Restaurateur goes viral for adding $50 to parents’ bill, saying kids belong ‘at Burger King’—that’s bad leadership: Expert

When a restaurant owner went viral for charging a mother a $50 “unable to parent” fee, allegedly yelling at her when she protested, some people praised him.

Others, including a LinkedIn Learning leadership expert, say it’s inappropriate — and an example of what good bosses never do, even when dealing with a stressful environment.

“Yelling is never appropriate in the workplace. That can be seen as abusive and harassment,” Chelsea Jay, a Lansing, Michigan-based leadership coach, tells CNBC Make It. The incident, as described by the mother, shows a “huge lack of communication and clarity” from the restaurant owner, Jay adds.

Here’s what happened, and why Jay says every boss should take note and learn from it.

The mother, Lyndsey Landmann, saw the “adult surcharge” policy written on the menu at Toccoa Riverside Restaurant in Blue Ridge, Georgia, she recently told NBC’s “TODAY.” Landmann was part of a group of four families, including 11 kids between ages 3 and 8 — and was amazed at how “good” and “well behaved” the children were during the meal, she said.

The restaurant’s owner, Tim Richter, seemingly felt differently. He notified Landmann of a $50 charge per bill at their table, because the kids were “too loud,” she said.

“I was like, ‘They were quiet the whole time.’ He got in our faces and told us that we belonged at Burger King and not at his restaurant,” said Landmann. “I looked around the restaurant and everybody was frozen, watching this show he was putting on. He was yelling.”

The restaurant didn’t immediately respond to Make It’s request for comment. “We’re not going to comment on a policy we’ve had for years. We just want to live in the woods and cook,” an employee told “TODAY.”

In this context, the restaurant owner’s approach is a poor one, says Jay.

Bosses set the standard for how workplaces run, no matter if it’s a restaurant or office. “One of the things that I teach the…