Restaurant Hit With £500 Bill After Diners Leave Without Paying

A restaurant was left footing a £500 bill after a group of diners got up and left without paying.

The owner of Les Enfants Terribles in Weymouth said the group of 12 stood up one by one and left the table after finishing their meal.

Eric Tavernier said he had suspicions about the customers before they arrived on 1 August.

Mr Tavernier, who claims he has been stung by such a scam in the past, said he was worried they would 'dine and dash' after they phoned up to book their table and ordered the most expensive dishes on the menu - totalling £468.

He also said that they were not forthcoming with a deposit and wanted to sit outside.

Mr Tavernier told the media: "I asked the guy to give me some credit card deposit over the phone, and he suddenly said he's been with us before.

"Even so, he did not really know where we were. They didn't really want to come in, they were staying away from the video."

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He later realised that there was an issue with the group's card they had used to pay a deposit, meaning he was unable to be compensated.

Following their exit, the group, which included children in pushchairs, became embroiled in a street fight with other diners who were filming their brash getaway.

And while police were able to break up the scuffle, investigations are still ongoing into the alleged failure to pay.

Mr Tavernier said he doesn't believe it was an accident at all.

He said: "I think they knew exactly what they were doing.

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"I feel kind of angry for myself but I can't really do any more about it so what I want is for everybody to know who they are because they will move about as they do and they will go to other places and they will keep doing it."

The maximum sentence for making off without payment is up to two years and a fine up to £1,000.

But 'dine and dash' isn't as rare and occurrence as you might think.

A couple of years ago, a man left a pub without paying after racking up a £330 bill.

Richmondshire Today reported at he time that he worked up a charge of £195.50 in just one afternoon on 17 November at the Wyvill Arms pub in Constable Burton.

Dominic Smithers

Dominic graduated from the University of Leeds with a degree in French and History. Like you, Dom has often questioned how much use a second language has been. Well, after stints working at the Manchester Evening News, the Accrington Observer and the Macclesfield Express, along with never setting foot in France, he realised the answer is surprisingly little. But I guess, c'est la vie. Contact us at [email protected]

@SmithersDom