Restaurant Owner Defends Service After Five-Hour Customer Complaint

Station Fresh Noodles owner Ton Hom has explained the timeline of a dispute with a customer who sat in the restaurant for about five hours after ordering just one pad Thai dish. The owner states the location comprises two separate zones: a cafe called Husk of Thurachai and a food restaurant called Station Fresh Noodles, operated by different owners. The restaurant name honors the original property owner, Luang Thuraprakas.

According to Ton Hom, the customer group first visited the cafe and asked whether the two establishments were connected. After the cafe clarified they were separate, a female customer entered Station Fresh Noodles at around 3:58 p.m. and ordered pad Thai. She then sat talking and working for an extended period, arriving around 1:00 p.m. and remaining until approximately 6:00 p.m.

Around 5:30 p.m., the customer left to see off a friend and returned to sit by the waterfront area, leaving her bag with staff. Because the restaurant had three to four advance table reservations and the customer's bag was on a chair, staff moved it near the CCTV camera by the exit to prevent other customers from knocking it down. When the customer returned and noticed her bag had been moved, she inquired about it. Staff confirmed they had kept her drink and provided it to her by the waterfront.

The customer then asked who the manager was. Ton Hom introduced himself as the owner and explained that the customer had been seated since around 1:00-6:00 p.m., but as a restaurant with subsequent table bookings, space needed to be arranged because the venue is not a cafe or workspace where customers can work all day. Ton Hom insisted he did not intend to remove the customer and even provided water and ice to her by the waterfront, where she sat for about 20 minutes before preparing to leave.

Before departing, the customer leaned toward the restaurant area and said she had originally planned to return for another meal but would not do so and would not use the service again. The staff responded politely, "No problem, thank you." The customer then expressed dissatisfaction loudly, shouting "This restaurant is rubbish" before leaving.

Afterward, the customer posted a negative review on Google Maps and social media, criticizing the food and service and claiming staff and owner behavior was inappropriate, including references to gender issues. Ton Hom stated that after seeing the review, the restaurant took screenshots of all the messages and initially chose not to respond, viewing the customer as a customer and wanting to avoid conflict. However, when certain points seemed to cross the line, the owner decided to clarify the situation.