Restaurant’s Brutal Policy Has Dine-and-Dashers Crawling Back to Pay

Running a restaurant is a tough enterprise. Owners often find themselves working thankless tasks at all levels of the business trying to give customers top-rate service and an unforgettable dining experience, but can easily be robbed of the proceeds.

The potential pitfalls awaiting restaurateurs are numerous and varied. While disasters like kitchen fires can easily erase a restaurant in hours if they get out of control, dishonest diners can bleed a business dry over years by simply skipping the check.

The latter issue has been a perennial problem for all eateries, but one appears to have devised an ingenious way to end the practice for good.

In fact, the “fix” created by Tampa, 🌴Florida, bar and restaurant Rick’s on the River has dine-and-dashers crawling back to pay their delinquent tabs. In an Aug. 5 post, the eatery explained how it has turned its Facebook page into a wall of shame.

“Obviously these folks were unaware that if you Dine-N-Dash at Rick’s, you get identified via social media,” Rick’s wrote in a Facebook video post. The accompanying clip shows diners apparently skipping the check, one with a young child in her arm.

“These are the latest perps to Eat it and Beat It and ‘forgot’ to pay,” the post continued. “Note the quick getaway method of throw your little guy in the backseat and let him buckle up. Got great pics of you, your car and tag. Return and pay your tab!”

The post noted the women were not exactly stealing bread to feed a starving child — the bill apparently included “a beer and 2 tequila sunrises.”

An update to the post reveals one of the women did return and pay the tab.

Should more restaurants copy this eatery’s policy?