Restaurant defends customer's $1350 bill for calamari, salads and beer
A restaurant in a popular tourist spot has defended its prices after a shocked customer paid a $1352 bill for some calamari, salads and beers.
A New York tourist accused DK Oyster restaurant, on the Greek island of Mykonos, of being a tourist “trap” claiming he was not offered a menu or advised of the expensive prices before ordering.
“This place is a rip off,” he wrote. “The staff is not honest and refuse to provide a menu and prices. AVOID THIS PLACE AT ALL COSTS! No pun intended,” he wrote with his one-star TripAdvisor rating.
Sharing a photo to the travel review website, the Brooklyn man’s receipt shows his group was charged A$956 for six plates of calamari, working out to be just over $160 for each serving; $40 for each beer; and $32 for each chicken Caesar salad.
They party also ordered two bottles of water at $14.50 each, and a $30 tomato juice. The bill totalled €836.20, which equates to $A1353.15.
The restaurant has a four-star rating on the review site, however there are almost 200 one-star reviews, with dozens accusing the eatery of scamming tourists.
Visitors have accused the restaurant of luring people in with a €14.80 ($23.95) lunch deal but charging ridiculous prices for everything else, without having menus available so people can check the cost.
A Canadian wrote the restaurant was “The definition of a tourist trap”.
Many say the wait staff offer food selections without providing a menu or price list to “scam” diners into ordering expensive items.
A UK tourist said a waiter brought a dessert tray over for him and his table to choose food from, without indicating a menu or price list.
“Even down to the dessert, they don’t bring a menu, they bring the tray over with no mention of prices. At the end I was stung with a huge unexpected bill like many others.
“It’s a shameful operation and feel insulted as a tourist,” he wrote.
Another visitor called his experience “absolute nuts”.
“DK seemed cool on its preface but prices are extremely expensive to the point where you question your IQ for even going there,” he wrote.
A New Yorker said she was charged A$433 for a cheese platter.
“I, along with many know that 15 euro for a coke is a ridiculous high price that you would not expect to pay. I along with many others feel scammed and am so annoyed at the tactics of this place.
“We found out after that this restaurant changes name regularly and is well known for its poor reputation.”
Dozens of others have called the place a “scam” and labelled its owners “fraudsters”.
Mykonos restaurant insists prices are not a ‘trap’
A DK Oyster spokesperson defended the restaurant’s prices in a statement to the New York Post, saying costs are listed on boards near its entrance.
“The word ‘trap’ is not fair; not only because the prices are featured on a board next to the entrance so that everybody has an idea of the price range before entering our premises, but also because the menus and catalogs are offered to all before they order,” the restaurant said.
They denied menus were withheld and advised customers to ask about costs before ordering.
The restaurant added that its prices reflected the quality of the food served in one of the world’s most coveted beaches.
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