To think the hotel is in the wrong?

[MiddayMass]

My sister and her husband had their 10 year anniversary party at a local hotel yesterday. They had a free bar on them, £1500 tab.

Dsis was suspicious over some things as tab was sucked dry very quickly and she’d seen people at the bar and yet not with a drink at the table, so she asked for a receipt of everything ordered throughout the night.

It’s turns out somebody (or several people) were buying full bottles directly from the bar. Not just wines but spirits, one cheeky fucker bought an entire bottle of Remy Martin. Others only got chance to have a lime and soda or a coke on the tab before it was sucked up. A few late-arrivals got fuck-all.

Me and Dsis both suspect who the culprits are but we can’t really prove it.

Dsis has spoken to the manager who confirmed that people were buying bottles on the tab (this amazes me, surely it breaks some kind of licensing law) and that they did not see it as a problem as Dsis and her husband never specified that they wanted it limited. Dsis feels it was a given. We’ve also heard from a family friend that one of the bar staff was telling people “You can buy the bottle if you’d like?” when they ordered the same spirit more than once. We feel it was an obvious attempt to suck the tab dry quickly to get people buying drinks again. The bar staff looked barely 18 so I imagine the manager had told them to upsell bottles.

Whilst people were cheeky fuckers, AIBU to think the hotel was in the wrong?

That’s unbelievable - who abuses a friend’s hospitality like that? I can just about see that, if someone ordered two large glasses of the same wine at the bar, the server might say “oh, it’s only £2 more for the bottle”. But even then that’s pushing it a bit. Unbelievable behaviour by the guests…and pretty shitty of the hotel not to have managed the situation a bit better.

It is depressing that hosts invited their nearest and dearest, generously funding the bar and that guests would act in such a fashion.

However, the hotel should have been more proactive and avoided the situation.

Crikey, I've heard of having to specify no spirits or no shots for example but never no full bottles! It wouldn't even have entered my thought process.

Not saying its the case here, but the thing is that at some hotels, buying the bottle costs less per shot than buying the spirit by the shot....so the member of staff may actually have meant well and been trying to make the budget go further.......but yes the bar should have discusssed limitations with you when planning the event.

Cheeky fuckers but the hotel were extremely unprofessional.

Would they let a hotel guest clear out the whole hotel buffet?

Perhaps a round robin to guests along the lines of:

"Thank you for coming to our event. Unfortunately there has been some irregularity with the bar bill as we have been charged for sales of bottles of spirits. We are going to ask the hotel to check their CCTV. I am sure this is just a problem with the till but if anyone saw bottles of spirits going over the bar could they let us know please?"

This will give the CFs (or more likely their embarrassed partners) the opportunity to stump up the cost before their misdeeds get identified on CCTV.

I remember a colleague having a similar problem at her wedding but in her case the bar staff werent checking that the drinkers were even guests of the wedding and were putting the drinks of randoms on the tab.

If you set up a tab at a bar then you need to set limits. The first is now bottles of spirits. Some people limit the wine choices, no champagne. Some people limit it to single and no doubles. Just whatever you want.

If they didnt set a limit and have family members who will behave like this then that's on them.

However, since they've been told that the bar staff were actually prompting people to buy a bottle instead of just a drink at a time then I would maybe tweet about that and leave bad reviews and see if they change their minds about refunding.

@PenelopeVonDelius

Good point *@Doubleraspberry*. That's true re licensing laws and I'm sure when I did my training that I read that you aren't meant to sell large quantities of alcohol at once. It's in the guidelines we use... I don't often sell alcohol as I usually am on breakfast shift, so that's why I'm a bit vague!

I don’t think applies in private party scenario

YANBU

@GnomeDePlume

Perhaps a round robin to guests along the lines of:

"Thank you for coming to our event. Unfortunately there has been some irregularity with the bar bill as we have been charged for sales of bottles of spirits. We are going to ask the hotel to check their CCTV. I am sure this is just a problem with the till but if anyone saw bottles of spirits going over the bar could they let us know please?"

This will give the CFs (or more likely their embarrassed partners) the opportunity to stump up the cost before their misdeeds get identified on CCTV.

I remember a colleague having a similar problem at her wedding but in her case the bar staff werent checking that the drinkers were even guests of the wedding and were putting the drinks of randoms on the tab.

Please please please please do NOT send a round Robin to guests re irregularities with the bill

Please!!

@godmum56

Not saying its the case here, but the thing is that at some hotels, buying the bottle costs less per shot than buying the spirit by the shot....so the member of staff may actually have meant well and been trying to make the budget go further.......but yes the bar should have discusssed limitations with you when planning the event.

100%

It’s always more expensive to buy per shot than the bottle.

Same with wine by the glass

The hotel is in the wrong; that's not the point of the tab and they now it.

