Fed up restaurant owner tracks down dine-and-dashers with help of social media
CBC
A Charlottetown restaurant owner is crediting the public and the power of social media for helping her track down a family who feasted on lobster, oysters and drinks before pulling the infamous dine-and-dash.
Lisa Gale, owner of Lobster on the Wharf, said staff were surprised and disheartened when a family of four visiting from out of province skipped out on their $170 bill and tip Monday night.
"I talked to the server, and he was totally shocked. He said, 'It was a mom and dad and two little kids. I never would've thought.'"
Gale said it's not only hard on restaurants, but hard on servers who spend time waiting on customers for no tip.
"If it's about not being able to afford it, I don't know if you should go to a restaurant and order such a big meal," she said.
"It's not like they ordered a hamburger, they ordered a two-pound lobster. They took advantage of how busy the deck was."
Gale said dining and dashing happens a few times a year, and the culprits usually get away with it. This was the first time it happened this year, and she hopes it will be the last.
Lobster on the Wharf staff were determined to find the family. They found security camera footage of them leaving, and Gale posted it to the restaurant's Facebook page.
She said the post got about 600 shares and 60,000 views, and the calls started coming in. One led to the identity and phone number of the family.
"I believe they are from Ontario, they were here visiting, and when I reached out to ask why they left and didn't pay their bill, they were more concerned with their pictures [being] on social media," Gale said. "So I agreed if they sent me the money and paid for the meal that I would take the pictures down."
Wednesday morning, she got an e-transfer for $170, and took down the post.
"It kind of turned into a good story with all the help from the good citizens and people looking at the post," Gale said. "And I can't thank them enough for helping. I never thought in a million years we'd recover that money."
Jordi Morgan, the Atlantic vice president for Restaurants Canada, said it's rare that customers intentionally leave without paying the bill.
But when it happens, it can hurt restaurants struggling with rising costs, fewer customers and tight margins.