Robert Irwin has publicly apologized for not paying for his meal at a popular Australian restaurant.
The 21-year-old son of the late Steve Irwin explained Sunday via Instagram how he ended up accidentally not paying for his food at the Jetty Pavilion in Coffs Harbour. “Hi guys, Robert here. So I have a funny story,” his video began.
“I’m road-tripping down the East Coast of Australia at the moment and I stopped in at Coffs Harbour, which is a beautiful coastal town in northern NSW, for a bit of dinner.”
However, after ordering, Irwin said he was surrounded by fans who wanted photographs and his autograph. “I went in there and there was a lot of people who saw me and wanted a photo but it turned into a bit of a frenzy,” Irwin continued.
While interacting with his fans, he grabbed his food and headed back to his car. It wasn’t until the next day that the wildlife conservationist remembered he never paid for his meal.
“Then the next morning I wake up and realize, I never paid for my salad. I just did the old dine and dash and didn’t even realize. I felt terrible,” he said.
Irwin then contacted the restaurant, hoping to rectify the situation by paying for the salad over the phone. “They said, ‘We love what you do, it’s all good, sorry for the mix-up — just leave us a good review,’” he recalled the restaurant telling him. “So I said, ‘Guys, Jetty Pavilion, I’m going to do you one better.’”
He told all of his followers to show their support for the restaurant before promising to pay them back the next time he showed up. “Today is not the day I start my life of crime, as much as the tabloids would love that, it’s not happening,” he jokingly concluded.
After posting, the restaurant responded in the comments, thanking Irwin for visiting and giving them a shout-out on social media. “Thank you soooo much for visiting our venue we’re honestly blown away,” the comment read.
“Being from a humble little coastal town, it means the world to us to have you stop by. We’re all huge fans, and truly appreciate the shoutout.”
“We can only imagine how hard it must be to enjoy a quiet meal without being bombarded so thank you again for choosing us, and no stress about missing the payment! We’d absolutely love to have you back anytime… we might even have to name a salad after you,” they added.
