Restaurant chain Ask Italian fined for misleading customers over ‘lobster’ dish
‘Customers should actually be served what they believe they have paid for,’ Swansea Council says
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Your support makes all the difference.A national restaurant chain has been fined £40,000 for misleading customers over the contents of a “lobster“ dish.
At British restaurant chain Ask Italian, one of the most expensive dishes on the menu – the £14.95 “Aragosta e Gamberoni” – was said to consist of lobster, king prawns, a creamy tomato sauce and a "hint" of chilli.
However, following a routine inspection carried out by a Swansea Council trading standards officer, it was discovered that the dish did not contain as much lobster as one may have assumed, a discovery that has resulted in a penalty.
In March 2019, after being served the dish in question at an Ask Italian branch in Swansea, the trading standards officer made a request for further information on the source of the ingredients.
The officer was informed that the dish was made using a frozen “Lobster Sensations” product, which retails at £1.40 and was delivered to the restaurant pre-packed.
On the back of a Lobster Sensations packet, it states that 35 per cent of the product is made from lobster, while 34 per cent is made from unspecified white fish.
After pleading guilty to an offence under the Food Safety Act 1990, Ask Italian, which is part of Azzuri Restaurants Ltd., has been fined £40,000 by Swansea Magistrates Court.
The court was reportedly told that once the issue of the lack of lobster in the dish was raised by the council to the restaurant, it was removed from menus in branches across the country.
Rhys Harries, trading standards team leader at Swansea Council, outlined the team’s role in ensuring that “restaurants accurately describe the food on menus and that it reflects what appears at their table”.
“When our officers visited the restaurant in March 2019, our investigations prompted some concerns over their most expensive dish which was described as lobster,” Mr Harries said.
“We felt that the description on the menu compared to the product actually served was likely to mislead customers as to the substance of the food.”
Mark Thomas, Swansea Council cabinet member for environment and infrastructure management, emphasised that customers who “pay good money to eat at restaurants should actually be served with what they believe they have paid for”.
“Our view is that customers were being misled and not aware of the additional ingredients in the meal,” Mr Thomas stated.
“I’m pleased that our observant trading standards team has been able to uncover this issue and hopefully it sends a strong message out to other restaurants, regardless of their size, that we will continue to check up on these issues to ensure customers in Swansea and elsewhere are being treated fairly.”
The Independent has contacted Ask Italian for comment.
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