A lady from Melbourne, Australia has taken to social media after being charged $681 for canceling a restaurant reservation greater than 48 hours prematurely.
Lorida Quiambao booked a table for six to have fun her birthday at Navi, an upscale restaurant in Melbourne, Australia’s Yarraville.
Nonetheless, on Thursday she felt too in poor health to come back, so she canceled her Saturday night booking.
She was shocked to receive an email saying she had been charged over $600 for the cancellation.
![Lorida Quiambao](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/NYPICHPDPICT000009029426.jpg?w=1024)
“No restaurant or business needs to be allowed to charge this kind of cancellation fee,” she wrote on Facebook.
Ms. Quiambao called the act “ridiculous.”
She added that the restaurant charged her card an enormous amount without calling her beforehand.
![Lorida Quiambao](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/NYPICHPDPICT000009029421.jpg?w=1024)
“I checked my bank card and yes they charged the quantity without even attempting to make contact and chat,” she wrote.
The fee was so expensive because Navi charged $113 per person for a set people menu and multiplied that by six for a celebration of six that Ms. Quiambao had booked.
The restaurant is pricey as all food comes from local farmers and small producers.
![Post Navi on Instagram](https://nypost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/03/NYPICHPDPICT000009029417.jpg)
Ms Quiambao said she was surprised by the fee as the web site stated that a 48-hour notice is required for cancellations.
Nonetheless, in the e-mail she received from the restaurant manager, they explained that she had to offer a minimum of five days’ notice.
The restaurant has since clarified that bookings of lower than 4 are only required in 48 hours.
Nonetheless, for bookings of 5 or more people, it’s five days.
Ms. Quiambao’s post angered many restaurant goers.
One person commented: “My partner and I am going to a number of restaurants in Melbourne but we’ll never book with you.”
One other: “I’ve never heard of various cancellation policies based on table numbers.”
“It’s robbery,” someone commented.
Chef and owner Julian Hills explained on social media that the fee was so high because he ran a small business.
“We only have one table of six, which is 1 / 4 of our restaurant. If we fill the table, which we do our greatest to do (including contacting people on our waiting list and sharing on social media), we’ll refund your money.”
“I run a small business and might’t afford to lose 1 / 4 of my restaurant without enough time to fill it.”
The restaurant used social media to attempt to fill the reservation.