charging a 9mth old is ridiculous

bulby · 27/02/2011 17:54

I'm more shocked at the whole charging by height thing. My dd is 2 and as tall as many 5 year olds. You can't help it if your genes make you tall ffs.... There would be an outcry if they charged fatter people more.

sausagerollmodel · 27/02/2011 18:43

Totally wrong to charge for an under 1 year old who would still be eating baby food. For an older child £2.50 would be quite a reasonable charge I think.
I can see why you were miffed. I would be. It's not the actual amount, it's the principle of the thing. You have to be careful at restaurants, they can bung all sorts of sneaky charges on you.
Vote with your feet - don't go there again!

ChippingInMistressSteamMop · 27/02/2011 18:54

It's ridiculous to charge for a baby.

Original poster
PorcelinaOfTheVastOceans · 27/02/2011 19:15

glad i wasn't on my own in my opinion then!

this was my first ever thread, thought i was being bloody stupid brave posting in AIBU! didn't get too badly mauled though! Grin

OP posts:
MadameDefarge · 27/02/2011 20:35

sausage, I am offended by your notion that restaurants have all sorts of sneaky charges. As I suggested earlier, it might well have been a genuine mistake. Please don't assume everyone is out to rip you off. This paranoid attitude is really silly, and quite frankly smacks of a sense of entitlement that is I think the scourge of modern society.

Ooh, I want to sit in the warm with my children and eat a meal, butnot buy one for them. Ooh how very dare you charge me for this, you evil, money grubbing lot, why isn't it all free?