That this does not constitute stealing?

[6079SmithW]

We recently enjoyed a self catering holiday. On the way we decided to break up the journey by stopping for breakfast at a well known chain pub/restaurant/hotel.
The menu was very complicated with only certain things being available to hotel guests rather than others.
My partner and I ordered a cooked breakfast, the DC just wanted something simple so I ordered them a bacon sandwich. I enquired about the small boxes of cereal on display as that was what the DC really wanted. I was told it was part of the hotel guests only breakfast and if DC wanted it it would br £6 each (£12). I ordered that too. My bill was over £30!
The hotel guests additional breakfast was basically the small boxes of cereals plus bread/crumpets to toast. The DC ate a box of cereal and one crumpet each.
Feeling aggrieved that I had spent over £30 on breakfast, and mindful that we were going on a self catering break, I decided to get my monies worth by taking with us a few additional individual portions of jam and Nutella (about 10-12) total. My partner accused me of stealing! WIBU?

the man went up again and again and got about 12 cups of coffee which he emptied furtively into 3 flasks!
The brass neck of that... Imagine lowering yourself to stealing a flask of bloody coffee with the entire restaurant looking on.

It is stealing. Just because you thought the breakfast deal was extortionate doesn't mean that pinching other stuff that you should have paid for isn't stealing. The two things are not connected

Dont think you will go to hell dear. £30 for what you ate is day light robbery anyway.

@Ddot

Dont think you will go to hell dear. £30 for what you ate is day light robbery anyway.

It was breakfast for four. It was hardly going to cost tuppence ha'penny. It's not extortionate at all.

😂😂😂 this thread is hilarious

@Longestsummerever23444

Clearly no one has watched the episode of friends when Ross is in Vermont…. Anything goes… except the salt shakers… salt inside it… you can take. Tv remote… no… but the batteries 🤣🤣🤣🤣

this!

Last time I went out, I had a starter for about £10, a pasta dish for £30 and a dessert for £10-12. I didn't swipe an extra bread basket on the way out for next days breakfast though feeling aggrieved we spent well over £100 for two.
Sorry, I can't get over £30 for a pasta dish!!

Longestsummerever23444 Fri 20-Aug-21 18:40:55 Clearly no one has watched the episode of friends when Ross is in Vermont…. Anything goes… except the salt shakers… salt inside it… you can take. Tv remote… no… but the batteries 🤣🤣🤣🤣

This reminds me of the 70s when a friend used to help herself to sachets of sugar by the handful! And ketchup, and salt and pepper, and mustard. Ah, those were t'days! The Golden Egg at midnight.

Wow! This thread really took off without me realising.

Anyway [hangs head in shame] I am prepared to take the consensus opinion that it was stealing, and promise that I won't do it again 😁

Just to clarify a few points:

It wasn't a Premier Inn

I didn't tell my DC what I was doing or encourage them to do the same

The £6 was for a continental buffet breakfast which consisted of aforementioned cereal, bread and crumpets for toasting and individual portions of butter (which I didn't touch!) jam and Nutella. There may have been more on offer at the start of the morning but by the time we got there that's all there was.

So the jam and Nutella were included in the breakfast which you paid for? Not stealing then! (But if they weren’t included in the breakfast you paid for - stealing)

Also forgot to say to all of you suggesting that I should have just said no to the DC - yes you are probably right. No excuse other than we were at the beginning of our holiday and I wanted them to be happy 😊

It is theft pure and simple. Who will end up paying for those items? Future guests, certainly not the Hotellier.

I don't think any reasonable person would accuse you of stealing, but I think you should have told them to shove it.

Then ask them "where's the nearest Wetherspoons, Macdonalds", both great breakfasts

Stealing 😂 the hotels know people do this and allow for it in the price, otherwise they’d have a price on the menu for you to take bits away with you too. Last time I was in one of these hotels I took two newspapers too, not because I wanted to read them but because I was planning on painting the kitchen and needed something to cover the worktops.

My mum calls them “eat as much as you can” buffets and she sees it as a challenge 😂

I'm interested to know the thought process you went through to get to a point where you can say that this does not constitute stealing.

I don't suppose you can take me through the steps? I'd really like to know. It's so curious.

@TopTabby

Last time I went out, I had a starter for about £10, a pasta dish for £30 and a dessert for £10-12. I didn't swipe an extra bread basket on the way out for next days breakfast though feeling aggrieved we spent well over £100 for two. Sorry, I can't get over £30 for a pasta dish!!

It was a lobster pasta, to be fair.

It may have been technically stealing but the amount you were charged for the breakfast was daylight robbery! I don’t blame you they were still quids in, I’d have done the same. Why on earth didn’t you go to McDonalds?

McDonalds wouldn’t have been any use.

I’m guessing her kids don’t fancy salt and pepper on toast for breakfast.

@GreyhoundG1rl

the man went up again and again and got about 12 cups of coffee which he emptied furtively into 3 flasks! The brass neck of that... Imagine lowering yourself to stealing a flask of bloody coffee with the entire restaurant looking on.

Hilarious!! Some people have no shame. Personally I'd find that quite entertaining

I wish this was my only current worry

Not stealing IMHO. You paid for unlimited. You took what felt reasonable. I’d do the same. £6 for a bowl of cereal, a crumpet you toast yourself and a few small condiment sachets is still expensive. I’m not going to to call the police on you.

In fact I would have paid for one and fed the two of them!

£30 for breakfast I would have would have taken everything I could get my hands on, ridiculous, those cereals you can get 6 for a pound, less if unbranded and coming from a buying background I know that buying in bulk means that the chain probably paid half of what we can get them from the supermarket.

Even shopping at the cheapest supermarkets I despair sometimes at the price we have to pay for things know what price the supermarket actually paid some thing have amazing markups

Some people have no shame. Personally I'd find that quite entertaining

It was DH who noticed it, he thought it was hilarious, I was fuming and ranted about giving them a fiver if they couldn't afford to buy a couple of coffees during the day.

It was a bit odd, the man wore a rucksack to carry his flasks in, later DH saw the wife at the reception moaning about the towels (perhaps they'd nicked them and were claiming that their room hadn't contained towels )