Overcharging Allegations Pay Off for Abu Ghosh Restaurant

Allegations that the Abu Ghosh Restaurant near Yerushalayim grossly overcharged a group of Chinese tourists have been good for business, according to Globes on Monday.

The owner Jawdat Ibrahim said the restaurant was full to capacity over the weekend, despite having been condemned by the Israel Incoming Tour Operators Association. CEO Yossi Fattal publicized the restaurant as an example of how not to attract tourists, by charging 16,500 shekels for a dinner for eight.

Ibrahim maintains that the Chinese tourists “got what they paid for,” and that the main reason for the high price was because they asked him to close the restaurant for the night so that they could have it to themselves, a point that Fattal disputes.

Ibrahim said the criticism “did not do any damage to the restaurant’s reputation but to the state of Israel. I’m prepared to accept their apology and we’ll move forward. I think the Israel Incoming Tour Operators Association did not understand the affair and did a lot of damage. I’m prepared to talk to them and explain the situation but so far they haven’t even spoken to me.”