The Owners of Salini restaurant Giuseppi’s Bar and Bistro have voiced their frustrations by the number of patrons not showing up for their bookings.

“And so the scourge continues,” Chef Patron Michael Diacono said on Sunday, sharing images of two tables that were left empty by six customers that failed to show up for lunch on the day.

“I will never, ever understand why people do this. The amount of clients we refused because of them. Thanks, you should be ashamed of yourselves,” he added.

Michael also revealed that this is a situation that is happening “nearly every weekend”.

One of the tables that were left empty / Michael Diacono / Facebook

This comes just a few weeks after another local restaurateur expressed their annoyance at it not being industry practice in Malta for restaurants to ask for a deposit or credit card details for bookings. While they acknowledged that it is common for customers to not proceed with their booking, it is somehow acceptable for a restaurant to be “stood up by no-show clients and remain with empty tables”.

When contacted by WhosWho.mt, Michael confirmed that a table of two and a table of four were left completely empty during the whole service because of unfulfilled bookings, an act which had a “notable impact” on the restaurant, which is located within Salini Resort in Naxxar.

“We mainly rely on bookings, as the area is quite out of the way when compared to other locations, and so walk-ins are not really that common,” he said. He acknowledged that Giuseppi’s is a different case to Rubino, a restaurant in Valletta that he is a Partner of, which because of its location, gets a “steady amount” of walk-ins.

Asked whether such no-shows happen on a regular basis, Michael said that while they do not take place “as much as they used to”, they “still do”.

“Whenever it happens, I continue to call the client in question over the following days, and if they actually pick up, then I start getting flooded with the usual excuses,” he explained.

Michael’s nephew, Christopher Diacono, who joined the restaurant in 2016 and is focused on its service and beverage segment, also vented his frustrations on social media, questioning: “When will these people understand?”

“A no-show may cost you nothing, but it costs us an average of €40 per empty chair, it costs my staff missed tips and bonuses, and it costs other guests a table they would have appreciated,” he continued.

He explained that when he opts to ask for credit card details “simply as a guarantee”, he ends up getting “shouted at and called difficult”.

“I am embarrassed for you. If only these posts will reach these people, but then again, they obviously don’t give a damn,” Christopher added.

Reservation deposits have become the norm in various countries, but they are yet to become routine practice locally, as a number of restaurants have opted against their introduction amid fears of the ways customers will respond to such a change.

Commenting about this, Michael said that they normally ask for card details when there is a booking for a large party, such as 10 or 12 people, to “encourage the clients to be more responsible”. He remarked that when it comes to booking deposits, they are only requested “on special occasions” such as Christmas, Mother’s Day, and other events.

While he wishes that such reservation deposits become part of the norm in the catering industry, he also remarked that he “cannot afford” to attempt to implement them at this stage at Giuseppi’s due to the “possible backlash” that there might be, especially given the dependence on bookings.

Giuseppi’s Bar and Bistro is a local Mediterranean restaurant that was taken over by Michael, a self-taught Chef, in 1983. He is a pioneer in the local restaurant scene and is driven by his inspiration from his mother (Rita Diacono) and his “pure passion for food”.