Bengaluru restaurants mulling charge for overstaying customers

A hoteliers’ body in Bengaluru is considering collecting a fee from groups that linger at restaurants for long business meetings, without ordering much. Real estate deal-makers form the majority of these groups, they say.

Restaurant staff say agents and clients occupy tables for hours, ordering just coffee or tea and most times, two people share one cup. Meanwhile, other diners are left waiting for seats, or simply walk away.

“Right now, it’s only a proposal. Each restaurant will decide if and how much to charge. It will not be a penalty, but a fee for using the premises,” says P C Rao, president, Bruhat Bengaluru Hotels Association. On a trial basis, about 20 member restaurants have decided to put up notices discouraging such meetings. The aim is to instil caution, not make money, he clarifies.

The proposal comes after a viral post by X user Shobhit Bakliwal, who shared a photo of a notice from an unidentified Bengaluru eatery. It read: “No meetings allowed. Meetings lasting more than one hour will be charged Rs 1,000 per hour.”

Small outlets affected

Rao says such meetings have increased in real estate hotspots such as K R Puram, Whitefield, Hoskote, Nelamangala, Mysore Road and Yelahanka. “When real estate discussions don’t go well, there can be disappointment and even loud quarrels. These groups not only occupy tables for long periods but also take up parking space,” he says.

The manager of a restaurant in Devanahalli says they sometimes suffer a 5-8% loss in business during peak hours due to such meetings. “Now we ask them to sit in our party hall if it is empty,” he says. Rao says the issue mainly affects restaurants with limited seating — not darshinis, outlets with communal dining, coworking cafes, or bars. Such transactions are also commonplace at hotels near government offices, says Arun Adiga of Vidyarthi Bhavan.

Duration is not the only concern. “There are worries about anti-social elements using restaurants. In one or two cases, police have had to visit the premises, which brings a bad name to the eatery,” Rao says. Some establishments, like A2B in HSR Layout, have also stuck notices advising against political discussions.

Agents without offices

At Shivalli Restaurant in Jayanagar, three Kannada notices state that the dining hall is not meant for “paperwork”. They were pasted two months ago after a nearby cafe, popular for coworking and meetings, shut down. Its patrons now flock to the 80-seater eatery.

“Regular diners spend 25-30 minutes and place orders worth Rs 150-200 per person. In contrast, groups that come for meetings arrive in batches of four to 10, sit for over an hour and a half, and spend only Rs 20-25 per head. These meetings are mostly about real estate, or families counselling couples over disputes or divorces,” says owner Girishekar Kalkur.

He says the notices haven’t helped, but they “cannot take harsh steps either, as such people could be potential customers”. “Overstaying becomes an issue only on weekends and evenings, when footfall is high. If we ask them to vacate, they order another by-two coffee or a glass of juice and continue the discussion,” he adds.

Nisarga Grand on Nrupathunga Road put up a similar notice around five years ago, after customers demanded proof that sitting for hours was against the rules. Owner Krishnaraj S P is now mulling a Rs 500 fee for overstaying. The outlet is located near the Reserve Bank of India, the police headquarters and the courts, and has ample parking space.

“Our hotel has become a ‘timepass’ place. Around 1,500 real estate agents, contractors and advocates visit daily. The problem is that smaller agents don’t want to spend on office space. When we ask them to order more or leave, they take offence. They say things like they have already ordered, or they’ve been coming here for 20 years,” he says.

In contrast, Sri Lakshmi Vaibhava in Whitefield has seen a drop in such meetings since they barred real estate discussions inside the service hall. While crowd movement has improved, business has not increased significantly, the manager says.

‘Boosts our aura’

Aftab Ali, a real estate advisor from Yeshwanthpur, says meetings are held at project sites or restaurants, depending on the client’s preference. But meeting at good restaurants enhances their “aura” and strengthens their “negotiating power” during deals, he says. “It also boosts the image of smaller brokers present. And in a good setting, one thinks more clearly,” he adds.

Two brokers say restaurants offer a pleasant setting to welcome clients, and often serve as convenient meeting points.

But restaurateurs are caught in a dilemma. They say tracking each guest’s duration to levy extra charges is impractical, and asking people to order more or leave mid-discussion feels awkward. Adiga says it ultimately comes down to customers being mindful of others and recognising that restaurants, like coworking spaces, are businesses.