Have you ever done a runner old bean?

[Aperitif]

Monday's news.

Today, Wednesday's news.

Obviously, as a 'rite of passage' thing, in rugby playing days, there were always futile drunken attempts to 'escape to freedom' without coughing up, but hardly on this sort of calculated scale.
Have you ever relieved an eatery of its fare and vanished into thin air?

You may remain anonymous when replying - no-one will come after you, so go ahead - tell all!

 

[dellzeqq]

never, not least because the money can come out of the pocket of the waiter or waitress.

Having said that, you have to admire Mr. Nord's cheek. A thousand quid!

 

[byegad]

I've done it once, by accident. We went out for a meal and after we got home I asked my wife 'How much was the meal?' She replied that she didn't know as I'd paid. Oops! Turns out we both thought the other had paid. Luckily they were still open so i rang them and paid with my card over the phone.

 

[NormanD]

Yes once from a fish and chip shop without paying (lock me up I'm a thief)

I was returning from Telford a few years back with two other mates in the car, we were starving (not having eaten for most of the day) so pulled into a little village just off the motorway to find a fish n chip shop (not paying motorway services prices) and parked up outside,

I'd entered the shop and could hear the couple arguing in the back, the woman came to the counter to serve me, I gave her my order (3x large cod and chips) and while she was making them up, the argument between them continued with shouting at each other (her to him in the back of the shop and him to her serving me).

She plonked the wrapped "food of the gods" on the counter and then stormed off into the back of the shop again (without taking payment), where more of their argument continued.  I waited for a good 3 to 4 minutes for her to return so I could make payment. This didn't happen, so I left the shop, told my mates what was going on, was told to jump into the car and we drove off 

I confess it was me, I still feel guilty today about it 

Signed confession: NormanD (chip shop thief)

 

[Fnaar]

When we were kids... at the Wimpy bar... probably two or three times I guess. Rite of passage thing, as suggested above.

 

[XmisterIS]

I've only ever done it once - we went into a pizza restaurant, waited for ages to be served, I called the waiter over when a couple who had sat down after us got served before us, the waiter seemed irritated and wasn't at all apologetic, the pizzas took ages to arrive and when they finally came, they were stone cold! We asked to see the manager, whom the waiter said wasn't available, so we told him we were leaving, he said, "not without paying, you're not!", so I told him to stuff the pizzas and the bill up his arse and we walked out. I then wrote a letter addressed to the proprietor explaining what had happened, but never got a reply. That restaurant closed about six months later ... I am not surprised!

 

[ThePainInSpain]

Am I missing something here......................over 500 quid for a meal.

That's obscene...........

 

[User169]

Here's aa gill's take on it..

http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/style/article1114506.ece

 

[Jezston]

Priveliged poshos looking for a thrill believing (probably correctly) that they'll get away with it - even if they got caught. Flutter the eyelashes oh I'm so sorry, daddy has a word with the magistrate and lets not let this get embarrassing.

When I was a student, I worked in Oddbins. During a summer back in London I worked in various Oddbins around the City of London region - London Bridge, Leadenhall Market, those kind of places.

The Leadenhall Market store was particularly targeted by theives. Not your common or garden hoodie scumbag, but city boys and girls looking for a bit of excitement. While it sadly never happened when I was on duty, regularly city types would try and sneak out with a bottle of champers half inched off a shelf while they thought no one was looking. Winter coats being particularly prevalent. Often they would get caught and it would be "ha ha sorry old boy, just a bit of fun you know? Here you got me, I'll pay up!" "No, sorry old boy - my colleague here is locking the door and we're calling the police". They wouldn't see the funny side of that.

 

[GordonB]

Many years ago, when the Ali Pali Beer Festival first started (don't know if it still runs, if not, it was fun while it lasted) a couple of mates spent all day there drinking prodigious quantities of real ale, more than you would believe possible. After a bender like that the only thing needed to top it off was a good curry so they hied themselves to the nearest tandoori joint and ordered a meal of humungous size. God knows how they got through it, but by all accounts they managed. Mate number 1 decided he had to get home leaving mate number 2 sitting there enjoying one last beer and munching a last popadom. All that liquid made the need for emptying the bilges a necessity, so off toddles mate number 2 to the lavvy. Whilst in there he notices that the window is open and, as was inevitable given his near paralytic state, he decided "bugger it, I ain't paying" so he manages to squeeze through the window and falls into the restaurant waste food bin positioned neatly below. Hauling himself out, he brushes the worst of the putrefying slops off and legs it down the high street. Couple of hundred yards down as he's congratulating himself on his craftiness he remembers that mate number 1 paid the bill for both before he left....................

I can't help wondering what the restaurant staff though about the disappearing customer!

Gordon

 

[Fnaar]

Just remembered, on holiday this year, the kids all toddled off to the loo after a meal in a restaurant, and I settled up the bill. Mrs F and I pretended to the kids that we had left without paying... I'm happy to report they were shocked and started to insist that we went back and paid... then I told them the truth.

 

[Night Train]

[QUOTE 1246218"]
I've walked out a few times after ordering and waiting around for ages with no food arriving, but never after eating.
[/quote]

This I have done but always after telling the staff/manager first.

 

[dellzeqq]

I've just remembered

I did an inadvertant runner from Sainsbury's once. It was a job I'd designed. I wandered around thinking 'ooh, this is good' or 'whoops' or whatever, and simply walked out with my little blue plastic basket. The security guard who'd seen me with the Sainsbury peeps before, ran after me and said 'excuse me, sir'. I returned and paid, all confusion.

 

[Fnaar]

Has anyone ever paid, then walked out without eating the meal? Now that's the kind of subversive behaviour I like!

 

[asterix]

At uni after celebrating the end of the exams we went out for drinks then split into 2 groups one of which went to a Chinese restaurant, had a meal, put the money on the table whereupon 1 of them grabbed it all and rushed out into the night.

Once the rest of the group twigged what had happened they followed him, with 2 or three Chinese waiters in hot pursuit. The slowest runner was soon caught and had to pay. Later in the small hours of the morning 2 members of the group were mugged and one them quite knocked about as he was slow to give them his wallet (he thought that being Norwegian he shouldn't have to).