Welcome to Eater feature Shit People Steal, in which we ask restaurateurs what items in their restaurant have been (or are frequently) stolen.
[Photo: Cook & Brown Public House]
Everyone knows that rocks are free, right? Well, maybe not the people who steal shit from Providence's Cook & Brown Public House. According to chef and owner Nemo Bolin, one of the restaurant's most frequently stolen items are the rocks they use to hold down checks. Perhaps because people thought they were mints? Here's the story:
"The two main items that people seem to like stealing from us are our sandstone coasters that we have at the bar and rocks that we used to hold down the guest checks when we presented them at the end of the meal. The coasters I kind of understand. They're nice and if you come back a few times you can end up with a set for your home.The rocks, simply small polished black rocks, are tougher to figure out. At one point we realized that people thought they were large after-dinner mints, although only one ever made it to the table, so maybe people were taking them home and biting into them later in the evening. Otherwise, people were just stealing a rock. We lost so many that we had to change the way that we presented the bill to people."
