Dimitrios Kalamaras – Michmutters
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Business

US couple charged $800 for four drinks and snack at Mykonos DK Oyster Bar

A tourist has described her horror after she was charged $A800 for four drinks and a snack at a notorious Mykonos beach restaurant.

US lawyer Theodora McCormick was holidaying on the Greek island with her husband when the couple stopped at DK Oyster Bar to grab a drink.

After ordering two beers, two cocktails and some seafood, the pair were stunned to be handed the exorbitant bill, The Sun reports.

When they tried to complain, they said they were squared up to by hulking waiters.

DK Oyster Bar has previously been at the center of similar controversy and has a reputation for staggering prices.

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It has been accused of scamming tourists – allegations it always furiously denies as it defends its high prices.

Speaking from her home in New Jersey, Theodora, 50, said they had been in the beachside resort of Platis Gialos last month when they stopped at DK Oyster.

They were looking to order a taxi back to their hotel when they saw the sign outside DK Oyster which said that taxis could be ordered from inside.

“I told my husband, ‘Oh, why don’t we call a taxi and grab a drink,’” she said.

“That was my big mistake.”

When the waiter came over, Theodora said she asked for a cocktail menu, but instead of bringing one over, he rattled off a list of options.

They ordered two martinis and two beers, which they were stunned to see arrived in giant glass boots – estimated to be around three pints.

The waiter also pestered them to order some seafood and so the couple ordered a dozen oysters.

Before ordering the bill, Theodora and her husband were bracing themselves for a hefty tab – but when they received it their jaws dropped.

“It was Mykonos, we knew it was going to be ridiculous,” she said, but she expected a bill around “250-odd euros – that’s what we were thinking”.

“But when we got the bill… it was around €500 ($A800).

“My husband was like, ‘There’s got to be a mistake.”

When they tried to complain about the bill, Theodora said they were immediately surrounded by the waiters, “a group of big, hulking men.”

She went on: “They have no female waiters.”

As it was a day before they were scheduled to fly home, they felt they had no choice but to back down and pay.

She said: “I told my husband, ‘We’re in a foreign country. It’s ridiculous, but it’s obviously some sort of scam. We’ll pay up and try to deal with our credit card company later.’”

Describing the “weird experience,” Theodora said it was only when they got back to their hotel and looked at the DK Oyster Bar’s hundreds of negative reviews on TripAdvisor that they realized they weren’t alone.

“I feel foolish,” she said. “It was just a spur-of-the-moment thing. We weren’t planning on eating there, but we saw the sign.”

She added: “They’re never going to have any repeat business, but I suppose they get enough people from around the world that there’s always a supply of fresh meat.”

Theodora said that they had visited a number of the Greek islands as well as Mykonos, and that most of their meals were “extremely reasonable,” and that they were often able to enjoy great meals for just €40 ($A60).

Her experience is echoed by hundreds of other customers, with DK Oyster having a 2.5 star rating on TripAdvisor from 1532 reviews as of publication.

The bar has 635 one-star, 33 two-star, 19 three-star, 52 four-star, and 339 five-star reviews.

Furious customers blasted the restaurant as the “worst experience ever”.

However, other customers were more positive, praising the restaurant’s setting and saying “prices are good for the high class restaurant it is”.

DK Oyster has a reputation for high prices and was recently fined $A43,000 after an audit by Cyclades Regional Tourism Agency, reports Prototheme and the Greek City Times.

The investigation was sparked by two Americans who claimed they were charged more than $800 for a pair of mojitos and some crab legs.

And this week, the bar’s owner Dimitrios Kalamaras issued a direct response to his critics and denied customers’ claims they don’t know the prices before they step inside.

He accused many of his reviewers on TripAdvisor of lying, and said following “dozens” of similar “false” claims, he had installed three blackboards at the entrance to the restaurant displaying his prices.

Mr Kalamaras also said that “no adult in their right mind” would order a drink without seeing how much it costs first and told customers to discuss the price with the manager before they order.

Justifying his higher-than-average prices, he said that DK Oyster’s “concept” was completely different to other restaurants.

And he accused critics of being “influencers” who were looking for a free meal.

“Unfortunately, all of us who work in the hospitality sector have been approached by notorious ‘influencers’ who instead of making their living by advertising products and services to their audience, they put pressure on certain businesses for exorbitant fees and free meals,” he said.

“In DK Oyster, we have advertised in the ways we consider suitable for our restaurant and we will not succumb to the influencers who have been attracted to the beautiful island of Mykonos.”

Previously, a British tourist revealed how he was charged £360 ($A600) for four drinks and a snack at the restaurant.

Londoner Jak Kypri was visiting the Greek island – and thought that he wouldn’t be ripped off because he spoke Greek.

“I thought if they try to scam me I’ll tell them to p**s off and give me the real price.”

But when he walked in, Jak said that waiters didn’t offer him a menu, instead telling him what they had.

Jak ordered two tequilas, two beers, and some shrimp which, when it arrived, was just “six prawns.”

To his horror, when the bill arrived, Jak was handed a receipt for an eye-watering €425 ($A600).

