If it tastes good, it costs money, but everything has a limit. Two Japanese tourists in Rome were left with a bitter aftertaste.
A whopping 4,500 kronor for two pastas and a water can make anyone turn down the food.
The photo of the two Japanese women's bill that they posted on Facebook quickly spread around the world and became big news, not least in Italy. The restaurant Antico Caffè di Marte in Rome has now been fined the equivalent of 55,000 kronor.
It was on a visit there that the two Japanese tourists wanted to enjoy some Italian food and each ordered pasta with fresh fish. The two tourists claim that they only drank water with this but were shocked when the bill arrived, equivalent to 4,500 kronor.
This included a tip of 80 euros, or about 900 kronor, which the restaurant's waiter and owner claimed was mandatory. However, there is no such tipping law, and therefore the police visited the restaurant, which was forced to close temporarily and fined 5,000 euros, just over 50,000 kronor.
"The Japanese didn't just eat pasta, but also vegetables and grilled fish. The fish is fresh and is weighed, the price varies depending on the weight. And then they wanted to pay a tip," the restaurant's lawyer Carlo Scorza told Italian media.
Tougher crackdown on scammers
Antico Caffè di Marte is located in the central parts of Rome, near the Tiber and Castel Sant'Angelo, and has now given a face to all the city's tourist traps.
Scams targeting visitors are commonplace in Italy's beautiful capital, which attracted 15 million tourists last year. Pickpockets, unreliable vendors and – not least – restaurants that overcharge are a constant problem.
Italy as a whole has over 50 million visitors a year. While they have started fining tourists who misbehave, many want to see tougher measures against those who mislead tourists, especially foreign visitors who don't know the language, customs and laws.
“Tourism is fundamental for us and people should be treated with respect, not be deceived,” says Rome Mayor Virginia Raggi.
Source: svt.se
