Police called to pub in row over 'well done' steak
Nicola Kendal, a 42-year-old secretary from Frampton Cotterell, was unimpressed with the steak she was served at the White Hart Inn pub in Iron Acton, south Gloucester. She refused to pay for the dish, and the next thing she knew, the police showed up.
Nicola told the Telegraph that she ordered the £18.95 16oz T-bone steak 'medium', but when it arrived it was 'well done' - and she felt it was a bit tough. She complained and sent it back - refusing a replacement because she didn't want to be left eating when everyone else had finished.
She hadn't expected to be charged, but when the bill arrived there was £9.99 listed for the steak.
According to the Daily Mail, she refused to pay, and argued with the landlady, Joanne Keane. The women disagree about who was argumentative and who was aggressive, but in any case, during the argument, Joanne pressed a panic button under the bar, which automatically called the police.
Nicola says she was humiliated and embarrassed. She claimed two police cars and a "riot van" arrived at the pub, and she was persuaded to pay the £9.99 and leave.
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Greene King, the owners of the pub, told the Daily Mail: "We are a family-friendly country pub and pride ourselves on our welcoming atmosphere and staff that is enjoyed by many people on a daily basis. We fully respect our customer's rights to complain if they feel their food is not to the quality they expect, however aggressive behaviour towards team members in our pubs should not have to be tolerated."
"A decision was made to contact the police as the manager felt it was the only way to resolve the situation."
Odd police calls
It's a fairly unusual reason for calling the police, but over the years, the police have released far more bizarre examples.
Back in July, West Midlands Police released details of some of their strangest calls. They included a man who called because he had got his finger stuck in a bottle and a woman who had found an injured seagull in her garden.
Around the same time, Devon and Cornwall police revealed a man had called them because he had run out of toilet paper, and Avon and Somerset police said a man had called to report a seagull for stealing his sandwich.
Last year, a Manchester United fan rang police to complain that Manchester United had lost in the Capital One Cup. He apparently said "I want to report a crime. The crime is that Manchester United were absolutely knackered."
Avon and Somerset police at the time also revealed that an elderly woman had called because she couldn't find her glasses.
And later that year a woman in Birmingham called because there weren't enough sprinkles on her ice cream. During the call she insisted: "It doesn't seem like much of an emergency but it is".
