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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Working at a cafe without buying anything

200 replies

Overthebow · 04/03/2022 07:52

Yesterday I was at a cafe and a lady came in and sat down, set up her laptop and books and started to work. She had taken a glass of the free water but hadn’t bought anything. AIBU to think she was a CF?

OP posts:
girlmom21 · 04/03/2022 07:53

It depends on her circumstances - which none of us know.

Sparticuscaticus · 04/03/2022 07:53

Yes
I'm surprised the cafe staff did not ask her to leave. It's not a public service, cafes are businesses . She should have bought something

Cissyandflora · 04/03/2022 07:54

Yes I think so. She should have bought something.

WouldIwasShookspeared · 04/03/2022 07:55

Yes she was.

HunterHearstHelmsley · 04/03/2022 07:55

If the staff didn't ask her to buy something or leave, they probably know her. My friend owns a cafe and has done exactly this

NandorTheRelentlessCleaner · 04/03/2022 07:55

So cheeky

Keladrythesaviour · 04/03/2022 07:56

When I ran a café we'd have asked her politely to buy something or move on after a period of time. It's not a free workspace, that table needs to be paid for.

EatYourVegetables · 04/03/2022 07:56

@girlmom21 No, it really doesn’t. A cafe is a businesses, not a charity.

doingitforyorkshire · 04/03/2022 07:58

@HunterHearstHelmsley

If the staff didn't ask her to buy something or leave, they probably know her. My friend owns a cafe and has done exactly this
Unless it is this then she is taking the p**.
girlmom21 · 04/03/2022 07:59

[quote EatYourVegetables]@girlmom21 No, it really doesn’t. A cafe is a businesses, not a charity.[/quote]
Well yes, it does...

Lots of cafes welcome people who need shelter or WiFi regardless of whether they can afford a coffee or not.

She might have been meeting someone for work who was buying lunch on expenses.
She might be the owner.
She might have just got her first job in 15 years and simply can't afford coffee or internet until her first wages are paid.

NotMeNoNo · 04/03/2022 08:00

She might be part of the business, maybe doing some admin/ordering. Cafes don't often have offices attached.

sparepantsandtoothbrush · 04/03/2022 08:01

She might have been meeting someone for work who was buying lunch on expenses.
She might be the owner.
She might have just got her first job in 15 years and simply can't afford coffee or internet until her first wages are paid

Or she might just be a CF

gogohm · 04/03/2022 08:02

Yes you should buy something, outside of normal meal times a drink is fine, at meal times you should buy something more substantial - another customer could have the table. Obviously if you were in a difficult situation and asked could you use the internet for 30 mins at a quiet time many places would say yes but as a general rule they are businesses not charities

BarbaraofSeville · 04/03/2022 08:03

@girlmom21

It depends on her circumstances - which none of us know.
Oh come on. Even if she suffers from endless whataboutery about domestic abuse, unreasonable employers etc etc, the solution to the issues to not to just go and take up space in a cafe who then lose the income from the table she occupies.

A cafe owner once posted a very reasonable breakdown of all the costs they have to cover, even when the 'customer' doesn't take much in the way of actual food and drink when someone complained on Trip Advisor about being charged for a cup of hot water. That would also be relevant here. They need to make income from tables to make ends meet and most small cafe owners probably don't make much money and that's before they have people using them as a free hot desking service.

BarbaraofSeville · 04/03/2022 08:05

Well she could have been the owner doing admin, but you'd probably work that out from the way she interacts with the staff, so she probably wasn't.

knittingaddict · 04/03/2022 08:07

Where are these mythical coffee shops which welcome non paying customers? On which planet?

Definitely a cf.

OneTC · 04/03/2022 08:08

Lots of cafes welcome people who need shelter or WiFi regardless of whether they can afford a coffee or not

No they don't

MRex · 04/03/2022 08:09

She works there, or knows them, otherwise they would have asked her what she was ordering. Maybe you should take a book next time?

AllOfUsAreDead · 04/03/2022 08:13

Cheeky fucker. They are businesses, and there are public places available for this. They are called libraries. OK you might have to travel further to find one now thanks to councils closing them, but that or your home or workplace is better than wasting the time and money of a company.

Original poster
Overthebow · 04/03/2022 08:14

This was a big but busy garden centre cafe. The staff were too busy to notice so I doubt anyone said anything to her, and it didn’t seem like she knew the staff but of course I could be wrong.

OP posts:
Skiptheheartsandflowers · 04/03/2022 08:14

She might have just got her first job in 15 years and simply can't afford coffee or internet until her first wages are paid.

She could go to a public library in these circumstances.

Sprogonthetyne · 04/03/2022 08:19

Back when I was a student I sometimes hung round at the cafe I worked in, waiting for my shift. Eg. If I finished classes early but didn't have time to get bus home then back into town (hour each way). I assume the staff new her, otherwise they would have asked her to order/ leave.

tirednewmumm · 04/03/2022 08:29

@girlmom21

It depends on her circumstances - which none of us know.
I don't think it does! How are businesses to survive ? Maybe she's broke and can't afford the heating to work etc but then she needs to be in the library or something
KindlyKanga · 04/03/2022 08:30

If they aren't bothered I wouldn't let it bother you

ElsieLappin · 04/03/2022 08:35

I think if it was the business owner and the staff were run off their feet, they wouldn't be taking up a table at their busiest time doing paperwork
People need to make a purchase to use the facilities

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