Thought this would be an interesting topic to discuss...
In this article, 3 women went to a restaurant and the waiter labeled their table as "fat girls" to keep track of them. They were offended by it and felt they didn't have to pay their bill because of it.
What do you think? Is this offensive? Do they have a right to refuse paying their bill because of it?
http://gma.yahoo.com/blogs/abc-blogs/customers-called-fat-girls-restaurant-bill-165554715--abc-news-topstories.html
Yes I would be offended and embarrassed in that situation. But seriously, that doesn't give them the right to not pay. They still ate the food so they need to pay for it.
Very offensive but that doesnt mean they get free food. Would be nice though.
Agree with PPs. Incredibly offensive, but that doesn't mean they get a free meal out of it. I would pay the bill and not leave a tip.
Just wondering people's opinions who find it offensive - would it also be offensive if it was a table of thin women and the tab said skinny girls, what about a table of asian women that said asian girls?
Someone posted this to facebook and there's a big debate going on - it's very interesting.
@discodance: Exactly, they would get no tip from me. And I'd even tell them what I thought of the little discription and letting us see it. If you're going to classify like that at least don't let the customers know!
That's why tips exist. Pay your bill, but when it comes to how the wait staff treated you? No tip.
It's offensive and I would have complained to the manager.
Speaking from experience (in general) if a customer is unhappy the right things to do is apologize and offer to cover part of the bill.
ETA: Just read the article and see that when they complained they were offered 25% then 50% off. I think the restaurant did the right thing.
@MrsWBS: Yes, all of that is offensive. I used to be a waitress and we had table numbers to keep track of our tables. We didn't label them based on the appearance of our customers. Gross.
@MrsWBS: Yes, both of these things would still be offensive. If they're labeled by the color they're wearing it's one thing, but they shouldn't be labeled by physical features they most likely can not control.
@crayfish: Agreed. The restaurant should have offered something to apologize (the bill comped, gift certificate for a return visit, etc). Unfortunately, we live in a time that "skinny" is considered a compliment and "fat" is an insult- it is not the same as "brunette" and "redhead".
Oh my gosh that is super insulting. You still have to pay... I would just never go back!
It would be very offensive! Do you think if that bartender had labeled the table "3 cripples", "3 ugly chicks", or "mom with retard kid" that manager wouldn't have been falling all over herself to make it right??? Making fun of anyone for anything is straight up bullying. He had to know those women would have seen that on their check. I think they are entitled to their meal being free.
Yes it's offensive. Yes they should have to pay, but if I was the waitress, I would not be expecting a tip.
While I think they are responsible for the bill, I think it would be in the restaurant's best interest to comp their check in the name of good customer service. So yeah, they owe the money for the food, but the employee royally screwed up by offending the customer, and the manager would be giving good customer service to comp the bill even though technically they don't have to.
FWIW when I used to do restaurant work, we actually trained our bar staff on what they could and could not put on checks to identify customers. Customers seated at tables are easy because you just go by the table number, but when you've got a packed bar, it gets messy, especially if folks are standing or moving around and not sitting in chairs. We trained the barstaff to identify customers by clothing first and other generic details next, because no one would be offended to see "purple shirt" or "solo man @ window" or "ladies @ beer taps" on their check.
It just surprises me that service staff still make these idiotic mistakes.
The manager SHOULD HAVE given them the meal on the house. I have been comped for MUCH LESS than that. Horrible
I think it's evident that there's a problem with today's society when there's even a question if this is offensive or not.
That is horrible customer service and not only should they not pay for their meals but the gentleman who labeled that table should be fired immediately
Offensive and embarrassing on both parts. I feel bad for the waiter who lost his tip because the bartender put them under "Fat Girls" and I feel bad for the group. I don't think they should have completely refused to pay but the manager should have given them a nice discount.
@MrsWBS: I wouldn't say saying "Skinny Girls" is as offensive as saying "Fat Girls" because being called skinny and being called fat do not have the same connotations in our society.
@FutureMrsShrewsbury: I think your examples are obviously very offensive and insulting.
But, fat may be an accurate description. Do you also think skinny girls on the tab would have been offensive? What about if we lived in a time when fat was "in" and skinny wasn't?
Just playing devil's advocate here...
Just as an aside, the tab was accidently given to them with that name on that I believe. They weren't doing it to be mean knowing that the people would see it.
@fishbone: When I was bartending, one of my coworkers got in trouble for keeping this guy's tab under the name "fuckface". Customer wasn't too pleased. The guy was a regular and a scumbag who regularly got warnings and escorted out so management couldn't blame her too much but she did get a slap on the wrist.
I would bring it up with the manager who I would expect to take care of the bill and I might also bring it to a local newspaper and shame them for fat-shaming.
I am offended by the "skinny girl" label just as strongly.
Offensive, and a good restaurant manager wouldn't have made them pay. They still have to pay the bill though, since the manager didn't offer then a free meal.
@MrsWBS: I don't think the label "skinny girls" is in the same category as "fat girls". I think a label such as "anorexic girls" would probably be closer to the equivalent.
Very offensive and rude, but doesn't justifying not paying for a meal they ate. I would absolutely tell the manager, and not tip the server for the rudeness, but they still should pay.
@lashphi: I work in health care and have had people beg their doctors not to write overweight or obese in their medical records because they didn't want that label next to their name and found it offesnive. Maybe there is a problem with society if people question if this is offesnive but maybe there's another problem when people are offended over reality and don't want to be held accountable for the truth.
I grew up extremelyyyyy thin that I would get made fun of and called names for it. People seem to discount those experiences because society says skinny is good, but it can be equally offensive to call someone skinny as it is to call them fat.
I would have immediately notified the manager who would have comped the bill, absolving all need to tip. That is awful behavior.
I'd have walked out without paying... just saying. If this happened to me and I would have stayed there would have been a scene so they would probably just be happier if I left. lol
That is so just so rude.
I think the restaurant did the right thing by offering a discount on their meal, and they definitely still needed to pay. I mean, if the waiter had written "hot chicks" they probably would have been fine with it. Really, there are bigger problems in the world (says the girl who gets all torn up about being in the waiting stages of her relationship, perhaps somewhat hypocritically).
I think that what the waiter did was offensive. I wouldn't have asked to not pay, I just wouldn't have tipped after speaking with a manager. It wasn't the restaurants fault. It was the waiter's fault.
When I worked at a bar, instead of labeling by table numbers, I would put in my own description. Mine were generally pretty benign, though, like "red shirt" or "Patriot Jersey". Even so, I always changed it back to the table number when I was printing it out. I am sure whoever entered it meant to change it and forgot, but that is the folly of using offensive names to keep track of your orders.
I wouldn't flat out refuse to pay, but if this was an incident brought up to management, I would be shocked if they didn't comp the meal.
Didn't this same thing happen last year with Papa Johns? Some guy who took the order wrote, 'Lady Chink Eyes' and the CEO himself apologized?
@lashphi: +1
People usually don't go around insulting others by saying they're skinny, but they will with calling them fat. 9/10 times saying someone is skinny is a compliment. 10/10 times calling someone fat is an insult.
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