Shabu drama: Man charged for eating too much at all you eat buffet

 

Image: Sanook

 

A diner at a popular shabu-shabu chain went on Facebook to say that he was asked to pay more for an all you can eat buffet because he piled his plates with just meat and prawns.

 

The diner said he was a regular visitor and there had never been a problem before. This time the owner came out and said because there were no vegetables on the table he would have to pay a surcharge. 

 

He left an unhappy review that prompted a response from a woman at the store. The diner claimed he was threatened.

 

The post in response to the review (that the diner attached to his post) said that the way he was eating was not in the spirit of shabu restaurants as there should be a balance of foodstuffs not just meat and prawns. She intimated that people who eat like that would drive them out of business. 

 

She said that she would see him in court for posting disparaging comments about her establishment.

 

Netizens reacted swiftly to say this was an all you can eat buffet. The customer was entitled to order whatever they liked. 

 

An official higher up the chain of command of the restaurant then entered the fray to try to calm the situation saying obsequiously that they valued the customer for his patronage. 

 

But they insisted that patrons who eat like he did should understand that there must be a surcharge and that it was right that he was charged 200 baht extra for all that meat and all those prawns. 

 

It appears he was charged 549 baht instead of 339. 

 

Sanook called it a "shabu drama" in their headline.

 

Source: Sanook

 

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6 minutes ago, rooster59 said:

An official higher up the chain of command of the restaurant then entered the fray to try to calm the situation saying obsequiously that they valued the customer for his patronage. 

saying exactly nothing; taking advantage of thai ? ridiculous !

I hate the phrase "All you can eat", almost as much as the people who go there to stuff themselves. 

 

The last time I went to one of these I only ate meat & prawns, & when I looked for the fish in breadcrumbs etc there weren't any.

I'm kind of with the customer on this one. Some people eat like birds so it balances out. 

 

I do understand surcharges for waste though but even that isn't always fair. Like you take something that looks or sounds good but it turns out it's disgusting. So you're supposed to be forced to eat gross food?

 

Big bottom line -- this restaurant treated this customer shabuly.

Edited September 12, 20205 yr by Jingthing

I'm aware that they have notices about a surcharge if you leave too much food uneaten after choosing the dushes, but there's nothing about types of food you eat - so surely an unenforceable surcharge?

 

My TGF can eat an unfeasible amount of prawns at buffets - but we've never been charged extra - a few compliments for eating ability, but never charged. ????

14 minutes ago, evadgib said:

The last time I went to one of these I only ate meat & prawns, & when I looked for the fish in breadcrumbs etc there weren't any.

How incredibly interesting, thank you for sharing.

If there are rules about which foods one can or cannot choose, and in what quantities - that information should be clearly displayed at the entrance to the restaurant.

I see signs about extra charges for waste (food taken but not eaten), but nothing about "You must eat vegetables as well as meat". Sounds like something my mother may have said when I was a kid.

 

Edited September 12, 20205 yr by chickenslegs

And yet people on Tvf Still complaining about Chinese.

a lot of AYCE buffets I have used get round this by actually serving the high value meats etc, very rarely do I see people going for a 2nd visit to the counter

 

In saying that, if they advertise as AYCE then that is what they are, like someone already mentioned, they balance out over time 

i know of a miser that pocketed some bananas

that was a free on the table on his way out,

this customer that eat prawns and meat exclusively

does look like a miser to me.

i am heavy on meat myself, but i recognize

basic economics and dont go that extra mile just to take advantage of others

I don't eat at them, don't like the overstuffed feeling.

Easiest way for the business to limit overconsumption is small plates, and bring out a small supply at regular intervals.

37 minutes ago, YetAnother said:

saying exactly nothing; taking advantage of thai ? ridiculous !

May well have been Thai.

 

15 minutes ago, Meat Pie 47 said:

And yet people on Tvf Still complaining about Chinese.

Possibly was Chinese.

9 minutes ago, scammed said:

i know of a miser that pocketed some bananas

that was a free on the table on his way out,

this customer that eat prawns and meat exclusively

does look like a miser to me.

i am heavy on meat myself, but i recognize

basic economics and dont go that extra mile just to take advantage of others

 

   I know , who you mean . 555

    

The last time I went to one of these  I ate all the fish in bread crumbs and there werent any left for anyone else

47 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

I do understand surcharges for waste though but even that isn't always fair. Like you take something that looks or sounds good but it turns out it's disgusting. So you're supposed to be forced to eat gross food?

