We were in Portugal celebrating our son’s 4th birthday and enquired with the reception staff which were the better restaurants around the resort we were staying at. The person recommended this restaurant which was a very short walk from our villa. The food was good, and they did sing happy birthday for our son (they charged us for the cake; we carried my son’s homemade dinner). The bill came up to 69 Euros, however, on checking our bank statement after a couple days realised, they charged us 96 Euros by which time we already left Portugal.

I contacted them when I realised what I thought was a mistake, but the restaurant said that as I didn’t keep the receipt, they are unable to reconcile the amount charged vs the actual bill which does not make any sense. I called them again, but they picked up and feigned they didn’t speak any English (they spoke to us in prefect English whilst we were dining there) and pretended they couldn’t hear me before disconnecting my calls thrice.

The waiters seemed very friendly asking about us and how long we were in Portugal etc. etc. It seemed when I called them, they knew exactly what they had done and hence did not want to have any conversations especially since they knew I was not physically present to dispute this. The staff even had the nerve to say how do we know this is true when they surely could check their system for that date and time since it was the last payment for that day (6th Nov 2024 - 21:48). It seems like this is their modus opprandi for scamming short term tourists.

I’m upset and annoyed that the restaurant does not want to make any attempt to reimburse me for the overcharge (I’m not asking for a full refund just for the excess amount that was paid) and for the fact that I gave the waiter a tip as well for making the birthday special for my 4 year old.

Disappointed that they cold cheat us like this (clearly, it was not a mistake but deliberate) and will recommend you request for the receipt of payment and hang on to it until the transaction reflects the bank statement. Please be wary of the friendly staff and the payments you make even if the bill amount is correct.