Anger over ‘death threats’ at restaurant

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Published Mar 30, 2015

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Cape Town - Critical questions have been raised about Cape Town’s hospitality industry after a 21st birthday celebration ended in tears and alleged death threats at an Asian restaurant at the weekend.

Michael Farr and his family had been out celebrating his daughter’s birthday at Koi restaurant at the Ambassador Hotel in Bantry Bay on Saturday night when fellow patrons allegedly became rowdy.

Farr said he had approached the restaurant management, hoping they would ask the patrons to tone down their noise levels, but he said his request was ignored.

“I then approached the party and asked them to please stop shouting. Shortly thereafter, one of the party came to my table and, in language I cannot repeat, threatened to beat me senseless and throw me over the balcony of the restaurant. His expressed threat, witnessed by many in the restaurant, was to kill me.

“The management of Koi, when requested, said that they would not call the police, which I then did myself,” Farr said.

Freddie Muzandaka, the manager on duty at the time, denied that he or any of his staff were approached to ask the patrons to lower their voices.

Instead, when he witnessed an argument between Farr and a patron who was part of the group accused of causing the disturbance, he asked the man to leave, Muzandaka said.

“He was out before the police arrived. We co-operated very well with (Farr),” Muzandaka said.

Farr and the owner of Koi would meet on Monday to discuss the incident, Muzandaka said.

Cape Town was a world-class city and people in the hospitality industry needed to be able to deal with situations like the one on Saturday, Farr said.

Cape Town Tourism could not be reached for comment on Sunday.

The Ambassador Hotel’s manager on duty on Sunday afternoon, who gave his name only as “Grant”, said the Koi restaurant was only a tenant on the premises.

The incident had nothing to do with the hotel itself, Grant said.

Farr said his daughter went home in tears.

“While there is not too much we need to do to look after the physical splendour of our city, there is much we need to focus on to make the experience people have a memorable one,” Farr said.

“And we must not forget our own citizens, as looking after them and providing them with exceptional service and courtesy is what makes them a powerful sales force for our fair city.

“A world-class city must offer world-class service and world-class service requires that those working in our hospitality sector receive the most professional training.

“This, sadly, is sorely lacking in many of our hospitality offerings.

“And I know this both from personal experience and from the experiences of many people.”

Cape Times

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