A group of customers walked out on their bill at a restaurant on Saint-Denis Street on Christmas Eve. The incident was captured on surveillance video at Mama Khan, a Pakistani restaurant known for giving back. “These are the free meal tickets,” said owner Abdul Raziq Khan, who runs his business with a focus on helping others. But that generosity was tested when a group of eight men came in to eat, and four of them left without paying. “This kind of shocking and surprising that people actually do that in 2025, 2026 soon,” Khan said. He says the men complained the meal wasn’t worth the price and walked out while only one employee, a 19-year-old waiter, was working. “He’s a young waiter. And having eight grown men around. It could be intimidating,” Khan said. The restaurant lost $160, a significant amount during a slow period for business. “$160 is a lot, especially when you only make $1,000 a day. Not profit, just total sales. So you can imagine losing hundred dollars,” he said. Khan says the situation feels unfair, especially given how much the restaurant gives back. With the holidays underway, Khan didn’t have time to file a police report right away. On Boxing Day, he was out on the streets distributing free meals. Since opening in 2021, Mama Khan has served more than 15,000 hot meals to people in need. “I’m like, hey, look, I always want to be a social worker. I always wanted to give back. Why not give it through my restaurant? And then slowly, slowly, we’re leveling up,” Khan said. After the video went viral on social media, someone reached out and paid for the stolen meals. Khan says he’s grateful for the support and thankful no one was hurt. He says he still plans to report the incident to police. “I don’t want to get people in trouble, but I just want to teach them a lesson where. Hey, look, you can’t be doing this,” he said. It’s a lesson he hopes they learn sooner rather than later.
