why did the old guy at Tak Kee Seafood Restaurant got mad at us?

@mazdakid (347)
Philippines
November 18, 2008 9:44am CST
hi all. i've gone on a quick vacation in Kowloon, Hong Kong. after a rather short trip to disneyland, we were shuttled back to our hotel at Evergreen Hotel. sick of eating at McDonald's, we decided to try something more authentic chinese. so we decided to eat at this nearby restaurant called Tak Kee Seafood Restaurant. since my friend and i were maintaining a healthy diet, we just ordered a plate of fried rice and some roast pork. since no individual plates were given, we used the provided little saucers to eat on. when we were done, we asked for the bill, and the old guy motioned me to wait, and so i waited. then when he gave us the bill, he said HKD100 instead of just HKD70. he angrily threw the empty softdrink cans to the sidewalk, and loudly picked up the plates. then he just snatched the HKD100. i tried to protest that the bill was supposed to be just HKD70, but he yelled back "one-hundred!". i don't know why this old man at Tak Kee Seafood Restaurant became so rude to us. because of that, my friend and i swore never to eat at another authentic chinese restaurant in HK ever again. could we have done a dining faux pas? or was it a kind of tourist-unfriendly scam?
1 response
alphabetagamma
@alphabetagamma (148)
• Hong Kong
26 Feb 09
Hi, I live in hong kong, so I think I may answer your question. First of all, about the bill, you mention it is HKD70, I think you have add up the fried rice and roast port only, assuming each cost about HKD35. If you dine in a Chinese restaurant, they usually charge for the tea and some peanuts or pickles (even you have not order it, they put them on your table anyway), it usually cost about HKD10 for each person, and a service charge of 10% on the total, that is about HKD99, plus HKD1 tips(sometime they assume you will tips) that is total HKD100. About his unfriendly action, I think it is the problem of the old guy only, the restaurant you have mentioned is a "local" restaurant, and some of the waiter even don't know english, maybe they are a bit "nervous". Sorry about your unpleasant exprience in Hong Kong, next time you come to Hong Kong, let me know and I can give you some recommendation.