But you've also learned something important about the so-called friends they invited. These people are not friends; they're selfish cheeky fuckers who only give a shit about themselves at your expense. I'd get rid.

Do you say that someone overheard the bar staff suggesting that guests could buy the full bottle if they like? That's outrageous. The idea was put in the guests head by the staff! The guest would have never gone to the bar and asked for a full bottle, surely? Not without it being suggested by staff. That kind of gives the impression that it's ok. If the staff suggested it.

I don’t think applies in private party scenario

If it's on a licenced premises, they are bound by the rules of their licence. It's not a temporary event licence.

*godmum56
Not saying its the case here, but the thing is that at some hotels, buying the bottle costs less per shot than buying the spirit by the shot....so the member of staff may actually have meant well and been trying to make the budget go further.......but yes the bar should have discusssed limitations with you when planning the event.
100%

It’s always more expensive to buy per shot than the bottle.

Same with wine by the glass*

The guests were not doing it to save OP money! They were being greedy!

@DeliriaSkibbly

To the people giving examples like 'purchasing 10 x £150 bottles of champagne' that is simply reductio ad absurdum

The hotel could have been more helpful and suggested specifying what drinks were covered and so on, that is not in doubt.

But the hotel are not in the wrong. They simply carried out the wishes of the people funding the tab.

The fact of the matter is that the people abusing the tab are in the wrong, but in a typically British way, rather than grasp the nettle people are trying to blame the hotel. Blame the people who bought whole bottles of spirits, abusing your hospitality.

In what way did the bar staff carry out the wishes of the people funding the tab when they were suggesting guests order by the bottle?

I would expect hotel to halve spirit costs.

Absolutely fucking ridiculous they let people do this.

If I were the hosts, I would chalk it up to experience. I've organised events for work and for family / friends and have never not been asked what constraints to put on any charging to an account. Even so I would just accept that it was sub-optimal and move on.

Certainly not send anything to guests about the bill.

@Spodge

The blame does not lie with the hotel unless the hosts said the bar staff were not to sell full bottles and they ignored the stipulation.

And would you also need to ask them not to tell the guests to fuck off ?

It's common sense.

If I was doing a free bar it wouldn't have crossed my mind to have to stipulate not to buy entire bottles or vintage champagne or anything.

I agree. When arranging an event I would expect guidance from the hotel. They advise on things like numbers of buffet dishes and bottle of wine per head so I'd expect advice about a free bar to be included.

Last party we went to was the one organised by the pils who gave everyone two drink tickets. I must admit that I thought it seemed a bit of a tacky way to do it but I guess it was sensible.

I would not expect the bar to serve full bottles of spirits.

It wouldn't have occurred to me that whole bottles of spirits would be sold and I think hotel should have cleared with hosts but I don't know how legal that is.

Morally the fault really lies with the greedy guests. If I were the hosts I would send a letter to every guest saying that they were sorry that some people didn't even get a drink and that they hoped those who bought the bottles can live with their selfishness and taking advantage of their own relatives.

Who would do that to their own family/friends I'd be so hurt but angry too.

Good god, entire bottles?! My sister and I both had open bars at our weddings and it was open season for greedy bastards who would barely have touched a drop if it wasn't someone else paying. So disappointing - and even they didn't take whole bottles!

It was poor of the venue to give away such big quantities without checking, and I can understand why you didn't think to specify (you don't expect loved ones to abuse your generosity like that!). Such a shame but ultimately always the risk with a free bar sadly.

O would say the bar fell foul of the UK Licensing laws:

Gin, rum, vodka and whisky

These four spirit drinks are required to be served by the glass in one of these quantities:

25 ml
35 ml
multiples of 25 ml or 35 ml

AND
Irresponsible price promotions should not be used - for example:

buy one get one free
all you can drink for £10

@Offmyfence

*godmum56 Not saying its the case here, but the thing is that at some hotels, buying the bottle costs less per shot than buying the spirit by the shot....so the member of staff may actually have meant well and been trying to make the budget go further.......but yes the bar should have discusssed limitations with you when planning the event. 100%

It’s always more expensive to buy per shot than the bottle.

Same with wine by the glass*

The guests were not doing it to save OP money! They were being greedy!

absolutely i get that.....but lets say someone comes up to the bar with a HUGE round of drinks most of which are brandy and something? The barman may have felt that he was being helpful to point out that the round would cost less of the tab if the person ordering it had a bottle to pour for themselves? My point is that with no limitation on what people can ask for (and yes the hotel should have asked it as part of the organisation) It may not have been the fault of the staff who suggested it.

A mate of mine used to work in hospitality in a local hotel. At their bar, a particular cocktail was bourbon based using a double shot of premium bourbon. The cocktail was actually cheaper than buying the same double bourbon "naked" Helpful bar staff would point this out to customers. whio would order the cocktail but then say "but with no xxx" naming all or most of the other cocktail ingredients.