Popular Perthshire chef, Praveen Kumar, has spoken out after being left feeling angry and disappointed when a table of 19 people cancelled 10 minutes before their booking time.
What was set to be a busy Saturday night for the chef and his team at Tabla, who had spent hours prepping food for service, turned to disaster when many of his staff were sent home due to the last minute cancellation.
Praveen, who specialises in Indian cooking, took to Facebook to share his frustration at diners who cancel last minute and those who don’t show up for bookings.
While he and his team have dealt with cancellations before, the size of the booking meant that he had a larger team assembled for the night, and around 30 paying customers had been turned away earlier, too, as a result.
Praveen was advised the guest’s reason for cancelling was because they wanted to sample a different cuisine, despite his social media and website stating what they offer.
His restaurant on South Street seats just 40 covers, therefore nearly 50% of his restaurant was left empty as a result.
Booking and cancellation in one day
Praveen and the team had changed their entire service style for the night to accommodate the large booking, and despite going the extra mile for the guests, lost much-needed custom.
He had even arranged complimentary drinks for those other diners who had helped him out to be able to accommodate the table of 19.
He said: “They called Saturday morning looking for a table of 19 and we were almost full.
“We called our other customers who had booked on the same night and told them the situation.
“They came earlier to accommodate this table that were coming and I bought drinks for them because they agreed to move.
“One of the guests then called at 8:18pm saying that they couldn’t come in anymore because the other party members wanted to go for a completely different cuisine.”
Pandemic and price struggles
But it wasn’t just the restaurant diners that were affected, takeaway orders were adjusted that evening too so that no orders could be taken from 8.30pm to 9.30pm to ensure the kitchen wasn’t under too much pressure.
With prices of most materials and some ingredients increasing up to 20%, Praveen has had to increase his menu prices and says he can’t afford to lose money from no-shows or last minute cancellations.
Praveen has also noticed his customers are ordering less when visiting and reducing their alcohol consumption as a result of the cost of living increasing. This is proving challenging following the past two years of the pandemic.
He said: “In that one night we lost 19 people plus the 30 that were going to come in so we lost double the revenue we could have made.
“Saturday the premium night of the week for us and when you lose the opportunity right under your nose it is a disaster.
“It is a small restaurant and in high season. After the last two years we can’t afford to make any more losses.
“The profits have gone to rock bottom and it is a matter of making sure we maximise every opportunity for the business.”
Staff and chefs disheartened
Praveen’s staff were left upset with the cancellation consequences of reduced hours and tips.
He said: “The more customers that come in, the more tips they get and more hours of work.
“I had to send some of my workers that are on flexi-time away early and they were extremely disheartened.”
With a general rule of 80% bookings and 20% walk-ins, the chefs spent their time cooking food that eventually went to waste.
“The chefs were upset because they bought and cooked food for the booking level we usually have,” he added.
“And the food that was being provided went to waste on the Sunday.”
New cancellation policy
As of next week Tabla will introduce a £10 deposit for tables of four or more people which is non-refundable if the cancellation is made 24 hours before booking time.
However, if it is more than 24 hours before, the booking can be cancelled or moved to another day or time.
Staff will now also call customers a day or two before their booking to ensure they still intend on dining with them.
“We don’t mind one or two but it has become a trend now and you lose trust in the booking system.
“It was big hit in our face and is a big learning step for us.”
Conversation