A North Down restaurant owner has been left frustrated at a 'dine and dash' on Tuesday night.
Co-owner of The Stables in Groomsport, Mark Beatty posted an appeal on Facebook after a bill of £108 was left 'unpaid', Belfast Live reports.
He also told Belfast Live how disappointing this is, especially coming up to Christmas and in such uncertain times for hospitality and other industries.
The Facebook post read: "Ok, so, it was bound to happen sometime, but tonight we had our first experience of a dine and dash!
"Being the nice people we are, we are very willing to offer that person a second chance at doing the right thing. Even though they were quite rude and adamant when questioned that they had paid a certain member of staff.
"Luckily in this day and age with the track and trace system, we have the details of the customer(s) We have the CCTV.
"We won’t judge you, we won’t publish your name or any of your details, you can give us a phone on 02891461456, and it doesn’t need to go any further. All we ask is that you just do the right thing.
"In this day and age when every business is struggling to survive, it would be nice to know that this was maybe just a bit of a mistake due to one too many."
Mark and his wife Lisa only recently opened the family business back in July.
He told Belfast Live the restaurant till was 'exactly down the amount of the bill'.
The businessman said: "I am frustrated, especially at this time of year. It is Christmas, we are in the middle of the pandemic and obviously this Christmas isn't the same as others when you probably could have just knocked it down as an experience and moved on.
"You are fighting for every penny you can get at the moment, not just in hospitality.
"If you can't afford to go out for something to eat, then don't go out. Don't waste my time.
"I am offering to give them a second chance to do the right thing.
"One of the comments under the Facebook post was, 'at those prices, I am not surprised'. We are incredibly, competitively priced and we do a lot of research on it.
"A lot of people don't get, we have to pay gas bills, electric bills, none of these things are free.
"People know the price of things before they buy it."
Mark added that it is especially upsetting at a time "when we are all meant to be sticking together and supporting local businesses."
"It's incredibly frustrating for everyone that there are people out there, especially at Christmas, that they would do this," he said.
