Restaurant's Decision to Add Surcharge for 'Loud' Kids Sparks Heated Online Debate
A Georgia restaurant has sparked controversy with its additional charge for unruly children.
In the subreddit r/mildlyinteresting, a user shared a photo of Toccoa Riverside Restaurant's menu, which mentions there will be an adult surcharge "for adults unable to parent $$$." The restaurant also included various other questionable charges, including a sharing charge of $3.
A person with firsthand experience at the Blue Ridge dining location warned in the replies, "If you have children, absolutely avoid this place at all costs."
The person noted alleged that they were charged $50 despite their children patiently waiting for their food while watching videos on a tablet, eating their meals and being taken outside by their mother while the other parent paid.
The commenter explained, "Holy moly - the most disrespectful owner made a huge scene in front of the entire restaurant because our children were 'running through the restaurant' - they were down by the river.. we were told we need to 'go to Burger King and Walmart' and that we were bad parents. They have a $50 surcharge for 'bad children.' We were a group of 21 and our server was AMAZING and was overly apologetic. Terrible business practice, we will never be back."
Additionally, the person alleged that their wife was told she was in the wrong for rocking their 4-month-old—who was not crying, but rather almost asleep—because "you don't do that in a fancy restaurant." The family's stroller was also allegedly moved without consent.
After the Reddit thread went viral, a mom told TODAY.com that her family had a similar experience. The woman, named Lyndsey Landmann, told the outlet that she and her husband Kyle went to the establishment with four other families. The group had 11 children in total, ranging from 3 to 8 years old.
Landmann recalled, "The kids were sitting at one end of the table and they were being so good. I even commented halfway through the meal, ‘I can’t believe how well-behaved they are."
But when some of the parents took their children down to the river, the owner, Tim Richter, approached the table.
"He has the menu in hand and he's showing us where it talks about the fee," Landmann recalled. "At first I thought he was gonna compliment us and be like, 'But you won’t be charged because your kids were so well-behaved.'"
That turned out to not be the case.
Instead, Richter allegedly informed the group that they would be charged $50 per bill because the children were allegedly being "too loud," and he was annoyed that the kids were "running outside, even though they were chaperoned by adults." Landmann recalled that the owner was "yelling," and noted that his behavior was "alarming."
Yelp reviews note similar experiences. One reviewer wrote, "Super rude owner. We was yelling in the dining room at a group he was going to charge 50.00 because he felt the kids made too much noise... are you kidding me?? What an a--. Funny thing was He was louder than the kids that were there."
Another customer also had a bad experience at the restaurant, writing, "If you have children, I don't recommend you go here. The owner was so rude to my grandkids he made the three Year old cry. He told them if they sat by the river they had to be quiet. What restaurant owner talks to his customers like that?????? I'll never come back...I've been told he is like that to a lot of people..."
Next: Why Some Restaurants Are Now Charging 'Vomit Fees' for Brunch-Goers
