Klea Hajita, owner of Golden Brunch cafe in Dingle, has released CCTV footage showing a customer throwing a pot of tinned tomatoes onto the floor after being reminded of the cafe's policy on outside food and drink.
Incident at Golden Brunch
On Sunday, July 12, a family visited the cafe and initially ordered food without issues. When Klea brought their meals, she noticed they had placed two bottles of water and two bottles of juice on the table. She politely informed them that outside food and drink are not allowed and offered free tap water with ice as an alternative.
Klea told the ECHO: “When I brought out their food they had two bottles of water and two bottles of juice on the table, so I politely let them know for next time that you can't bring in your own food and drink into a cafe.” She added that the offer of free water ensures no customer goes without a drink due to cost.
Intimidation and aftermath
After the reminder, Klea said the man kept staring at her while drinking the juice, making her feel intimidated. “It felt intimidating and like he was saying he could do whatever he wanted,” she said. The family paid their bill without further incident, but as they left, the man turned back and deliberately emptied tinned tomatoes from his full English breakfast onto the floor, as captured on CCTV.
Klea decided not to report the incident to the police, stating: “I didn't report it to the police because I think just posting the video is enough. People need to be aware and understand that our food and drinks policy protects the business and keeps our customers safe.” She urged customers to be polite when reminded of rules, acknowledging that mistakes happen but expecting respectful responses.