I have not seen any of these places limit the number of trips you can make to the bins with the food. On your first trip, you could just take a tiny morsel, and taste it after you go back and sit down. If it's awful, you don't waste any food and there is more for the folks who like whatever it is; if it's good, you can get more on another trip. Remember what your mom told you when you were little: don't waste food, because children are starving all over China (must be true, the way busloads of zero baht Chinese tourists stampede a buffet).

 

Snap a picture of the label on the bin, and you can look up what it is when you get home, then next time you'll know the Thai word. Although, I bet this customer learned some new Thai words that night, not the kind you'd find in a language textbook.

 

I can't believe that this is the very first time a customer has ever, ever taken "too much" of "the wrong things". The management has got to be aware that it happens. Surprising people with a hidden surcharge is just plain dishonest and deceptive.

 

There are 2 AYCE buffets around my area that have a time limit, and if you stay too long you get charged more. One has a clear sign in the front window spelling this out, the other is deceptive and makes no mention of it anywhere.

1 hour ago, josephbloggs said:

How incredibly interesting, thank you for sharing.

<can't be bothered>

Edited September 12, 20205 yr by evadgib

1 hour ago, evadgib said:

The last time I went to one of these I only ate meat & prawns, & when I looked for the fish in breadcrumbs etc there weren't any.

 

47 minutes ago, CorpusChristie said:

The last time I went to one of these  I ate all the fish in bread crumbs and there werent any left for anyone else

Sheer coincidence?

If someone only ate vegetables, would they be entitled to a refund?

Sit inside a large open-air oven, full of loud Thais, and eat lowest grade meats, with a coal burning cooker 12 inches from my face, with the 'food' prepped by nose-picking Thai teenagers, that last put their hands under water and soap teenage years ago. 

 

 

No Thanks. 

 

I'll save the 179baht x 4 and eat a steak in a room away from the other 3. 

38 minutes ago, bluesofa said:

If someone only ate vegetables, would they be entitled to a refund?

You'd think, wouldn't you? 

Bucket loads!

 

4 minutes ago, djayz said:

43 minutes ago, bluesofa said:

If someone only ate vegetables, would they be entitled to a refund?

You'd think, wouldn't you? 

I would hope what's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander, but knowing my luck I'd see the surcharge on the bill.

(both types of bill)

1 hour ago, bluesofa said:

If someone only ate vegetables, would they be entitled to a refund?

Lettuce hope so.

3 minutes ago, chickenslegs said:

1 hour ago, bluesofa said:

If someone only ate vegetables, would they be entitled to a refund?

Lettuce hope so.

You've bean having us on. I hope there's not a leak in my sauce?

Never liked the look of these places.

 

Seems like you go out to cook the grub you eat. Seems weird

4 hours ago, djayz said:

I hate the phrase "All you can eat", almost as much as the people who go there to stuff themselves. 

 

You're just jealous that we have them around every corner.

You won't believe what i've seen happening in Sizzlers...

 

People coming for a take home salad, they litterly emptied the whole bowl of bacon in their box, asked for the bacon to be refilled so he also took that 2nd bowl...he put in some small egs with it and left with a big load of bacon for the price of a salad.

 

And all those (Thai) people who don't eat their salad at all but let the staff pack it to bring home for the next day....they only eat the warm food.

 

My thai friend in sizzlers litterly used 1.5 bottles of ketchup for himself, his kids did the same...that was before sizzlers started serving ketchup in a bowl, now they even dont serve that anymore.

His wife likes to go to a local all you can eat bbq restaurant, she waits for the bacon to be put on the buffet, runs there to grab 1 kg of bacon and keeps that on her table....but many more thai do the same i noticed. It's a 200 baht buffet bbq place.

Their kids also behave bad in restaurants so i won't go out dining with these people anymore.

 

 

I avoid any establishment that involves a buffet, but nothing to do with the food. I don't like queuing up to view peoples disgusting habits while they hover over food that I'll be eating once it's my turn. Table service for us.  

If taken to court, will the owner be able to show the posted meat-to-vegetable requirement? 

Apparently, the Pullman doesn't have any such requirement:

 

 

Edited September 12, 20205 yr by Curt1591