Miffed restaurateur could seek compo
A Christchurch restaurateur who vented on social media after a large group booking halved doesn’t plan on exploring legal options to chase lost revenue.
Belgian Beer Cafe Torenhof owner Mark McGuinness lashed out in a Facebook post after a booking for a group of 50 Canterbury District Health Board (CDHB) staff, confirmed the day before for 40, turned out to be a group of 20 – and they were 15 minutes late.
McGuinness hired an extra chef and front of house staff and prepared platters for the group of 40. He was annoyed he had not insisted on a deposit.
‘‘… the lass who booked it turns up last at 6.45pm and guess what, there’s only 20 of them,’’ the post said. ‘‘We won’t be taking any more bookings this year from CDHB, tossers.’’
McGuinness said it cost him up to $2000 in lost revenue.
‘‘In hospitality we love our customers but by god we get sick of the fact that they treat us very indifferently,’’ he wrote.
He removed the post after comments got out of hand.
The incidents were frustrating when the Christchurch hospitality sector was having the ‘‘worst winter since the earthquake’’, McGuinness said.
‘‘We have no intention of chasing the money, it’s more the fact that over the last 13 years this has happened to us before . . . After the way it transpired on Saturday night, I’m not really anticipating [an apology from the group].’’
A spokeswoman said the CDHB employed about 10,500 people and was not responsible for what they ‘‘do outside work hours’’. ‘‘We are not aware of any ‘CDHB event’ as referred to and we have not seen the Facebook post,’’ she said.
McGuinness could demand compensation from the group if it was clear it breached his booking conditions. Two days would have been fairer notice for the Belgian Beer Cafe Torenhof booking changes, she said. Consumer NZ said making a booking created a contract that placed obligations on both parties. If diners did not turn up, the restaurant could claim they broke the contract and caused it to lose business.
Hospitality NZ South Island area manager Amy McLellanMinty said there had been a proliferation of new venues opening in Christchurch, but without an increase in domestic and international visitors to push up demand, the hospitality industry would continue to struggle.