“What a rip off!”: Rome restaurant slammed for outrageous bill
A restaurant in Rome has caused a stir amongst tourists as they have reportedly charged diners $139 for two burgers and three coffees.
A photo of the receipt shows that the meal for two came to a whopping €81.40 and surprised users when it was shared online.
The hamburgers cost €25 ($42.70) each, coming to €50 ($85.40).
They were also charged €8 ($13.66) for one Americano coffee and €8 ($13.66) each for two double cappuccinos, plus a service charge of €7.40 ($12.64).
The restaurant is called Caffe Vaticano and is situated just opposite the Vatican, which is a popular tourist destination.
The restaurant now has more than 1,800 reviews on TripAdvisor, with a rating of just 1.5 stars out of five.
TripAdvisor has had to step in and “temporarily suspend publishing new reviews” of the restaurant due to the outrage of the receipt.
Some people were on the diners’ side, saying that it’s “absurd” that a restaurant can charge that much for a meal.
However, others were on the side of the restaurant.
“If, in 2019, you go to a place that has an average of 1.5 out of almost 2000 TripAdvisor reviews, you deserve it a little,” one user commented.
The reviews that are on the review page for the restaurant are not kind but paint a clear picture as to what the diners were getting themselves into.
A review from one member from the 13th of September 2018 states the issue that happened to the unaware diners beforehand.
The review reads:
“AVOID! I’m so annoyed with myself for falling for the Caffe Vaticano’s dirty tricks. They removed the prices from all table and wall menus and then customers are handed a way over priced bill which also has the service charge added,” the reviewer wrote.
“When I told the slimy waiter the prices were ridiculously high and that I was now aware I’d fallen for the dishonest and sly tactics used, he had the cheek to ask me for a second tip for him personally!
“My tip to the scumbags running and working at this place is to get themselves across to the Vatican and go to confession. Even after being robbed by these crooks you can’t use the toilet unless you pay more cash to the waiter. It’s a shame such a beautiful city has this place spoiling it.”
There are many reviews just like that on the site.