Restaurant Ramadan Rip Off

Do you rely upon restaurants for your daily meal requirements? Do you get ripped off during Ramadan? Well it looks like help may be on it's way. http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=447696... Action sought as eateries take advantage of Ramadan rates By Ramesh Mathew With the government’s directive on Ramadan prices coming into effect, residents have called upon the authorities to force the country’s restaurant operators to reduce the rates of food items. Doha residents, in particular bachelors depending on restaurants for their daily food requirements, have said there is no justification for hoteliers to continue to charge the usual rates at a time when they are procuring many essential edible items at discounted prices mandated by the ministry of business and trade. Since the ministry’s directives to shopkeepers came into effect on July 15, the prices of a number of essential edible items have come down at hypermarkets and supermarkets, and also at several groceries. Some of the bachelors complain that the government’s directive to reduce prices of 268 items for regular consumption has come as a windfall for hotel operators, who by and large, make bulk purchases of the items that they require daily. “Perhaps the segments that benefited most from the ministry’s directive on prices are those running eateries, including cafeterias and restaurants. They charge the same prices as they used to even though they are getting several provisions at reduced rates until August 31,” said Mohamed Usman, a resident who depends on restaurants for his daily food requirements. The public also pointed out that many restaurants have absolutely no control over prices these days and are exploiting their customers in the absence of any price monitoring mechanism by authorities. “It is high time authorities intervened to monitor the prices charged by most restaurant operators,” said Iqbal Manna, a social activist in the Indian community. He called upon the authorities to take steps to implement uniform prices for food items served at all medium and small restaurants. “All restaurant operators are buying goods from major retailers, who are supplying foodstuffs at discounted prices since the issuance of Ramadan guidelines by the ministry,” he said. Another person said there is hardly any difference in the quality and quantity of regular food items served at most restaurants. “It is ironical indeed that each of them is charging different rates for the same food, and that too at a time when they are getting foodstuffs at reduced rates.” He recalled that in the absence of any price mechanism, he paid different rates for his Iftars at different restaurants even though food items served at all hotels were similar. This person also complained that some restaurants effect increase in the price of their food items at intervals even without getting mandatory permission from authorities. Another person called for frequent inspections at restaurants. He said while he has seen officials of the ministry of business and trade conducting inspections even at small groceries, he has rarely seen them inspecting restaurants. He recalled that when the authorities issued strict operational guidelines to restaurants and cafeterias in 2007, the restaurant operators effected necessary modifications to escape fines. “Now things are back to square one,” he said. Quoting statistics of some of the items sold at discounted prices these days, a resident said most hoteliers make at least 200% or more profit from even a one litre pack of milk. “While 2litres of a well-known brand of milk costs only QR10 now, a small restaurant operator makes at least 25 servings of coffee from the same, which he sells for QR50,” he said. “It is time the ministry intervened to bring down the prevailing prices of all items, including coffee.”