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But in the incident I brought up, they brought baskets of bread and cups of water to our table withought informing us that we would be charged for them. We did NOT order these items. This is sneaky and deceitful.
No, its not! This might be a common tradition or custom, and the locals know about and accept it. If you see on your table things you didn't order, you should ask if those are free or you need to pay for them.
Do not assume that because something appears on your table, it will be complimentary.
People who travel more just know those things. And first time travelers should take the time and read about culture and customs of countries they plan to visit. That usually can save lots of grief and misunderstandings, and help appreciate other cultures, and their ways to live.
Not everything is like back home, and people who cannot accept that, should carefully choose places they want to visit.
No, its not! This might be a common tradition or custom, and the locals know about and accept it. If you see on your table things you didn't order, you should ask if those are free or you need to pay for them.
Do not assume that because something appears on your table, it will be complimentary.
People who travel more just know those things. And first time travelers should take the time and read about culture and customs of countries they plan to visit. That usually can save lots of grief and misunderstandings, and help appreciate other cultures, and their ways to live.
Not everything is like back home, and people who cannot accept that, should carefully choose places they want to visit.
Now how should we carefully choose places they want to visit? We don't know if a restaurant is honest or a scam.
No, its not! This might be a common tradition or custom, and the locals know about and accept it. If you see on your table things you didn't order, you should ask if those are free or you need to pay for them.
Do not assume that because something appears on your table, it will be complimentary.
People who travel more just know those things. And first time travelers should take the time and read about culture and customs of countries they plan to visit. That usually can save lots of grief and misunderstandings, and help appreciate other cultures, and their ways to live.
Not everything is like back home, and people who cannot accept that, should carefully choose places they want to visit.
Oh lord, I was well traveled and living in Spain at the time. I had already been to: Mexico(hundreds of times), Haiti, Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, England, Switzerland, Germany, Portugal, and France. I am also a bilingual/bicultural person. Is that travel enough for you?
I never had that experience in any other country.
$10-15 euros for tap water and a tiny slice of old bread is a rip-off and I don't agree- I'm not a mind reader. If it would have been a decent charge, I wouldn't have minded actually. I would have understood.
You are right, people should choose carefully where they want to visit. I choose to never visit Rome again.
Was this your first meal in Italy? Because my experience is that it's pretty standard practice almost everywhere in Italy (I've been there about half a dozen times) to have a "cover charge" for bread and stuff.
No, it was not. I had already eaten at quite a few establishments.
So you have always been charged 10-15$ euros for tap water and a slice of old bread? This was not a fancy restaurant by the way, more like a little hole in the wall restaurant.
I spent $28.00 for a large Pizza (multiple toppings) at a well-known pizza franchise a few days ago for my office staff. However, I did not call the police for this outrage, but paid the bill. Next time I will refrain from the meatball and olives.
No, it was not. I had already eaten at quite a few establishments.
So you have always been charged 10-15$ euros for tap water and a slice of old bread? This was not a fancy restaurant by the way, more like a little hole in the wall restaurant.
No. The first time we ate out in Italy it happened (although it was more like 1-2 EUR per person for the bread, and never for tap water), so we looked at the menu again and realized it was our oversight (and yes, it was at the bottom of the page like you said). After that, we always sent back any bread that waiters brought automatically, and we always made sure to look at all the prices/fine print when ordering.
I'm just surprised that you hadn't encountered it anywhere before. I have lived and traveled quite a bit in Europe, and it only happened that once -- we learned our lesson after that! Fortunately, it was not a 10-15 EUR lesson, more like a 3-6 EUR lesson for us.
So they actually charged for tap water? I've never encountered that. Did they have a price for tap water on the menu? Some places we've been to didn't "offer" tap water, so we decided whether to pay the price for bottled water or go elsewhere.
Why do people always think you need to eat out when you go on vacations?
Because we prefer lodging away from the hustle and noise of the big tourist areas. Breakfast is in our hotel room and involves what we bought from the neighborhood pastry shop, greengrocer, and Carrefour Express, but everything after that for the day is on the road, and you can only eat so many Cliff bars out of my purse before the trip starts being less fun.
I'm okay with spending 5 euros for a glass bottle of Coke at a Paris cafe because you're renting the table space as well as eating and drinking. I get excited when that includes a glass on the side that has three whole regulation-sized ice cubes in it. But I don't want to play 'hunt the fine print' on the menu, and it seems like so much of the Italian tourism system is about trying to pull a fast one on the tourists, and it makes me less motivated to plan a vacation there, for all that the country has a lot to offer.
I'm embarrassed for them, lol
No wonder Europe hates U.S. tourists
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