Relentless, Steak and Lobster House’s owner reckons the area in Portsmouth is targeted by hungry chancers due to the number of chain restaurants and said ‘we lose so much money’
A restaurant forced to introduce a ‘dine and dash’ pre-payment policy has been hit again after two men allegedly walked out without paying for a £170 feast.
Customers at Relentless, Steak and Lobster House in Port Solent, Portsmouth, must now pre-pay for their food to stop would-be dodgers. Owner Scott Matthews, 39, said repeated incidents left him with no choice, including one where a group racked up an £800 bill before making off.
But the Hampshire venue was targeted again last month, with police called after two men enjoyed oysters and scallops before allegedly scarpering on January 29. Scott says the pair, who appeared to be electricians, arrived and began their boozy lunch at 12.30pm.
He claims they pre-paid £130, then ordered several rounds of alcoholic drinks, shots, oysters and scallops – adding up to another £170 – which they allegedly did not pay for. Scott said: “They ordered a double round of drinks, shots, loads of oysters and scallops.
“The waitress noticed they had gone within about three minutes, the chef came out and as he comes out you can see them speeding off in the van. They shouldn’t have been driving at all with the alcohol involved.
“As a business you have just got to take the knock on the chin for it but at the end of the day that is someone’s days wages. As a small, independent business owner, I find this incredibly disheartening. Incidents like this don’t just affect a balance sheet – they impact real people who work hard every day.”
Scott added that this is not the first time Relentless has been hit and that the highest bill walked out on was £800, which led to the pre-payment system. He also believes the area is targeted because it’s surrounded by chain restaurants, leaving some people to assume his is too.
The owner said: “We have had so many issues in the past. They were saying it was a hotspot at one point for dine and dash. It is just annoying that it happens all the time. We lose so much revenue because we have to do prepayment, it is just unbelievable.
“No one wants to prepay but we have to protect our business. It is not normal hardworking people that do this. It is a different clientele. You can’t discriminate against anyone, so we do prepayment for everyone.
“It is damaging for us and for the customer. It is just a nightmare. It is very hard in hospitality at the moment as I’m sure everyone is aware. It is just another hit on us.”
The incident has been reported to police, but Scott has urged the pair to come forward and settle their bill before matters are escalated. Hampshire Constabulary said: “We received a report that on Thursday 29 January, two men had left a restaurant on The Boardwalk in Paulsgrove without paying. An investigation has been launched and enquiries are ongoing. No arrests have been made at this time.”
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