11 January 2024 , 13:21
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An Australian café owner has come under fire after kicking a family out when their kids were having a tantrum over gelato - but some have defended the man.
Being out and about when your children are having a meltdown can be mortifying, especially when you can't get them to calm down, and sometimes, you'll rely on the kindness of strangers to help you diffuse the situation.
But a mum was left furious with the owner of the café she was dining in when she saw children crying over gelato - and rather than try to placate the children with kind words, the woman claimed the owner just kicked them out.
Mum Laura Edwards posted a video online after the incident, urging others with children to avoid the café after witnessing the family of four being sent away. "Absolutely disgusting. Don't support this business", she fumed.
Café co-owner Adrian Dall'Oste wasn't happy with the criticism, however, and he hit back expressing his surprise that the woman had chosen to get involved.
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Dall'Oste explained his side of the story to the Townsville Bulletin, sharing that he asked the family to leave after their two children spent over 15 minutes crying and throwing a tantrum when they were told they'd have to share a gelato, rather than having one each.
He said: "Both children became upset when told they would be sharing a gelato between them, one of the children swiped decorations from the counter and threw a steel flask on the tile floor." Dall'Oste expressed that the kids were spoiling the "ambience" for the other customers who were trying to enjoy their food as the "crying and screaming was constant and loud."
Dall'Oste explained that he told the family "politely" that they would have to leave, apologising and citing other customers as the reason that they had to go. But Dall'Oste claimed the father was not happy with being asked to leave the premises, and said they only would if Dall'Oste called the police.
Edwards slammed Dell'Oste's decision, claiming that the parents had been sitting down with their children and keeping an eye on them. "It wasn't a meltdown or tantrum", she insisted. "My kids make more noise than these kids do. It was just a grizzly kid needing some help to sort through his emotions at the time", reports the Express.
When Edwards posted her call to boycott the café, however, people rushed to the owner's defence and said that he had every right to ask them to leave. One fumed: "Good on the business owner, I would of [sic] done the exact same thing. He has a duty to make sure everyone has an enjoyable experience. I have kids and when they were little, if they carried on like little brats I would of [sic] packed up and left out of the respect for others." "I support you 100 percent", another added. "Bad behaviour as a child results in bad behaviour as an adult."