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AIBU?

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Original poster

To be really pissed off at this restaurant??

233 replies

K1092902 · 03/08/2017 20:28

Booked a meal this afternoon in London for for 9 at 1pm. A restaurant a few people recommended to us and that friends we are staying with have been to and said was very good. We expected the price to be pretty high a) it's central London b) it has a good reputation

There was an office party of some sort in there- about 10 of them.

Anyway we had our meal and the bill came. There were 8 adults (My friends and their 2 adult children, DSDs, Me and DH) and 3 year old DD.

I looked at the bill at thought it was quite high. I offered to pay as we are staying with our friends and they took me and DH for dinner in Tuesday night but friends insisted on paying half and after tooing and froing we OKd it

Friend noticed we had been given the wrong bill after again noticing the price seemed a little high.

We were given the bill for the other group. Waitress and manager told us that we couldn't pay our own bill as it was already paid for and all they could do was give us a print out of a receipt.

DH said we wouldn't be paying and the manager threatened to call the police so I paid to keep the peace and because DD was getting upset. They have given us a gift voucher for the difference but I'm still pretty pissed off

OP posts:
VeryCunningStunt · 03/08/2017 21:42

Finding this hard to believe, because you'd have to be really stupid to pay someone else's bill. It's a restaurant, you pay for what you consume and if they fucked up giving you the wrong bill, you should have checked it before paying and demanded the correct bill.

It's also pretty Shock that the friends just sat there and said nothing about the OP paying the incorrect, higher bill, especially as they were the ones who noticed the discrepancy in the first place, and seemingly no one thought to ask exactly what offence the manager expected them to be charged with if the police did in fact turn up.

What a thoroughly bizarre occurrence.

alphajuliet123 · 03/08/2017 21:44

Glad to her all must be well with your husband and his daughter, OP. Did he come round to the idea of becoming a grandad?

MissEliza · 03/08/2017 21:45

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lambpasanda · 03/08/2017 21:49

Restaurant manager here, notallthosewhowander is correct.

You would only pay your bill (and I would probably knock a round of drinks/desserts off as a goodwill gesture) - it's not your responsibility to balance the till. Giving vouchers for the difference adds insult to injury! Then I would be on the phone/emailing the contact that the booking was under to settle the difference, if that couldn't be done I would have to write it off as a loss and explain it to my boss. Definitely complain!

Whattheduck · 03/08/2017 21:49

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Crunchymum · 03/08/2017 21:49

What was the difference between the 2 bills?

I don't understand why the restaurant didn't just charge you for what your actual meal cost? Yes there would be a discrepancy at their end but there is absolutely no justification for them charging you for other meal? You make payment for x amount on card and they explain the difference their fuck up with the bills to their seniors (or chase the other group for the balance)

mummmy2017 · 03/08/2017 21:50

Cancel the credit card bill and explain to them what happened , and send a cashiers check for the right amount, also send the vouchers back.

Crunchymum · 03/08/2017 21:51

notallthosewhowander explains things perfectly.

They just charge you what your bill was and deal with the balance at their end.

Questioningeverything · 03/08/2017 21:53

Come back op and tell us what restaurant we're all avoiding from now on!!!

CauliflowerSqueeze · 03/08/2017 21:54

That's so ridiculous I can hardly believe it.
Awful

Alexandra87 · 03/08/2017 21:54

I would have let them phone the police. I would also give them an appalling review on trip advisor. They'll soon rectify it then

LauderSyme · 03/08/2017 21:54

I'm with the tsunami of opinion that thinks you were mad to pay more than you owed.
Blimey, I can be a bit wet at times but even I wouldn't do that!
Definitely kick up a stink any which way you can and get back in cash the difference you should never have paid. (And some compensation for the embarrassment because I think it's probably actually yourself you're really pissed off with).
Sorry to be harsh OP, you must have found the situation very stressful to have wholly capitulated like that in order to end it, but I think you know you let yourself be mugged there.

BewareOfDragons · 03/08/2017 21:56

Social media is your friend here ... I would go off on it.

BUt then again, I wouldn't have paid another table's bill...

dowhatyouwish · 03/08/2017 21:57

Better you than me I would've stay there until the police came! How rude of them. Are you a allowed to name them on MN so we can avoid them!?!

AtHomeDadGlos · 03/08/2017 21:58

Sorry OP but you're a mug to have paid that.

SheRaaarghPrincessOfPower · 03/08/2017 22:06

What the hell?

I'd ring them, speak with the manager and request an immediate refund of the difference.

And I'd name them here.

ChasedByBees · 03/08/2017 22:06

According to this website (no idea of credentials) you could only have left your name and address.

www.themix.org.uk/money/money-rights/restaurant-rights-the-bill-9132.html

I would give them a chance to get this right (i.e a refund) and if not, go to trading standards and get them on social media.

Floggingmolly · 03/08/2017 22:09

This can't be real... They accidentally gave your bill to another table, so insisted you pay their much larger one instead?!
You can't have seriously imagined they could enforce that, did you??

Pebbles1989 · 03/08/2017 22:11

Similar happened to a friend once, he told the restaurant to go ahead and call the police. The policeman was extremely apologetic and said my friend had done nothing wrong. You should have stood your ground.

user1495832265 · 03/08/2017 22:12

OP not been back?

Greenifer · 03/08/2017 22:13

This happened to me in Pizza Express once. I was given the bill for another table (similar and completely plausible amount, in a hurry, didn't look properly) and paid it. It was them that noticed the mistake, came rushing up as we were putting our coats on and refunded the (small amount) extra onto my card in a few minutes. No idea what happened with the other table but they rectified their own mistake v fast and were super apologetic. This was Pizza Express. I cannot imagine a high end restaurant would do anything less.

allthingslipsticks · 03/08/2017 22:16

Awful, it seems that they bullied you into paying OP. As others have said, you should name and shame them. They don't deserve to be in business after making such a pathetic mistake!!

2014newme · 03/08/2017 22:16

It was their error you were very silly to pay someone else's restaurant bill.

ArmySal · 03/08/2017 22:17

Shock I've known some mard-arses and non-confrontational people in my time but I'm hard pressed to think of one who'd pay under those circumstances.

ShellyBoobs · 03/08/2017 22:18

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