Close Topic Options

Eat Your Food Or Be Banished

Family Kicked Out of Buffet Restaurant

DES MOINES, Iowa - Wendy Dershem may think twice before leaving that egg roll on her plate at her next Chinese buffet. The Des Moines woman, her boyfriend and her two children were kicked out of a restaurant last week after management accused her of leaving too much food on her plate.
Ref. https://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060505/ap_on_.../buffet_debacle

Banished Or Food Eat

Well, last time I checked, a private business such as a restaurant has the right to deny service if they feel the need to do so, and it is not infringing on that person's rights. It sounds like the woman and her family were repeat offenders of wasting food. Even though it is a buffet, there is still some cost involved in making the food. Nonetheless, I can only think this will hurt the restaurant's business more than help it. You want people to come back to your place, not feel uncomfortable while they are there. The management team obviously felt that disallowing this person and her family was worth that risk.

Eat Your Food Or Be Banished Reviews Consumer & Travel Family Culture

Malexander, although I understand your point, I feel that some people over do it. Imagine taking a plate full of shrimp back to the table only to eat one and then go for something else - I think that is a disgrace - not just for the restaurant, but the starving all over the world! A buffet is not a play room and food should never be seen as a play thing - it is fuel - and ingratitude deserves banishment - good on the restaurant!

Banished Or Food Eat

I have to agree with JB. As for the fact that the woman said "you know children" like that was an excuse for the woman to allow her children free-reign over a restaurant like that, I thought it was deplorable. If you have small children who do not eat all that they may "want" to eat, then you take small portions of things they do like and go back for more of what they want after that. Do not fill up a plate with everything and then the child only wants one part of it. That's silly! I agree with the owners of the restaurant. That was probably very difficult to make that decision. They knew it would make the news and they were taking a chance that it would turn others away. I am betting the locals who also eat there will rally behind the restaurant owners if they are kind to begin with.

Banished Or Food Eat

On this occasion, I agree with the restaurant owners, purely because the family seem to be serial offenders, wasting the food time after time.

however, to me the idea of a Chinese buffet, would be to be able to sample portions of food that you haven't tried before, and being able to try them without having to buy a full portion of the item.
Obviously, trying things for the first time, also brings out that there are bound to be some of the foods that you simply do not like. I don't see why you should have to eat foods that you really dislike just because they are on your plate, and you would be deemed as being wasteful!

I think that the restaurant have only taken the stance that they have, purely because this family are deliberately wasting huge amounts of food, and that would irritate most people.

There are a few of these eat all you like buffet restaurants near me, and a couple of them have started putting signs up that state no food to be overpiled, or deliberately wasted--- maybe this is the way to go with this one?