The Boston restaurant slammed for its owner who lashed out at a customer who disputed a hefty cancelation fee, insists the customer was never hospitalized and briefly listed the business as permanently closed on Google.
North End eatery TABLE, owned by restauranteur Jen Royle, was listed as closed on Google over the weekend after receiving death threats when a dispute between her and a man who canceled his reservation went viral.
The restaurant’s social media accounts have gone dark, and its myriad reviews – many of which are now negative – can no longer be found on Google or Google Maps. However, their website is still active and customers can still make reservations via the RESY app.
Her lawyer, Michael Ford, told the Boston Herald the restaurant is open and was listed as closed on Google because of the threats Royle had been receiving.
‘She’s been facing attacks on the internet, and now she is getting bombarded with death threats,’ Ford said.
Boston eatery TABLE , owned by restauranteur Jen Royle (pictured), was listed as closed on Google over the weekend after receiving death threats when a dispute between her and a man who cancelled his reservation went viral
The restaurant’s social media accounts have gone dark, and its myriad reviews – many of which are now negative – can no longer be found on Google or Google maps. However their website is still active and customers can still make reservations vie the RESY app
‘The false statements, the defamatory statements, the death threats, the abusive comments, they hurt and she doesn’t want to be hurt anymore.’
In December of last year, Trevor Chauvin-DeCaro made a reservation at TABLE for January 6, when he was planning to take a trip up to Boston to see Madonna at TD Garden.
He had booked their seven-course dinner – which includes a whole roasted garlic dish, a roasted tomato and mozzarella salad, grilled octopus, meatballs, tortellini, parmesan and artichoke risotto, and a desert of profiteroles and sorbet.
But Chauvin-DeCaro said after his Amtrak train was significantly delayed, he found himself in the hospital.
‘The delay was a blessing in disguise. Thank God we were still home,’ he said. He proceeded to head to the ER, after which the entirety of the trip was canceled.
The cancelation meant Chauvin-DeCaro and his husband were forced to make several calls to hotels and businesses, including TABLE, to let them know they wouldn’t be coming.
Because the cancelation occurred inside of the 48-hour window before the TABLE reservation, the staff told the pair they would have to pay the $250 cancelation fee – $125 per person.
Chauvin-DeCaro contacted Chase, his credit card company, to activate the card’s travel protection insurance, which includes coverage for cancelation due to hospitalization and ‘never thought of it again,’ he said – until Royle sent her DM.
She found his account weeks after he’d canceled a booking and sent him a message.
‘Hi Trevor,’ she wrote in an Instagram DM. ‘I own TABLE restaurant in Boston.
‘I just wanted to personally thank you for screwing over my restaurant and my staff when you disputed your cancellation fee. I really hope in the future you have more respect for restaurants, especially small businesses such as mine. Pathetic.’
Chauvin-DeCaro told The Boston Globe when he called TABLE, ‘They were like, «This is our policy, if you have a problem with it, if you’re, quote, «butt hurt about it,» take it up with your credit card directly.»‘
He said he went to his credit card company, ‘Then I never thought about it again. Flash forward to almost two months later and I get a DM from Table, and all of the screenshots are up, saying shame on me.’
Ford told the Globe that Royle does not believe Chauvin-DeCaro canceled because he was hospitalized and said she messaged him because, ‘You work so hard as a small business owner. You work so hard as a woman-owned business. It is a challenge.’
Chauvin-DeCaro said after the dispute initially went viral, ‘I don’t need the death threats and the f-slurs and all of that. It feels weird trying to prove that I was in the hospital to strangers on the internet.’
After the original exchange, the pair went back and forth a while longer. The messages were all shared online by Chauvin-DeCaro and have since amassed some 23million views on X.
At one point, Royle posted on her own Instagram as well as the restaurant’s addressing the fight:
‘BOO HOO. Then call and cancel and explain! DISPUTING A CANCELLATION FEE IS WRONG!!!!
‘I spoke to about a dozen business owners today who shared their frustrations in people walking all over them and disputing their credit card charges. THIS HAS TO STOP! The lack of respect and entitlement is gross,’ she wrote.
She then told Chauvin-DeCaro that she had contacted her legal team.
‘We privately messaged you and you chose to take this public,’ she wrote via the business’s Instagram.
Royle got in a spat with Trevor Chauvin-DeCaro (pictured) after she hunted down on Instagram and messaged him about disputing his cancelation charge after he missed his reservation because he was hospitalized
Royle does not believe Chauvin-DeCaro canceled because he was hospitalized and her attorney said she messaged him because, ‘You work so hard as a small business owner. You work so hard as a woman-owned business. It is a challenge’
‘The amount of slander that the business is receiving is absolutely horrific. You will be hearing from our lawyers.’
A 2021 profile of Royle describes the chef as having little regard for business etiquette or public perception when it comes to calling out customers with whom she disagrees.
‘She also isn’t shy about getting into public spats with rude customers,’ wrote Scott Kearnan for Boston Magazine several years ago.
‘Maybe a diner emails with a complaint about her no-excuses cancellation policy, which charges truant guests in full unless someone else takes their seat. Maybe someone leaves a nasty review online, all because she told their party they were getting too rowdy during dinner.
‘If a guest dispute comes up (as they do at every restaurant) and Royle thinks that she’s right (as she freely admits she almost always does), she has no problem making it clear to customers, past or prospective.’
