Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
NARRATOR: Tonight on "Mystery Diners,"
David and Petra Vieira, owners of Redballs Rock & Roll Pizza
in Moorpark, California,
are concerned about a discrepancy in pizza supplies.
PETRA: You would think beer supplies
or the alcohol supplies would be off,
but they're right on track.
It's just the pizza.
NARRATOR: Is their manager stealing from them
or doing something much worse?
CHARLES: Whoever that guy is,
he's taking one of your barstools
and he's sitting out in front of your restaurant.
What the "F" is going on there?
NARRATOR: The Mystery Diners are rocking out
in order to show David and Petra what's really going on.
PETRA: I want to jump out of my chair
and wring somebody's neck right now.
NARRATOR: Owning a restaurant isn't easy.
You can have great food, atmosphere, and customers,
but reckless employees...
You're being a jerk, man.
...can ruin everything.
That's where the Mystery Diners come in.
Charles Stiles has helped thousands of restaurants
find their problems and remove them.
He sends in his team of undercover operatives...
I'm Chris. I'm the new supply guy.
...to show restaurant owners
what really happens when they're not around.
MAN: You were stealing from me.
I want to go over there right now! I want to go over there right now!
This is my business!
That food is my life!
-- Captions by VITAC --
Closed Captions provided by Scripps Networks, LLC.
My name is David Vieira. This is my wife, Petra.
PETRA: And we own Redballs Rock & Roll Pizza.
Here in Moorpark, California.
You might think that Rock & Roll Pizza is just a catchy name
that somebody would label on something,
but this truly is our identity.
I'm a former musician.
Petra's designed clothes for all the major rock bands.
We put our heart and soul into it.
This is who we are.
DAVID: We serve only authentic, thin-crust, New York pizza.
We import all of our ingredients from the East Coast.
We even brought our chef, Mike, from Staten Island.
All of our pizzas are great.
You really need to try the Brooklyn pie.
It's pepperoni, crumbled sausage,
and thinly sliced meatballs.
There's no mistake. It's the real thing.
We have some of the biggest rock names on the planet
that play in this place.
The Counting Crows, Neil Young's Crazy Horse,
the Foo Fighters.
You just never know who's gonna show up
and play on this little, tiny stage.
It's a musician magnet.
[ Cheers and applause ]
PETRA: Aside from having a great restaurant,
we also have a Redballs Rock clothing line.
DAVID: And since we've been spending more time away,
we've noticed that our pizza supplies are just not adding up.
You would think that because it's like rock 'n' roll,
beer supplies or the alcohol supplies would be off,
but they're right on track.
It's just the pizza.
It's gotten to the point
where it's really hurting our bottom line.
We really need help because our business is suffering.
And that's why we called Mystery Diners.
CHARLES: Hi, David, Petra?
Charles Stiles, Mystery Diners.
PETRA: Hi. Nice to meet you.
Pleasure to meet you.
This is Amber. She's one of our Mystery Diners.
Very nice to meet you.
What a great restaurant.
I love the rock 'n' roll theme and your fire truck out front.
That's really cool.
We've done events as far away
as Monterey Jazz Festival and Coachella.
That's pretty awesome.
So, what seems to be the problem?
We have a lot of loss of pizza supplies,
and it's really starting to affect our bottom line.
There's a huge discrepancy in the number of pizzas being sold.
So, how long has this problem been going on?
PETRA: Well, it's started a couple of months ago.
David and I --
we spent some time away to work on our web store,
and we hired a manager -- Jesse.
And ever since, we noticed that problem,
especially on our big band nights.
Maybe the bands are taking advantage of him, you know?
He's always good friends with them,
and maybe he wants to please them.
If somebody's giving away free food, free alcohol, whatever it is, I mean,
you certainly can't afford to have it disappear.
NARRATOR: For this sting,
Mystery Diners will be focusing on Jesse,
a manager who may be responsible
for a discrepancy in pizza supplies.
We come in.
We wire up your entire restaurant
with hidden cameras, microphones,
basically anyplace an employee can be.
One of the other things we like to do is
bring in undercover Mystery Diners.
I'll come in as a waitress, and if I see anyone,
whether it's employees or band members,
stealing any of your supplies,
I'm gonna report back to Charles.
Also, if there's any musicians that you trust,
it might be a good idea to make them a Mystery Diner
and have them come in on the night of the sting.
If this problem keeps going on, it could ruin us.
We would have to shut our doors.
NARRATOR: To carry out the sting,
cameras have been hidden at key locations
throughout Redballs Rock & Roll Pizza.
Four cameras have been set up in the main dining room
to give an overall perspective
of the restaurant and its customers.
