I had this very problem only recently when people with a dog arrived at the table next to me, in what I had thought was a decent restaurant. The animal was sniffing around my table. I made my displeasure clear and moved a chair to block the dog. One owner then advised the other that I didn’t like dogs, the dog was duly called to heel and kept under their table.
They were muttering about asking to move, I was thinking the same. I think we both decided to stay put in the name of good form. An unpleasant atmosphere, as well as an unpleasant smell, permeated the rest of the meal for both tables.
So, the owners had been welcomed into the restaurant thinking it was “dog friendly “. I had been welcomed into the restaurant with no understanding that I’d be eating with animals.
I think we’d both been conned.
I refused to pay the automatic service charge at the end of the meal and was asked to explain why. I agreed to do so in private as I didn’t want to embarrass the dog owners. The manager’s argument was all about being “dog friendly “. I told him that should be made clear upon booking or walking in.
The Kennel Club, in their delusion, have launched an Open For Dogs campaign, which includes window stickers for eating establishments. So, can we expect eating establishments to nail their colours to the mast, so we all know the score in future? I doubt it, but far more of us now know to ask about the policy before deciding where to spend our money.