'A bowl of vermicelli soup with crab soup costs 400,000 VND' and the story of price transparency during holidays and Tet

From the story of three bowls of vermicelli soup in Hanoi for 1.2 million VND and four Japanese scallops in Vung Tau for 1.4 million VND, it is necessary to raise the issue of transparency of restaurants during holidays and Tet.

Illustration photo - Photo: DANG KHUONG

In the first days of the new year, many people were excited about the story of a vermicelli soup restaurant in Hanoi charging 400,000 VND/bowl, three people eating three bowls for 1.2 million VND and the story of four Japanese scallops in Vung Tau selling for more than 1.4 million VND.

The two stories quickly became hot topics, attracting thousands of comments with many conflicting opinions. Besides the frustration about unreasonable price increases, the question about the transparency of restaurants during the holidays and Tet was once again raised.

Three bowls of vermicelli soup for 1.2 million VND, if it's a joke, it's not a funny joke.

According to the customers, they went to eat late at night on the first day of Tet without asking the price first, and when they paid, they were shocked by the high price.

After the news spread, relatives and some regular customers spoke up to defend the restaurant, saying that the owner had a habit of "joking" about prices. For example, 20 thousand is "mine is 20 million" or 100 thousand is 1 billion.

However, if this joke is misleading and the customer actually transfers that rather large "joke" amount, it is no longer a joke, but a serious business problem.

Notably, the owner initially reacted quite harshly, even challenging the customer to report to the police. However, when presented with evidence of the 1.2 million VND transaction, they apologized and offered a refund.

The roundabout way of handling the matter has made the situation more tense, causing many people to question the honesty of the restaurant.

The above story is not uncommon, especially during Tet or major holidays. Recently, local authorities in Vung Tau also said they are verifying information from an anonymous social media account posting content about 4 scallops priced at more than 1.4 million VND.

Not only restaurants, other services such as parking, hairdressing, car washing… also take advantage of holidays and Tet to increase prices indiscriminately, some places even charge prices depending on… the customer’s face. That has caused much dissatisfaction among many diners.

Business that is not based on honesty will first affect the reputation of the restaurant itself and will not be clear to customers.

Especially today, customers have so many tools to share their experiences, from social media to online review platforms. Just one price scandal can make a restaurant lose a large number of loyal customers.

Business culture, is it important?

In Ho Chi Minh City and some other localities, surcharges during holidays and Tet have become a common and reasonable rule by clearly posting prices. Many restaurants open to serve customers during Tet have reasonable calculations to ensure both profits and maintain customers' trust.

Restaurants and eateries announce from the beginning a 10-20% surcharge because the cost of hiring staff on Tet is 2-3 times higher than normal days.

Some places post public price lists or clearly note them on the menu for customers to easily refer to before ordering. When paying, the bill also clearly states the surcharge, instead of adding it to the price of the dish in an ambiguous way.

This helps customers not feel "ripped off", but understand the reason for the price increase so they can share.

A culture of price transparency is not only an honest way of doing business, but also a smart business strategy. When customers feel respected, they will tend to return and recommend the restaurant to friends and family.

A restaurant may increase prices during Tet, but if done correctly, customers will still be willing to pay without complaining.

Professionalism in dealing with customers is also very important. When there is feedback about prices, restaurants with a fair business culture often explain clearly, instead of avoiding or reacting harshly. Quickly clarifying the issue and maintaining a good attitude helps avoid unnecessary arguments.

The story of the 400,000 VND bowl of vermicelli soup in Hanoi is a lesson worth pondering. It not only reflects the problem of "follow the rain" prices during holidays and Tet.

If the owner is polite, transparent and explains clearly from the beginning, customers may happily accept and even be willing to pay extra to encourage employees to work during Tet.

On the contrary, if you "close the deal" ambiguously, then only explain or apologize when there is a complaint, it will easily create a bad impression and lose customers in the long run.

A restaurant that is transparent in its prices and polite in its service not only avoids scandals but also builds trust from customers. That is the only sustainable way to do business.

Can the crime of "overcharging" be handled?

Faced with the situation of "overcharging" during holidays and Tet that has not been completely resolved, many opinions say that it is necessary to criminally prosecute the "overcharging" shop owners for the act of "taking advantage of Tet to increase prices to extort property from customers".

According to Clause 1, Article 170 of the 2015 Penal Code, the crime of extortion of property is defined as follows:

"Anyone who threatens to use force or uses other means to mentally intimidate another person in order to appropriate property shall be sentenced to imprisonment from 1 to 5 years."

This is a crime that constitutes a form, so if the owner of the restaurant has an action that shows by attitude, gestures, words that makes the customer feel afraid and believe that the offender will use violence if he does not let him take the property; or the owner of the restaurant has another action that will do something that causes damage to the property, honor, reputation of the customer in order to appropriate money or property, then the objective signs are there and the crime is complete.

But it is also necessary to clarify whether the customer did not discuss or ask again when they found the price unreasonable; or if there was a discussion, the restaurant owner threatened to use force or other psychological intimidation to force the customer to pay a high price for the dish.

In this case, it is also necessary to clarify the customer's mental state, whether he was threatened or not, other elements of the crime as well as related circumstances.

Therefore, it is necessary for competent authorities to clarify whether there are signs of criminal law violations or not, in order to have a basis for accurate handling.

Attorney NGUYEN PHONG PHU

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/bat-bun-rieu-gia-400-000-dong-va-chuyen-minh-bach-gia-ca-dip-le-tet-20250203125830863.htm