He was charged 15 euros to have a store-bought cake cut and served to his nine guests
Several recent stories of cafes and restaurants levying extra charges for minimal services have gone viral. In a similar incident, a diner at a restaurant in Italy was left shocked after he was charged 15 euros (approximately Rs 1,331) to have a store-bought cake cut and served to his nine guests, the New York Post reported.
As per the report, Fabio Bregolato went to an unidentified pizzeria in Pino Torinese to celebrate a birthday with his loved ones. Since the restaurant didn't offer desserts on its menu, the group decided to bring their own cake. However, they were shocked when the bill arrived, showing a charge for cutting the cake.
''There were 10 of us, excellent pizza, and the service was well done, but… EUR 15 to cut a cake we brought ourselves was quite a style faux pas,'' Mr. Bregolato wrote along with a photo of the receipt.
''They could have let it slide; in my 40 years (and I've eaten a lot of pizzas), I've never come across a place that charged an extra fee for cutting a cake,'' he added.
According to Mr. Bregolato, he had contacted the pizzeria beforehand and received permission to bring the cake. While many social media users were equally outraged, the restaurant justified the charge.
"We duly noted it on the receipt and paid our taxes. It's a service and, as such, has a cost," a representative of the eatery argued.
"When he arrived, he showed us the cake and said, 'Will you take care of it?' Nothing else. We are not obliged to provide this service, especially because we risk serving something we didn't make ourselves," the representative added.
He also pointed out that the cake was small and required extra effort to be cut into 10 slices, which took the waitress 25 minutes.
A similar incident happened last month when a restaurant charged an Italian family 20 euros (Rs 1,800) to have their cake cut into 20 pieces. The family was celebrating a birthday at a restaurant in Palermo, Sicily, as per New York Post.