Two cameras have been set up in the kitchen,
three cameras have been set up in the bar,
and two cameras have been set up by the main entrance
to track any action that happens outside.
Mystery Diner Amber
will go undercover as a waitress in training,
Grant will pose as a customer,
and Robbie, a regular performer at Redballs,
has been recruited as a mole.
Wow!
[ Chuckles ]
CHARLES: Well, guys, welcome to your control room.
Wow.
You can tell we've got every angle covered,
and you can see we've got your parking lot,
we've got the inside of your restaurant,
your dining areas, the back of your kitchen.
Yeah, this is a whole different angle on all of it.
So, this looks like your manager, Jesse, here.
Yeah, that's him.
He's been a stagehand. He's been a roadie forever.
He's, you know, run a lot of sound equipment.
This guy's worked with some of the best.
Oh, that's Erika.
She's polite. She seems like she's doing a good job so far.
Yeah, so far, so good.
As you guys know,
we've had Mystery Diner Amber implanted inside your restaurant
a few days in advance of the sting.
That way, we could infiltrate your staff
and find out what's going on from the inside perspective.
AMBER: I've been working undercover as a waitress for the past few days,
and I haven't noticed anything out of the ordinary.
I'm learning.
The manager, Jesse, is nice,
but he's definitely a man of few words.
So, you like the bands that come through here?
Oh. Okay.
So, David, since tonight's one of your concert nights,
how do you compensate your bands for coming in and playing?
If they're an up-and-coming act,
we just give them food and free drinks.
If they're an established band,
like the Wrong Dots or Chum, that are playing tonight,
we throw them an extra 50 bucks.
So, we left an envelope underneath the cash register
with two $50 bills in it.
Well, it looks like Jesse's got the cash.
This is gonna be a good tester of his integrity
because, at the end of the day, he's your manager.
When you're not here, he's responsible.
Absolutely.
[ Indistinct conversations ]
You guys recognize this big guy here
talking to your manager, Jesse?
No, I've never seen him before.
He just gave him a stamp. What would that be about?
Maybe people that are underage can't get alcohol?
I don't know.
Is that something you have in place?
Normally we check I.D.s at the bar.
We don't check them at the door.
Whoever that guy is that Jesse was talking to,
he's taking one of your barstools
and he's sitting out in front of your restaurant.
What the "F" is going on there?
NARRATOR: Coming up...
Who does this guy think he is?
I guess.
It's making me sick just to watch it.
NARRATOR: David and Petra Vieira,
owners of Redballs Rock & Roll Pizza
in Moorpark, California,
are concerned about a discrepancy in pizza supplies.
If this problem keeps going on, it could ruin us.
We would have to shut our doors.
NARRATOR: Charles has set up a control room next to Redballs,
where David and Petra can watch
everything that happens in their restaurant
with our hidden cameras.
Wow.
Mystery Diner Amber
has gone undercover as a waitress in training.
And after starting the sting,
David and Petra watch as manager Jesse
uses an unidentified bouncer at the door.
CHARLES: Well, we can't hear what they're saying,
but I looks like they're exchanging money.
We never, ever charge a cover -- ever.
This looks a little suspicious.
PETRA: He cannot just come here
and start giving out stamps or stuff.
I mean, what the "F" is going on there?
You know, I think now is a good time
to send in Mystery Diner Grant
to go and investigate what's going on with this bouncer.
Yeah.
All right, Grant, go ahead and go on in
and check out this bouncer.
GRANT: As Mystery Diners,
we're prepared to adapt to any scenario.
And although I was originally assigned here
to check on the discrepancies in pizza supplies,
the fact that the manager has his own bouncer working here
is worth investigating.
Good. How are you?
I always come here. I never have to pay five bucks.
This is not our policy. Who the hell is this guy?
Tell him you just want to buy some pizza and leave.
I'm not even here for, like, the band or anything.
I'm just grabbing a pizza.
I have to pay five bucks just to go inside and get a pizza?
That's crazy.
Just pay him the five bucks and go on in.
This is just not right.
Seeing this bouncer collect covers
does not bode well for Jesse, but let's see how it pans out.
I'm getting really pissed off now.
[ Indistinct conversations ]
So, it looks like one of your bands coming in right here?
Yeah, that's Chum,
a killer surf band from southern California.
They play all original music -- really good, old friends.
Awesome. Can't wait to hear them play.
That's -- That's crazy.
Is that your normal practice,
that you pay the band members at the end of the night?
No. We always pay them at the beginning of the night.
It's absolutely not normal and it doesn't look right,
and I don't know what the heck he's doing.
You say that's not the normal practice.
It does look a little bit odd, but we know he has the money.
