Low-wage worker pays couple's $245 restaurant bill from her own pocket after they go MIA

A restaurant is looking for a man and a woman who raked up a $245.60 bill and left without paying.

The incident occurred at Lao You Ji Fishhead Steamboat Seafood Restaurant along 245 Outram Road on August 25, at around 4.45am.

A 38-year-old employee named Chen Wei said a couple in their 40s entered the restaurant when it was about to close.

They ordered signature dishes such as Hong Kong steamed fish, three-egg spinach, stewed chicken, rice and two drinks. The turbot fish weighed over 1kg and cost $208 alone.

Chen told Shin Min Daily News: "The chef prepared the food for them at the last minute. Another worker and I also did overtime for them."

After dining for nearly an hour, the couple asked to takeaway the food as they could not finish it.

Chen, who packed the food, recounted: "I thought the couple had already paid for it. I placed the takeaway boxes on the table. The couple took the food and left in a yellow cab."

CCTV footage shows a woman in black shirt and a man in a white shirt seated at a table outside the restaurant, chatting happily and looking calm.

Chen said she had to foot the couple's bill of $245.60 from her own pocket first.

She added: "My monthly salary is only $1,800. This is not a small amount for me. I hope they can return to pay back the money as soon as possible."

However, it has been a week since the incident and the couple has not turned up, leaving Chen with no choice but to approach the media for help.

Chen also shared that she has been working at the restaurant for only a year and was worried that her boss would be unhappy about her mistake.

Her boss is now aware of the incident and will take the necessary steps moving forward if the couple continue to leave their bill unsettled.