Moment family sneak out of restaurant without paying their £60 bill

Moment family-of-four sneak out of Italian restaurant without paying their £60 bill – as owners launch hunt for the diners

• The family reportedly snuck out of Vito’s restaurant in Sheffield, South Yorkshire
• Do YOU know the family? Email: [email protected] 

A family-run Italian restaurant has pleaded for a group of diners to come back and settle their £60 bill after they allegedly did a runner while staff were distracted.

CCTV footage shows a family-of-four arriving at Vito’s restaurant in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, at 6pm on Sunday.

Chef Vito Ciaraolo, 59, who has owned the classic Italian restaurant for 32 years, said they ordered olives, three pizzas and an aubergine dish as main courses with a fruit juice and three soft drinks – racking up a bill of £60.95.

However, after they finished their mains, footage shows the woman dressed in black standing up from her seat and leading the children out of the restaurant. 

The man in a blue t-shirt then orders desserts for the table before making a dash while the waitress is distracted.

The picture shows the woman getting up from the table to leave with her children

The woman exits the door as the man in the blue t-shirt stays in the same place 

Vito said the family – who the staff had not seen before – chose to sit at a table close to the door before they ordered food. 

‘They just walked in. They were new to us, and the staff said they had never seen them before’, he said.

‘They were looking around to see if there were any cameras. But they didn’t see one of the cameras, which is very high.’

‘The waitress made an order in the kitchen. She said they’d ordered three desserts but the kids and the woman had left, and it was just the man in the restaurant.

‘I said to the waitress “Go upstairs. I think they are going to do a runner.”

‘I realised they were up to something. But by the time she went upstairs, one minute later, they had left.’

The 59-year-old added: ‘It’s very frustrating. You can imagine what I would do if I would have caught them. But there was nothing I could do.

He also said the couple had set a particularly bad example to their children. 

The waiter then comes over to the table to take their order for dessert

After the waitress leaves the man stays in his seat. Moments after the video stops the restaurant’s owner says he makes a dash out the door 

Vito believes from the way they acted that they may have tried the same trick at other restaurants before.

He said: ‘I think they’ve gone out to have food before and have done the exact same thing which they have done to me. That’s the impression I have got. I think they do this all the time.’

Since sharing the news about the family Vito said he has received an outpouring of support from his regulars.

He added that if the family cough up their £60 bill he would donate it to a good cause.  

‘If someone comes to the restaurant and says they haven’t got any money, I can give you something to eat. It’s not a problem,’ he explained.

‘That’s the kind of person I am. I try to help everybody.’

Vito added: ‘Everybody is disappointed about what happened. But they are very supportive. I have a lot of lovely customers.

‘I have been here for 32 years and this is only the second time it’s happened. But If that guy gives it back, I will give that money to charity.’

The restaurant owner has not yet reported the matter to the police.

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