Diners in London could be punished for visiting restaurants on their own as venues search for new ways to drive revenues.
Alex Dilling at Hotel Café Royal has introduced a new rule which means solo diners could be forced to pay as much as £330 per meal despite a five-course tasting meal costing £165.
The London restaurant claims it keeps two tables clear for solo diners, but any additional people looking to dine alone will need to pay a minimum fee.
It comes as hospitality venues across the country continue to close as they struggle to battle against rising wages, soaring input costs, staff shortages and reduced consumer spending.
Victoria Sheppard, chief executive at Alex Dilling at Hotel Café Royal, justified the rule introduction by pointing out that when hotels and pubs charge per table its “never under dispute”.
She said: “Since achieving our two Michelin stars the demand for solo dining has increased dramatically and whilst we make every effort to accommodate solo diners, we also have to be considerate to the running costs of our business.”
Some people took to social media to express annoyance with the new rule.
Hugh Smithson-Write, who works in restaurant PR, tweeted: “A classic example of making the customer the problem, rather than finding a solution.”
“If you get ‘many solo diner requests’ how about you reconfigure your dining room to accommodate that and maximise the revenue? This is the very opposite of hospitality!”