'Mortifying': Toronto woman says restaurant shamed her for ordering too much food
A Toronto woman says she was shamed for the size of her order at a sushi restaurant north of the city in a scathing review posted to social media that’s been viewed more than 1.4 million times.
In a TikTok video posted this week about the April 28 incident, Cassandra Mauro said she and a friend were famished after working out at the gym and went to get some sushi late last month.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
“No. Too much food. That’s it,” Mauro recalls the server telling the pair as they placed their order.
“Is it? Is it too much food?’ We didn’t order that much. We ordered three apps and two rolls and also we’re starving,” she said.
Mauro said after their order was placed, the server scoffed at them.
Then, according to Mauro, the manager of the a la carte King City restaurant came to their table and said, “Hungry?”
“She goes, ‘Yeah. You ordered too much food. It’s not going to fit on this table. Get up. Move to this table.’”Cassandra Mauro says she was shamed for the size of her order at a sushi restaurant in King City in a review posted to social media that’s gone viral. (TikTok/cassmauro)
The pair decided to stay and try and enjoy their meal, but said they could see the chef from their table laughing at them.
“We finished all of [the food]. We paid and we tipped. Now, I’m looking back on this whole interaction and I’m like, ‘That was mortifying,’” Mauro said.
Paper Crane Sushi, which Mauro identified as the business, did not respond to CTV News Toronto’s request for comment.
RESTAURANT APOLOGIZES
In response to the incident, the business owner issued a lengthy apology to Mauro and her friend, and said something during the interaction may have been lost in translation.
“We sincerely apologize for any comments that may have caused a negative experience … Many of our staff speak English as a second language, but we hope you know it was never the intention of staff to make you (or anyone) feel judged at our restaurant,” Paper Crane Sushi wrote in a post to Instagram.
The post went on to say the business owners have discussed the incident with their staff members and have “looked closely” at how they speak to customers.
“We’re also taking time to address language barriers and make sure our words have the appropriate meaning.”
Paper Crane Sushi, which the business said is Korean-owned, said the incident has triggered threats and racially-motivated harassment, and as such the owners have turned comments off on their social media pages.
Sushi file photo. (Source: Pexels)
Negative Google reviews of the establishment referencing the incident have also surfaced -- which Mauro said she does not condone -- but appear to have since been removed as they likely go against the platform’s deceptive content policies.
For her part, Mauro said in a follow up video it was not her intention to generate such a negative response to the business, and that she just wanted to share her experience, albeit to an admittedly much larger audience than she intended.
“I appreciate that they are taking the steps to re-educate their staff,” she told CTV News Toronto.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NDP motion regarding Palestinian statehood passes after major Liberal alterations
A motion from the federal New Democrats initially calling on Canada to recognize the 'State of Palestine' passed amid widespread acrimony on Monday, after the Liberals drastically altered its wording to see the government simply work towards that aim as part of a two-state solution.
'He didn't want to die': Family of Calgary man killed in standoff speaks out
Family of a Calgary man killed after a 30-hour standoff with police last week are speaking out, sharing details of the tense and heart-wrenching experience.
Toronto family doctor who called patient's body 'perfect' suspended for 3 months: tribunal
A family doctor in Toronto has been suspended for three months after a disciplinary tribunal found that he failed to follow proper protocols while examining a patient's breasts and made inappropriate comments about her body.
Ohio mom who left toddler alone 10 days when she went on vacation pleads guilty to aggravated murder
An Ohio mother whose 16-month-old daughter died after being left home alone in a playpen for 10 days last summer while she went on vacation was sentenced Monday to life in prison with no chance of parole.
Retired teacher pleads guilty to paying for sex with 15-year-old in Collingwood, Ont.
In a Barrie courtroom on Monday, a retired high school teacher from the Niagara Region pleaded guilty to sexual touching and obtaining sexual services from a 15-year-old boy in Collingwood in 2021.
Hertz CEO out following electric car 'horror show'
The company, which announced in January it was selling 20,000 of the electric vehicles in its fleet, or about a third of the EVs it owned, is now replacing the CEO who helped build up that fleet, giving it the company’s fifth boss in just four years.
5 charged in Calgary kidnappings that targeted women
Calgary police have charged five men in a pair of kidnappings last year that targeted innocent victims.
Demand soars for solar eclipse glasses in Canada. Are they worth buying?
The demand for total solar eclipse glasses used to safely view the rare celestial event has been ramping up as sellers, along with astronomy and eye-care experts in Canada, warn that viewing the eclipse with the naked eye is dangerous.
Canadian commander of volunteer fighter group dies in Ukraine
A Canadian-born commander of the so-called Norman Brigade, a volunteer fighting group in Ukraine, has died.