Italy is mired in a debate over price gouging and rip-offs after a restaurant charged extra for providing a customer with two teaspoons with which to share a dessert, amid complaints over the soaring cost of taking a summer holiday.
An Italian couple had requested the extra teaspoon so that they could share the crema catalana that they had ordered in the pizzeria near Alba, a town renowned for truffles, in the northern region of Piemonte.
They were taken aback when the bill arrived with a €1.50 surcharge for “due cucchiaini” or two teaspoons.
While it was not a large amount of money, it has added to a general sense among Italians that hoteliers, restaurateurs, and beach club owners are unreasonably hiking prices as they seek to make money from the post-pandemic rebound in tourism.
Holidaymakers are reeling from the increased cost of everything from gelato and seafood to sun loungers and bottles of wine, particularly in popular locations such as the Amalfi Coast, Sardinia and the coast of Tuscany.
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***From The Telegraph’s Nick Squires in Italy:***
Italy is mired in a debate over price gouging and rip-offs after a restaurant charged extra for providing a customer with two teaspoons with which to share a dessert, amid complaints over the soaring cost of taking a summer holiday.
An Italian couple had requested the extra teaspoon so that they could share the crema catalana that they had ordered in the pizzeria near Alba, a town renowned for truffles, in the northern region of Piemonte.
They were taken aback when the bill arrived with a €1.50 surcharge for “due cucchiaini” or two teaspoons.
While it was not a large amount of money, it has added to a general sense among Italians that hoteliers, restaurateurs, and beach club owners are unreasonably hiking prices as they seek to make money from the post-pandemic rebound in tourism.
Holidaymakers are reeling from the increased cost of everything from gelato and seafood to sun loungers and bottles of wine, particularly in popular locations such as the Amalfi Coast, Sardinia and the coast of Tuscany.
**Read more: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2023/08/10/italy-restaurant-150-for-extra-teaspoon-price-gouging/**
3% for looking in the mirror twice.
So, they’re now *selling* their cutlery and crockery.
Keep the spoons and if they try to loud mouth show them the receipt.