Group accused of £400 dine and dash at restaurant

A group of six people left a seafood and steak restaurant nearly £400 out of pocket after walking out and refusing to pay their bill, its owners said.

The alleged case of dine and dash happened at Aegean Breeze Seafood & Steak House on Friary Walk in Worcester, at about 17:00 BST on Saturday.

Paul Faulkner, the restaurant's operations director, claimed some members of the group became "hostile" and left without paying, after complaining that the lobster in a shellfish platter had tasted "earthy".

West Mercia Police confirmed it had received a report of people making off without payment from the restaurant and inquiries were ongoing.

Aegean Breeze, which serves a range of fish, steaks and pizza, opened in the city centre about 10 months ago and is highly rated on TripAdvisor.

Faulkner said the restaurant had never previously experienced a walkout and their customers were "generally well-behaved".

Speaking about Saturday's incident, he said a party of six, three men and three women, arrived at about 15:00 BST and ran up a bill of £396.

"Previous week, two of them came in and we thought everything was absolutely fine no problems," he said.

Faulkner said the group complained about the lobster in the shellfish platter, with staff offering to first deduct £5 for the lobster and then the full £79 cost for the platter, but both options were refused.

"They then had their meals and then, at the end, they said they weren't happy with the lobster, 'tasted earthy'," he explained.

"So we basically said 'OK, we'll take that portion of the hot shellfish dish off' and then at the point they then refused to pay for anything.

"They said everything was not very good and they decided to walk out."

Faulkner said the three women left first, taking a pram with them, before the three men were "quite hostile at the till" and also walked out.

Staff reported the incident to police with Faulkner saying it was "upsetting" to his team and CCTV images were being shared to help other local businesses recognise those involved.

"To just walk out and not pay the bill in this day and age where hospitality has been struggling, it never really came back properly from Covid, you know, shrank over 12% in the last couple of years, it does mean that every penny counts," he said.

"Everything we do is handmade, right from start to finish, until it goes to the guests table."

A West Mercia Police spokesperson added: "We received a call around 17:15 BST on Saturday with a report of people making off without payment from a restaurant on Friary Walk in Worcester.

"An investigation is ongoing."

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