A tourist from Milan, who was vacationing on beautiful Lake Como, had an unexpected surprise at Bar Pace in Gera Lario. Hungry, he ordered a sandwich for himself and his wife.
Wanting to make the snack easier to share, he politely asked the staff to cut the sandwich in half. But when the bill came, the couple was amazed: the bill contained an entry with the note “diviso a metá” – which means “divide in half” in German. A whopping two euros were charged for this supposed service.
Particularly bitter: the couple paid 1.20 euros for an espresso.
Despite the unexpected surcharge, the couple didn’t immediately complain because they couldn’t quite assess the situation. After returning from vacation, they posted on the Rating platform Tripadvisor Photos of the invoice with the comment “Incredible, but true…”. The supposed fee for sharing a sandwich caused a great deal of astonishment and discussion.
The operator justified himself to the Italian media. “It wasn’t plain toast, it also had fried potatoes in it. As a result, it took a while to cut the toast and eventually the work had to be paid for,” said owner Cristina Biacchi the daily newspaper “La Repubblicca” .
“We also had to wash two plates instead of just one, which took twice as long. We also had to set the table twice.” Customers also did not complain on the spot. They accepted the fee.
However, this incident raises questions about how restaurants justify such unusual charges and how travelers can deal with similar situations.
You can do that in a similar situation
When on vacation, always ask for an invoice and let the staff explain individual items that you cannot understand. This can help clear up any misunderstandings and ensure you only pay for what you actually received.
If you are being charged a fee for an unexpected or unusual service that you do not feel is reasonable, it is perfectly reasonable to object. You can politely raise your concerns and indicate that you do not understand the basis for this charge.
In most cases, operators will be willing to clarify the situation and possibly correct the fee if found to be unfounded. Overall, it’s good practice to remain calm and polite in such situations, but still defend your rights as a customer.