Dear hospitality thieves, stop stealing
Hospitality thieves, it’s really a thing. And no, I’m not talking about the frikandel thief, but about people who decide to take the cutlery, a flower vase, pepper mill and glassware with them after an evening in a restaurant. Do you feel called out? Good. Now cut it out!
Owner Jimmy Devilee of Restaurant De Bourgondiër on the Grote Markt in Bergen op Zoom has had enough, as he says on social media. His business is plagued by theft. Everything from cutlery to whisky, wine and beer glasses, and salt and pepper shakers. The damage runs into the thousands of euros. Anti-social!
#metoo
Okay, after this angry intro, I have something to confess. I feel called out too, because yes, I was once a hospitality thief… I think I was 14 or 15 when we went to Cologne with school. Despite our age, we had managed to order beers on a terrace, and they came in beautiful German beer glasses. Pubescent, rebellious and slightly tipsy, we walked off the terrace. With beer glasses. This ended up costing us dearly. The waiters noticed, gave chase and grabbed us by the scruff of our necks.
An entire painting?!
That traumatic experience taught me my lesson. Especially when I started working in hospitality myself, I learned that hospitality thieves are everywhere. I’ve cleared tables without genever glasses more than once. Worse: when I was recently behind the bar, a drunk guest tried to take a painting (!) off the wall that was hanging there as part of an exhibition! And even worse: guests who take the term ‘stealing a terrace’ very literally and wake up after a night of drinking with a ‘new’ patio set: 4 chairs and a table, still chained together…
Cocktail to go?
They also suffer from it at cocktail hotspot Rum Club in Utrecht. They serve 3500 cocktails every week, and besides taste, presentation is of course important. The exotic cocktails are served in impressive ceramic vessels. “We got them from London. The first batch, a total of around 400 mugs, is almost gone. ‘30 percent due to breakage, the rest was stolen. We buy the cups for an average of €18 each. So do the math… guests have taken thousands of euros’ worth.”
Chopsticks
Recently, I wanted to take something home again, but with my traumatic experience in Cologne still fresh in my memory, I decided to ask. At Oriental City: could I take the chopsticks with me? He was surprised that I asked. His answer: “Well, actually, of course not. But everyone steals them anyway, so if I turn around and you make sure my boss doesn’t see it, well…” So in this case I wasn’t allowed to take them with permission, but I was given permission to steal them. Strange. It reminded me of the stirrers/tonic thingies at Oblomov in Amsterdam. It already said on them: ‘taken from Oblomov.’
Atonement
Dear people, this has to stop. Imagine hosting a dinner at home and discovering afterwards that your salt shaker and half your knife set have disappeared. Or, like in the Chinese restaurant where my colleague once worked, the entire vase of mints. Do you feel called out? Are you a hospitality thief? You can still change, really—everything you steal is also simply for sale. And those lights on the terrace of Restaurant De Bourgondiër—they’re amazing. Six were stolen again recently, but here’s the bitter part: they need a special charger, so they’re no use to you at home…
My tip: go back to your previous victims and leave a generous tip as atonement. If you dare, that is.
Also read:
- Hungry? Then you’re allowed to steal food in Italy.
- 8x bizarre and disgusting behavior by hospitality guests.
- Bizarre and disgusting behavior by hospitality guests #2
