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When dining out at a restaurant, you expect to see certain charges on your bill, like the cost of your food or maybe even a gratuity charge if you're in a large group. One group dining at a restaurant in Georgia, however, were shocked to see an extra $50 charge added to their bill for being too loud.
Lyndsey Landmann recently visited Toccoa Riverside Restaurant in Blue Ridge along with her husband, Kyle, their two children and four other families with kids, with the group totaling 11 children ages 3 to 8, per Today. As they looked at the menu, they noticed a warning about an "adult surcharge" that could be added "for adults unable to parent." Thinking it was just a joke and in "no way" real, the group went about their meal as usual, with Landmann praising the children for not being too wild.
"The kids were sitting at one end of the table and they were being good," she said. "I even commented halfway through the meal, 'I can't believe how well-behaved [the kids] are.'"
Apparently, the restaurant didn't agree because owner Tim Richter stopped by the table to explain there would be a $50 surcharge per bill because they were "too loud" and the kids were "running around outside." Landmann also disputed the second fact, saying that some members of the group went down to the nearby water after dessert, including some adults who acted as chaperones. She claimed that Richter got in her face and was yelling when she said the kids were quiet during their visit.
"I was like, 'They were quiet the whole time.' He got in our faces and told us that we belonged at Burger King and not at his restaurant. We asked to speak to the owner and he said he was the owner," she said of the "alarming" situation. "I looked around the restaurant and everybody was frozen watching this show he was putting on. He was yelling."
Not everyone is upset with the situation, as evidenced by the tale going viral on Reddit. Some people said more restaurants should implement the policy to stop parents from letting kids "do whatever they want," saying it's "annoying as hell."
"I've been out to eat more than once where parents were literally letting their kids wild," another Reddit user commented. "Not sure if this is the answer, but something definitely should be done about such parents."
The restaurant has not responded to multiple outlets' requests for comment, but when reached by phone, an employee told Today, "We're not going to comment on a policy we've had for years. We just want to live in the woods and cook."