No outside food allowed at hotel

[whenicomehomedrunk]

I’m away for a couple of nights at a hotel, they have a restaurant so I thought I’d just eat here.

I get here and it’s closed for refurbishment for three nights! I went out and got fish and chips to eat in my room but they told me that outside food isn’t allowed in the hotel, because of the restaurant…

Which isn’t open! I’ve asked if they’re serious and they said yes, they made me eat outside the hotel on a bench by the beach.

AIBU or is this utterly fucking nuts?

It’s a crap hotel. We often don’t want to ‘eat out’ (whether in a hotel restaurant or otherwise) every day when we’re on holiday because it can be too heavy/unhealthy - we get salad bowls etc from M&S to eat in the room. No problems whatever in very nice hotels.

I have a little bit of sympathy with hoteliers not being keen on takeaways in bedrooms (some meals, especially fish&chips, can be pretty smelly) but in that case if there’s no other food they should do as PP have said and make a public room available to eat in.

I rarely eat at hotel restaurants, normally rubbish food at horrible prices. And I've always sneaked in drinks and fruit rather than pay their prices on a minibar. Sneaked in popcorn at the cinema countless of times when a poor student too, ha.

Your hotel was utterly unreasonable and tbh, they should've been apologising rather than make you eat outside, wow.

We have 2 B and Bs in our town.

A allows people to bring takeaway food in, gives them cutlery and lets them eat it in the breakfast room
B Allows no food or drink in the building. Owner even remonstrates with guests if she finds sweet wrappers or water bottles in the bins

Owner B is shocked that she gets shitty reviews and has hardly any bookings whereas A is always busy

I have only stayed in one hotel where it said you can’t have takeaway food in the room (and I’m travelling a lot). I always take snacks / drinks / fruit etc and quite often have food in the room (using the minibar fridge if there is one) as I don’t want to eat out all the time.

One rather nice hotel, with restaurant, on the other hand even shared which food delivery services are in the area and said they’ll call the room when the driver has arrived.

To a certain extent I understand it for some hot / smelly foods - certainly if one of the places where windows cannot be opened - and wonder if it’s about stains (particularly for wine maybe?) but if the restaurant is closed then that’s just stupid reasoning.

Totally nuts. I would complain to the manager and copy in head office if it's a chain.

They can't ban you from bringing in your own food if they can't serve you any?

That's awful. I was away for work last week, the hotel's restaurant was closed. The lady at the bar supplied me with a load of takeaway recommendations and told me I was welcome to eat there or in my room and to let her know if I needed plates/cutlery etc

You could if they were wrapped up enough 😂

I've stayed in many B&Bs where they encourage you to use the dining room for takeaways. I assume it's because they know people are going to sneak fish and chips in anyway, so it's in their interests if people eat in the dining room and clear up after themselves!