How to deal with customers who steal

I was eating breakfast in a little diner in South Kansas City last week and watched a woman at the next table take all of the little packages of jelly from the black plastic tray on her table and dump them into her purse. She didn’t seem to give a damn whether anyone was watching. Why should she? Many restaurant customers have an incredible sense of entitlement when it comes to anything on top of a table. Not just the obvious (and easy to pilfer) condiments, but napkins, flatware, even plates.

Last month, an article on sfgate.com by California restaurant manager T.J. Jacobberger asked: “Why do diners feel the need to steal items from a restaurant?”

The answer, of course, is so obvious: because they’re there!