Two-Michelin-starred chef Sat Bains asks customers to be kind after rudeness and threats from some guests

In an Instagram post, the Nottingham chef asked for his guests to ‘Please be kind to one another’

In the post, Sat Bains, of two-Michelin-starred Restaurant Sat Bains, compared a small proportion of his diners to the Grinch. This comes after, according to the Nottingham Post, new research has shown an increase in rude, unpleasant, and even abusive behaviour from restaurant and pub customers since the end of lockdown.

The post was an image of the Grinch animated character and with it, he wrote, "Just a polite notice to all our amazing guests. We can’t wait to see you, look after you, feed you and wish you the best for Christmas and 2022 in these very trying times. But there is a very small percentage that have literally turned into the Grinch. Miserable, threatening and just plain rude to our team. We are all human and trying our best. Please be kind to one another."

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Sat Bains 🦍🦾🔥 ☬ (@satbains1)

In an interview with Nottinghamshire Live, the chef made it clear that most of the guests at his restaurant are “brilliant” but that a small number of them have been letting everyone down.

Sat listed several complaints that these less-than-kind people had made, including not being able to hear staff who are wearing masks.

He said, "By putting a post out there, I thought, it's a nice way to remind people we are here to look after

Close Message - I might contribute in the future

I love what you do, let me contribute right now

you. Just be nice - we're going to be the best we can with you. Chill, we're here to make sure you can enjoy three or four hours of escapism.”

He said, "I don't know what it is, whether it's the time of year, whether it's stress but some people have been rude. This was just a gentle reminder we are all in this together so let's be nice to one another."

The chef also made a point to say that as a restaurant, they have received “loads of good feedback” from their guests and that even those guests have noticed that “in their businesses not in the industry there's a very small percentage quite aggressively rude or just not in the spirit of everybody together.”

He compared it to the time just after the first lockdown and said that it felt like “we were all in this together,” but said that now “that honeymoon period, I felt, was over a while ago.”

In the midst of talk about restrictions and a difficult Christmas, the chef said they were trying to make the best out of the situation whilst also looking after people and keeping up the safety regulations.

Even with that, he said, “there's been a few - it's like they don't want to be there. They've not embraced the experience as we'd have hoped and left a bit of a dampener on things, the way they spoke to certain members of staff.”

Small Contribution. Big Impact.

The Staff Canteen has always been more than a website—it’s a community, built by and for hospitality. We share the wins, the challenges, the graft, and the inspiration that keeps kitchens alive.

We believe in staying open to everyone, but creating this content takes real resources. If you’ve ever found value here—whether it’s a recipe, an interview, or a laugh when you needed it most—consider giving just £3 to keep it going.

A little from you keeps this space free for all. Let’s keep lifting the industry, together.