Would you like a sticker with your souffle? Source: Pinterest
A friend of a friend went to an Italian restaurant the other night, on its second night of trading.
The décor was gorgeous apparently, modern Italian apparently. A fresh, bright and light aesthetic with pops of vivid colour, and the vibe felt right too – according to this foodie.
The menu seemed to cover all the bases and my friends were happy with their meal choices – a risotto and a chicken dish.
But dessert was the thing – a chocolate melt-in-your-mouth soufflé served in a gleaming white ramekin selected to round off the meal.
It came with a surprise though…a Briscoes barcode sticker poking out of the otherwise delicious dish.
It was a decent sized sticker too – a good 10cm square.
Foodie’s husband isn’t subtle, after a few glasses of a nice, light Italian red. He waves the sticker in the air – “Look what I found!” he bellows across the restaurant.
The maitre d’ arrives and quickly shuts the situation down. “You won’t be paying for your desserts, nor the bottle of wine.” Then the owner arrives, also horrified, and gives my friends a nice bottle of shiraz as they walk out the door. Another sweetener, just in case said diners jump on social media channels as soon as they arrive home.
And the strategy works. Said diners enjoyed their overall experience, have a new dinner party story, and have been back to the restaurant. They tried another dessert – the panna cotta this time – and it came sticker free. Bet their bottom plate the dishie will be checking those ramekins pretty closely now, when they’re removed from the dishwasher.
