After her teenage daughter spent S$356 on Alaskan king crab at a Boat Quay restaurant, a woman in Singapore took to social media to call the establishment out for "bad business ethics".
She alleged that her 16-year-old daughter, who had been dining out with her peers, had not known about the dish's hefty price tag and was not told beforehand.
In response, the restaurant — Seafood by the River in Boat Quay — refuted the woman's claims and countered that the price was stated upfront in the menu.
The staff had also informed the teens of the price, and showed them the crustacean before preparing it, a spokesperson said.
The restaurant also provided screenshots of its surveillance footage, which was reviewed by Mothership.
The allegation
The girl's mother, surnamed Ong, shared the complaint in a Sep. 18 Facebook post.
"Please do not visit this Seafood by the River restaurant," she wrote.
She explained that her daughter, who is turning 17 in a week, went out for dinner with her friends and wanted to eat crab.
The restaurant then served them a S$356 Alaskan king crab, without telling them the price upfront, she alleged.
The total bill was S$536.
Photo from Ong/Facebook
"Ridiculous for a restaurant to think teenagers want to eat king Alaskan crab. They don't even know and [weren't] told of the cost," Ong wrote.
She called the restaurant out for their "bad business ethics" and added that she would go down to speak to the manager the next day.
As of 3:30pm on Sep. 19, the Facebook post by the mother appeared to have been either deleted or made private.
The response
In response to Mothership's queries, a spokesperson from the restaurant, who gave her name as Kathleen, said the restaurant has CCTV footage and evidence that showed otherwise.
She explained that the price of the crab — S$19.80 per 100g — had already been shown clearly on the menu.
Image courtesy of Seafood by the River
Prior to cooking the dish, a server had also shown them the crustacean and allowed them to take photos with it, as per their usual procedure, Kathleen said.
The diners had additionally been issued with an order chit that showed the weight and name of the dish, as well as the price.
Photo courtesy of Seafood by the River
"I don't think [our price] is unreasonable," she added.
"When they paid the bill... the [staff who took their order] asked the customer, how [was the] crab? And they replied that it was very nice and fresh, everything is good. They never said anything about the price."
As to Ong's accusation that they had sold the expensive dish to teens, Kathleen replied that the diners did not look 17 and appeared to be adults.
The restaurant also does not typically card diners who look like adults, she said.
CCTV footage viewed by Mothership showed a staff member in red bringing the crab over from the fish tank to the table, passing it to a young woman, and snapping a photo of them with the crab.
Mothership understands that such photos are taken for marketing purposes, and are occasionally shared on their social media.
Aftermath
Kathleen said that while she is aware that Ong has raised a complaint through the third-party reservation system, the complainant has so far not come down to speak to the staff in person.
However, the staff have been kept informed and will speak to her if she chooses to do so, she added.
"[Her allegations] are not true, and we have all the evidence on our side," she reiterated.
Mothership has reached out to Ong for her comment.
Top image from Seafood by the River/Instagram/ Complainant