A couple who went out to eat reportedly left a bill of £120 (approximately £12,000) behind when they left the restaurant on August 5 after sharing pictures of their meal on Facebook. The two are said to have indulged in six espresso martinis along with gourmet burgers, halloumi and sweet potato fries and Biscoff cheesecake at the Lazy Fox in Dorset, UK. The couple, seen in a video released by the restaurant, took an hour to eat their meal before leaving “for a cigarette,” but they never came back, according to a report in the Independent.
The restaurant claims they quickly left after the man posted pictures of the food and drinks on Facebook. Mauricio Spinola, co-owner of Lazy Fox, said the incident took staff by surprise and if the money is not returned, it will be a burden on his already financially struggling business.
“About 10 minutes after they went outside, we realized they were gone. I couldn’t just go and look for him, I still had to run a bar,” she said.
Ms Spinola continued: “This is a huge blow for a small business like ours. We simply cannot afford to lose over £100 in the current environment. We cannot ask people to give us their phone or wallet when they go out for a cigarette. The vast majority of our customers are great and would find this strange.”
Dorset Police said they received a report on Monday of customers leaving the restaurant “without paying for their food”.
A waitress at the Lazy Fox described the duo, saying that the blonde woman was wearing red lipstick and a white top under a white dress. She was a little drunk and both were somewhat energetic. “We kept a close eye on them, especially when it came to serving them drinks. After they finished, she said she wanted dessert and ordered the cheesecake. The woman then went outside to smoke a cigarette and the man followed her out and they never came back. We were pretty busy at the time, but we trusted they wouldn’t do that,” she said.
Co-owner Enoely Fernandez also criticized the couple, calling them “silly” for bragging about their lunch on Facebook after the incident. Since the owners uploaded the embarrassing post on social media, several other restaurants have come forward claiming they had previously been deceived by the couple.
“The difficult thing is that the guy didn’t look suspicious. He wasn’t drunk. He wasn’t shouting. He wasn’t disruptive. He asked if we could have a cigarette with him and of course we said that would be fine. It was difficult for our bar staff because we just had to reassure them that they hadn’t done anything wrong. It’s just really upsetting for everyone,” Ms Fernandez said.
