'Scheming' diner stuffs huge handful of complimentary haw flakes into open bag before leaving restaurant
Who doesn't love grabbing a complimentary mint from the bowl at the payment counter after a good meal? Sweets are commonly offered by restaurants as a small gesture of gratitude to paying customers.
One customer at a Thai restaurant in Tanjong Pagar appeared to have taken the restaurant's goodwill for granted.
Instead of the usual mints, this restaurant offers haw flakes.
The restaurant owner, Stomper W, shared a security camera footage of the man grabbing a generous handful of haw flakes from the bowl at the payment counter and stuffing them into his bag.
It happened on Dec 23.
The man had arrived at 11.30am with two other women and they were the restaurant's first customers of the day. The trio finished their lunch at around 1pm and paid the bill 30 minutes later, but did not leave immediately.
Spending 2½ hours at lunch seemed "a little excessive" to the restaurant owner, who felt that the group could simply be killing time. To him, their behaviour was not common, but not unheard of either.
"They sat there chatting and kept looking at the counter until 2pm when they stood up," said the Stomper.
The women exited the establishment while the man lingered.
"He walked towards the counter, grabbed a bunch of haw flakes and quickly walked out," said W.
"He came with his bag opened, ready to grab and go."
Asked what the customer etiquette was in regards to the free candy offered by restaurants, W admitted there were "no rules".
"But when I do see adult customers taking more than usual, I would jokingly tell them to leave some for kids too," he explained.
Alternatively, if a customer appears to love the snack, W would usually give them a pack of haw flakes to take home.
"I buy in bulk, so the cost isn't very high anyway. As long as customers leave happy," said the Stomper.
But the incident left him feeling negatively towards the customer as W felt the customer had a "sense of entitlement and a bit of scheming".
"Because we are a small establishment, we felt it more I guess," admitted the Stomper.
Ultimately, W feels that etiquette isn't about enforcing behaviour. The restaurant owner emphasised that he did not wish to "ruin the customer's life", but wanted others to know that such behaviour is not "socially acceptable".
"F&B is a tough line and I've seen a good share of customers we all would rather not have."
