A restaurant in Thailand is drawing attention — and criticism — for offering discounts to their skinniest patrons.
Customers at Chiang Mai Breakfast World in the northern Thai city of the same name can get up to 20 per cent off their bill, provided they can fit their body through a series of increasingly narrow gates erected near the beer garden’s entrance.
In a video posted to Instagram earlier this month, a tourist struggles to squeeze between a set of metal bars labelled “15 per cent discount,” but is unable to pass through, even with the help of another man nudging him with his foot.
“You need some butter,” an off-screen voice comments, to laughter.
The tourist then tries the 10 per cent gate, managing to fit his head, one leg and one arm through, but ultimately the gap proves too tight for his torso. Settling for the five per cent gate, he succeeds, then approaches the widest gate, labelled “FULL PRICE … SORRY.”
Posts on a Facebook page advertising the restaurant show that one point, one of the gates offered free food, though a disclaimer on the sign notes that discounts only apply to customers over 18 years of age.
“It’s just for fun but the discounts are real,” reads a post explaining the promotion on the Facebook page. “After the challenge, kick back, relax, and enjoy your well-earned discount with us in our beautiful garden oasis”
The policy has drawn backlash from some.
Social media comments and reviews have expressed discomfort and disgust at the discounts, describing the idea as discriminatory and potentially supportive of eating disorders.
In a response to a review that described the restaurant as “fatophobic,” a Google account listed as Breakfast World’s owner wrote, “We have 200 - 300 guests every day and 99.9% of them have a lot of fun with our discount system.”
“Maybe just not take everything so seriously and see discrimination in everything?” the response continued.
The restaurant has offered other discounts in recent years, from 15 per cent QR-code promotions to an offer of 10 per cent off for patrons willing to lock up their devices in a metal "mobile phone prison" for the duration of their meal.
Breakfast World isn’t the only restaurant to try this kind of discount. Mongolian Master, a buffet in Kuching, Malaysia, shows a similar arrangement on its Facebook page, offering discounts from 10 to 100 per cent for those able to fit themselves through a set of labelled gates.
And at the Heart Attack Grill in downtown Las Vegas, customers are offered unlimited free food, provided they show that they weigh more than 350 pounds (159 kilograms).