Meanwhile another UK tourist claimed she was charged £50 ($A90) for lemonade that she said was so bitter it was undrinkable.

And a dad lashed out at the restaurant after his daughter was allegedly charged nearly £300 ($A500) for a single meal.

The Sun Online has approached DK Oyster Bar for comment.

This story originally appeared on The Sun and is republished here with permission

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Categories
Business

Mykonos restaurant owner hits back at newlyweds who were charged $850 bill

The owner of a restaurant in Greece that has been accused of scamming tourists has finally spoken out.

Dimitrios Kalamaras, owner of DK Oyster in Mykonos, has hit back at tourists’ bad reviews, claiming they’re all influencers trying to score a free meal.

DK Oyster’s TripAdvisor rating is a measly 2.5 stars accumulated from its 1455 ratings. The page is flooded with one-star accounts of people accusing the restaurant of terrible service, aggressive tactics and sneaky outrageous prices, the new york post reports.

the post previously reported a story on a Canadian couple, Lindsay Breen and her husband Alex, both 30, who claimed they were refused menus, pressured into ordering food and surprised with a shocking bill.

“Unfortunately, all of us who work in the hospitality sector have been approached by notorious ‘influencers’ who, instead of making their living by advertising products and services to their audience, they put pressure on certain businesses for exorbitant fees and free meals,” Mr Kalamaras told Kennedy News.

“In DK Oyster we have advertised in the ways we consider suitable for our restaurant and we will not succumb to the influencers who have been attracted to the beautiful island of Mykonos,” he continued.

The restaurant sits on the shores of Mykonos on the Platis Gialos beach, welcoming tourists as they explore the top tourist destination.

The owner described the spot as a “very popular destination” for people that certain influencers would like to mingle with.

But for the Breens, they were just trying to enjoy their honeymoon.

The newlywed couple – who shared the story of their $A850 bill for a beer, an Aperol spritz and a dozen oysters – claimed they were surprised by the charge because they were denied a proper menu, pressured into ordering food and provided a bill in Greek .

Mr Kalamaras denies the accusations.

“This person who is trying to get famous through Instagram posts under the name of Lindsay Breen starts with a lie,” he said of Breen, who works as a recruiter.

“She claims that she ‘repeatedly asked for a cocktail menu,’ and adds that ‘the server didn’t seem to want to provide one’. Despite that, she placed an order.

“An influencer, an experienced well-travelled person who makes a living through their experiences in the world did what most adults in the right mind would not do, ordered drinks and food from a waiter who refused to present a menu,” Mr Kalamaras insisted .

The restaurant owner acknowledged the many bad reviews on TripAdvisor making claims similar to what the Breens made, but claims they are all false.

“This false claim has been used so much against our restaurant by dozens of anonymous users on TripAdvisor, that we decided to place three huge blackboards by the entrance of the restaurant displaying the menu and the prices,” he said.

Despite Mr Kalamaras’ denial of the complaints, DK Oyster was recently fined more than $30,000 for scamming two American tourists, the Greek City Times reported.

“I thought that this way our guests, if the reviews were indeed written by actual customers, would at least have an idea regarding the range of our prices in order to be sure to check the menu thoroughly before ordering,” he said.

Lindsay and Alex claim they quickly glanced at the menu outside DK Oyster and believe the oysters were listed at €9 but later learned that the restaurant priced their menu based on items per 100g.

“So it says calamari is 29 dollars but in fine print, it will say that’s for 100g of calamari so your bill comes up to 300 euros,” she said.

But Mr Kalamaras stands by his restaurant and workers, insisting that cheap clients are ruining the reputation of the spot.

“Every time I received such a complaint, always by anonymous users through TripAdvisor, I consulted with the personnel, reminding that it is crucial for our reputation to be sure that procedures are followed carefully,” he said.

“They always assured me that they abide by the rules.”

Mr Kalamaras suggests that guests carefully browse the menu and prices before ordering.

“I cannot stop every single person entering our premises and explain the significance of such a practice,” he said.

The owner suggests that customers who are “not malevolent” should either leave or request to talk to a manager if denied a menu.

“The manager can help before ordering and consuming, not at the time they are requested to pay the charged amounts,” Mr Kalamaras said, referring to the Breens’ claims that Alex was pressured into paying the high-priced bill.

“Unfortunately, there are people on TripAdvisor, openly encouraging guests to eat, eat and drink whatever they want and then refuse to pay the bills.”

He continued: “I understand that some people may find our prices beyond their budget and I totally respect their opinion even if they do not appreciate the value of our services, cuisine, concept and experience.”

Mr Kalamaras also noted Lindsay’s claims that other local restaurateurs warn tourists about DK Oysters and noted similar claims on TripAdvisor, but he suggests that it cannot be verified and that complainers are copying each other’s grievances.

Mr Kalamaras also said that he replies to some of the TripAdvisor comments to defend the shop and the quality of their service.

“We believe that the value of the offered experience is high and we have no intention to explain why we charge more than a supermarket or a traditional taverna, which can be quite wonderful but is surely a completely different concept than ours,” he said.

This article originally appeared on the New York Post and was reproduced with permission

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