Why is everyone outraged by this restaurant's unusual 'adult fee'?
By
Seia Ibanez
- Replies 8
It can be hard to stay calm and composed when you have grandchildren running around at home, let alone in a restaurant. Kids will be kids, but if they’re disrupting service, it’s understandably a cause for concern with other customers.
But one restaurant’s suggestion for disciplining disruptions has sparked an uproar. The Toccoa Riverside Restaurant in Georgia, United States, has implemented what they called a 'bad parenting fee' for customers who don’t control their kids.
Toccoa Riverside Restaurant claimed to deliver fresh regional meals with an idyllic waterfront backdrop. The menu includes a $39 ‘Choice’ ribeye steak cooked in herb butter, but any potential diners should be warned – the restaurant doesn’t take misbehaving children lightly.
Its menu stated: 'Adult surcharge: For adults unable to parent $$$.'
This controversial move caused quite an uproar online. One user asked, ‘What is deemed as an “adult who can’t parent”?’
Another commented, ‘Just say no kids…? Kids can be annoying, but they’re unpredictable because they’re KIDS.’
'If I read this at a restaurant, I would probably leave,' another user responded to the post.
Other dissatisfied customers wrote bad reviews of the restaurant online and said that they had experienced being charged the ‘bad parenting’ fee.
One customer said, ‘The owner came out and told me he was adding $50 to my bill because of my children’s behaviour.’
‘My kids watched a tablet until the food arrived, ate their food, and my wife took them outside while I waited and paid the bill….Disappointed by the experience.’
Another customer also shared his bad experience of bringing his children to the restaurant.
'Don’t go if you have children. We were 3 adults, 2 children and our four-month-old baby, and since we entered the place, they gave us a bad look,' he said.
He added, ‘Later my wife was rocking the baby (not crying, just to make him sleep) and this ‘manager’ told her that you don’t do that in a fancy restaurant (of course this is not a fancy restaurant) and later moved our stroller in a bad way.’
He also commented on the food of the restaurant, ‘Food is not good either. Do yourself a favour…go somewhere else.’
Customers also complained about the owner’s attitude towards children, while others ranted about the restaurant’s allegedly overpriced and, sometimes, undercooked food.
‘I’m not going to go into details about the horrendous night we had here but would highly recommend not going here,’ one diner wrote.
It’s not just the adult fee that’s in their policy, either. The restaurant also charges a $3 sharing fee for customers who want to split their meal – but they’re the only establishment who do this by far.
Stories of restaurants charging ridiculous surcharges are not new. In our previous article, a couple was shocked when they had to pay an extra fee for a ‘large group’ despite dining in a restaurant as a couple. Read more about this story here.
What do you think of this ‘bad parenting fee’? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
But one restaurant’s suggestion for disciplining disruptions has sparked an uproar. The Toccoa Riverside Restaurant in Georgia, United States, has implemented what they called a 'bad parenting fee' for customers who don’t control their kids.
Toccoa Riverside Restaurant claimed to deliver fresh regional meals with an idyllic waterfront backdrop. The menu includes a $39 ‘Choice’ ribeye steak cooked in herb butter, but any potential diners should be warned – the restaurant doesn’t take misbehaving children lightly.
Its menu stated: 'Adult surcharge: For adults unable to parent $$$.'
This controversial move caused quite an uproar online. One user asked, ‘What is deemed as an “adult who can’t parent”?’
Another commented, ‘Just say no kids…? Kids can be annoying, but they’re unpredictable because they’re KIDS.’
'If I read this at a restaurant, I would probably leave,' another user responded to the post.
Other dissatisfied customers wrote bad reviews of the restaurant online and said that they had experienced being charged the ‘bad parenting’ fee.
One customer said, ‘The owner came out and told me he was adding $50 to my bill because of my children’s behaviour.’
‘My kids watched a tablet until the food arrived, ate their food, and my wife took them outside while I waited and paid the bill….Disappointed by the experience.’
Another customer also shared his bad experience of bringing his children to the restaurant.
'Don’t go if you have children. We were 3 adults, 2 children and our four-month-old baby, and since we entered the place, they gave us a bad look,' he said.
He added, ‘Later my wife was rocking the baby (not crying, just to make him sleep) and this ‘manager’ told her that you don’t do that in a fancy restaurant (of course this is not a fancy restaurant) and later moved our stroller in a bad way.’
He also commented on the food of the restaurant, ‘Food is not good either. Do yourself a favour…go somewhere else.’
Customers also complained about the owner’s attitude towards children, while others ranted about the restaurant’s allegedly overpriced and, sometimes, undercooked food.
‘I’m not going to go into details about the horrendous night we had here but would highly recommend not going here,’ one diner wrote.
It’s not just the adult fee that’s in their policy, either. The restaurant also charges a $3 sharing fee for customers who want to split their meal – but they’re the only establishment who do this by far.
Stories of restaurants charging ridiculous surcharges are not new. In our previous article, a couple was shocked when they had to pay an extra fee for a ‘large group’ despite dining in a restaurant as a couple. Read more about this story here.
Key Takeaways
- Toccoa Riverside Restaurant, a restaurant in the US, has introduced a 'bad parenting fee'.
- This fee has angered diners, launching a heated debate over what is considered 'bad parenting' and its place in a restaurant setting.
- Some distraught customers have shared their displeasure over the fee online.
What do you think of this ‘bad parenting fee’? Share your thoughts in the comments below!