DINNER AT — ?

Auckland Star, Volume LXVIII, Issue 69, 23 March 1937, Page 5

DINNER AT — ?

STORY WITH MORAL.

EXPERIENCE IN AUCKLAND.

TOURIST MEAL FACULTIES.

Recent articles in the "Star" describing the inadequate meal facilities for tourists in New Zealand have prompted a correspondent, who signs himself "Less Restrictions," to forward excerpts from a book, "Fifty Thousand Miles of Sun," written in lfl2o by Mr. R. Scotland Liddell. The correspondent comments that the following "pathetic picture was painted by Mr. Liddell when he visited the Dominion ten years ago. How much more sombre it would be if he sketched it to-day," he adds. Mr. Liddell began his impressions of New Zealand as follows: —

At five minutes past seven on the evening of my first day in New Zealand I went into the dining room of my £ hotel in Auckland for dinner. It was t rather early for my evening meal, but * I was hungry after a .long motor ride « in the surrounding country. (I had arrived in Auckland at 6.30 in the morn- i ing.) There was no one in the dining 1 room except a solitary waitress who 1 was laying tables. My friends and I sat down at a small table, and I addressed the girl. "Good evening," I said. "I am afraid : we are rather early, but perhaps you can serve us with some simple dish or other?" "You are too late for dinner," said ' the waitress. i This was evidently humour, go we laughed pleasantly. I "Supper, then," said I. "A meal by j any other name would taste as good. - Anything you have ready wili d«.." t "You are too late," said the waitress severely. "Later on in the evening you

will find cold meats in the room next! door, and you can help yourselves." j

And, to end the argument, she hummed a dreary melody and shuffled knives and forks about.

Dinner, it appeared, was served from six to seven. On Sunday evenings no dinner was served at all—a "high tea" at 5.30 was the substitute. The tables that were being laid were for the morning's breakfast.

I am a mild-tempered man, therefore there was no need for my friend's remarks, but let me give them as they were made to me. "Rather Lose a Guest." "For heaven's sake don't make a row," he whispered. "The hotel people here would rather lose a guest than a servant." "But," said I, "this is an hotel. We are staying here. We are hungry. According to the laws —" "According to the labour laws." said he, "all servants have their stated hours for work. Outside of these, apparently, is a close season for hot food. I had forgotten this till now." "Well, then," said I, as we went from the dining room, "let's go to some public house. Some sandwiches —"

"In New Zealand," said my friend, n "all public-houses close at 6 p.m." ri Anyhow, we had no dinner. At nine t o'clock we found the room containing the cold meats, and there we helped ourselves. Other guests were there, and as P some of us cut our meat horizontally, n and others vertically, the joints were * somewhat ragged by the time that we 8 had satisfied ourselves. Newcomers had I to stack the plates we had used in order l to make table-space for themselves. * Criticism Justified. a Giving his own views, "Less Restric- ,1 tions" states: "There is no reason to < assume that because it is not customary t for tourists to lodge publicly complaints < about hotel service and other matters, i everything meets their requirements; < because, as a rule, they feel that, as guests to the country, it would be impolite to do so. I am inclined to think that Mr. Joe Kirkwood's criticism has been fully justified and, if it takes us out \>f our smug complacency, it will ■ do a power of good. "Only yesterday I was told by a i traveller that he motored from Napier ij to Whakatane with the idea of stay ing]

there for the night; being unable to obtain accommodation he proceeded to Tauranga. He was again unsuccessful, so went on to Hamilton, arriving at midnight. He could not get accommodation and had to motor to Auckland where he arrived in time for breakfast.

"To travel abroad for a year or two and come back to New Zealand as a (tourist would make one more fully realise the discomforts and inconveniences to which visitors are subjected." the correspondent concludes.