Everywhere tourists are always fleeced by some indiscriminate locals - a Japanese experience

An Excerpt

Nightmare Bill for Two Japanese Tourists – Meal at Passetto Cost 695 euros
Tip of 115.50 euros added to bill. Complaint against owner for fraud. Mayor Alemanno says restaurant should never open again.

It was going to be a romantic meal à deux in the world’s most beautiful city for the two holidaymakers from Japan. An outdoor table just off Piazza Navona, cooled by a gentle breeze, made a perfect setting for the two lovers. But then the bill arrived to shatter the spell: 695 euros for two starters, two plates of pasta, two main courses and two ice creams. An eye-watering total that included a tip of 115.50 euros.

DINNER – The incident took place in the early evening of Friday 19 June at the Passetto, a well-known mid-to-top-end restaurant just off Piazza Navona and a short distance from the Senate. When the couple arrived at the restaurant, no one offered them a menu from which to select their meal. What they did get was a friendly English-speaking waiter who persuaded them with his graceful manners: “Trust me. I’ll take care of it”. As a result, the couple did not choose for themselves and were unaware of how much each course cost. But they did eat and enjoy their meal.

THE BILL – When the bill came, it was rather less digestible: 695 euros. At first, the couple thought there might have been a mistake but their doubts vanished when their credit card came back. The receipt showed that a modest tip of 115.50 euros had been added without their consent. The pair complained but the owner was adamant that those were the normal prices for his restaurant. Refusing to give in, the holidaymakers left the restaurant and reported the incident to the police.

COMPLAINT AND CLOSURE – Later on, the couple made an official complaint at the Trevi Campo Marzio police station. Officers made an inspection at the restaurant and it emerged that the prices charged to the two Japanese tourists were not those advertised on the menu. Health checks were then carried out by the Rome A health authority’s hygiene, food and nutrition service, which ordered the immediate closure of the restaurant for serious health-related infringements after finding structural defects, dirty work areas and refrigerators that were not working.

ALEMANNO – “As far as I’m concerned, this restaurant should not reopen. Possible penalties for this sort of thing should include revoking the licence”. Rome’s mayor, Gianni Alemanno, went on to say: “I have instructed the municipal police to carry out extraordinary inspections with uniformed and plain clothes officers to root out this kind of fraud. Offenders should be resolutely punished and possible penalties should include revoking their licence. Individual cases like this, which are a tiny proportion, risk besmirching the reputation of the vast majority of Rome’s restaurateurs, who are known the world over for the excellent quality of their food and service, and for the fairness of their prices”.

English translation by Giles Watson