Namyangju Disabled Sports Association Cancels Reservation on the Day After Booking Restaurant
"Suddenly Demanded Restaurant Seating Change... Canceled When Refused"
"Said They Can't Compensate for 100 Meals... Got Emotional While Throwing Them Away"
The Namyangju City Disabled Sports Association in Gyeonggi Province made a reservation for 100 meals at a restaurant for an event but unilaterally canceled on the day, sparking controversy. According to JTBC's 'Case Judge' on the 1st, Mr. A, who runs a restaurant in Gyeonggi Province, received an inquiry in March from the Namyangju City Disabled Sports Association about the availability of meals for 100 people and menu options.
The side dishes prepared in advance by Mr. A at the restaurant. [Image source=JTBC 'Sageonbanjang' broadcast screen capture]
According to Mr. A, after a preliminary visit by the sports association officials, they requested seating for about 100 people on April 26 and reserved approximately 2.5 million KRW worth of menu items such as shiitake sweet and sour pork and japchae. However, on the day of the reservation, the officials arrived earlier than the scheduled time and suddenly made several demands. They said that an event involving the Namyangju City mayor and officials would be held and insisted, "The table and partition arrangement must be changed."
Mr. A refused these demands, saying, "The tables and partitions are fine as they are, and sitting without changing them is not uncomfortable. The Disabled Association had visited before and dined without any inconvenience," and the officials left. A few hours later, Mr. A received a 'reservation cancellation' notice from the sports association's person in charge because he did not rearrange the seating as requested.
The problem was that 100 meals had already been prepared. According to Mr. A, although a deposit was supposed to be collected, he thought cancellation was unlikely since a preliminary visit had been made. He told JTBC, "I couldn't keep 100 meals waiting, so I had already done all the shopping and washed and soaked the rice in the morning," adding, "I had also prepared all the vegetables for japchae and cooked the main dish, mushroom bulgogi."
Mr. A claimed, "When I asked what they would do with the prepared food, they said, 'We cannot compensate,' and hung up the phone." He continued, "I wanted to hear a detailed explanation, so I visited and left my contact information, but I have not received a response yet," expressing, "I was choked up while throwing away the prepared food."
Regarding Mr. A's claims, the organizer stated, "We told them on the day that such an arrangement was not possible because it was a disabled event. Usually, restaurants change arrangements on-site through consultation." They also said, "There was no problem during the cancellation process," but expressed their intention to visit Mr. A and find an amicable solution.
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