Man calls cops after cafe charged him £1.70 for an espresso

A man called the cops on a cafe in Italy after being charged (€2) £1.70 for an espresso.

And as a result, the cafe was hit with a (€1,000) £850 fine.

Francesco Sanapo, the owner of the cafe Ditta Artigianale in Florence, took to his Facebook to explain the situation.

He said that a customer complained that the price was not shown on the menu behind the counter. However, the pricing information was displayed on a digital menu accessed through a QR code.

Despite this, the rule requires Italy's cafes to show their prices on a menu or behind the counter, so Sanapo's business still received the fine.

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"I believe that with everything that is administered in bars today, this law is a lot of absurdity, and it should be changed; otherwise, 99.9% of bars and restaurants would be easily mistaken," Sanapo wrote in the video's caption.

"I'm not one who uses social media to complain, but this time they touched a button that was too important for me and for the entire hospitality sector and in particular for the coffee/coffee shop world," he continued.

Sanapao also said that the espresso was pricier than other coffees because it was made from beans that come from a specific plantation in Chiapas, Mexico.

Single-shot espressos generally cost around €1 in Italy.

In a subsequent video, Sanapo said he didn't take issue so much with the fine in itself, which he said he would pay, but with Italy's fixation on having access to cheap coffee at the expense of good quality.

"I'm here to fight as long as the right value is given. I'm here for an entire category and for the future of the Italian coffee shop and hospitality," he wrote in the video's caption.

"I'm here to make sure that no one else is outraged if they pay two euros for an espresso. It's a mission, and I will carry out with my head held high."

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