We'll give him the benefit of the doubt,
pay attention to what happens,
and see how he pays him out at the end of the night.
I need to trust my manager. That's the number-one thing.
Okay.
Chum's onstage. It looks like they're getting ready to play.
[ Rock music plays ]
Did Jesse just ask that table for a cover charge?
That's exactly what it looks like, right?
You know, I mean, it's one thing
for a place to get customers coming through the door,
but you never go back
after customers are already in the place.
No, you can't do that because you get angry customers,
and one angry customer drives away 10 good ones.
Who does this guy think he is?
Because Jesse couldn't collect $20 from those customers,
you're losing out on the money
they would have spent the rest of the night.
Charles, can we stop this right now?
If we went out there now and stopped this -- which I understand your frustration --
you would not know what's happening to all your pizza supplies.
So let's just hang tight a little bit longer,
so we'll pay extra attention to him
and just find out exactly what he does with the money at the end of the night.
I want to find out exactly what your manager, Jesse, is telling the band,
so I'm gonna send in Robbie Rist,
a musician that you recommended we use
as a Mystery Diner band member.
And this way, we'll have an insider's view
of exactly how Jesse's treating your bands.
Sounds good.
All right, Robbie, go on in.
[ Cheers and applause ]
How you doing? Good to see you.
Robbie, ask Chum
about not getting the $50 up front like you usually get.
Did Jesse stick you...?
Yeah, that's what he told me, too.
Weird, right? That's kind of weird.
Chum is obviously upset with Jesse,
and he's jeopardizing your relationship with the bands.
They were expecting payment up front like they normally get.
That's just not right, you know?
Guys that'll tell you they're gonna pay you
and then rip you off in the end --
It's just not fair.
And that's definitely not a reputation you want to have.
The bands are what we're all about.
Without them, we're nothing.
I guess.
The fact that they're not happy with Jesse --
that's gonna destroy any kind of relationship you have.
It's making me sick just to watch it.
NARRATOR: With the help of hidden cameras and undercover Mystery Diners,
David and Petra Vieira,
owners of Redballs Rock & Roll Pizza,
have learned that manager Jesse is using an unidentified bouncer
to collect an unauthorized cover charge at the door...
We've never, ever charged a cover -- ever.
...collecting money
from customers already inside the restaurant...
...and threatening the owners' relationship with the band
by withholding payment.
The fact that they're not happy with Jesse --
that's gonna destroy any kind of relationship you have.
We worked so hard to get this place on the map.
And if they hear that we're, like, treating musicians badly,
they're not gonna come anymore.
Honestly, without the bands we have playing here,
[scoffs] we could possibly be out of business.
That's where we really make all our money.
[ Applause ]
One, two, and...
♪ What you see is what you get ♪
♪ What you see is what you get ♪
Jesse just asked Erika about how many beers she put aside for him.
What does that mean?
I'd like to find out.
We need to shift our focus to Erika at the register.
Can it zoom in with the camera right on top of that?
Even better, I'll have Mystery Diner Amber
give us a closer look using her eyeglass cam.
It's a good idea.
Amber, go shadow at the register.
AMBER: Okay, Charles, I'll do it now.
Well, here comes a customer.
Wait. Did you see that?
She just rang up those two slices of pizza
as two light beers.
That is weird.
So, let me ask you guys a question.
$2.99.
$2.99.
I want to try something.
Hey, Grant, I want you to order two pieces of pepperoni pizza
and three slices of cheese.
Okay, Charles, I'll go place the order right now.
I've got a hunch
every time somebody orders a slice of cheese pizza,
she's ringing it up as beer.
Could I please get three slices of cheese...
...and two slices of pepperoni?
Thank you very much.
The three slices of cheese she just rang up as light beers.
Thank you.
Because your beer is the same price
as a slice of cheese pizza,
she's ringing it up as beer.
She's going to assume that you're thinking
because all the pizza's given away to the bands for free,
you're gonna think, "Ah, we're not missing anything."
So, she switches the two at the register to steal beer.
This is exactly why your pizza inventory is off.
And I feel like a complete idiot.
[ Singing indistinctly ]
Hey, we're the Wrong Dots. Thank you guys very much.
You're very nice.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Jesse's heading over to Chum's table.
I'm wondering if he's gonna pay up that $50 you promised him.
He better.
Are you [bleep] serious? Come on, man.
Between all the money he didn't pay the band
and what he collected at the door,
he's probably got $300 or $400 in his pocket.
And I don't make that in a whole night.
His way to fix it is to give them more drinks?
This is making me sick. This is making me angry.
I want to jump out of my chair
and wring somebody's neck right now.
You better hope they're kidding about taking your fire truck.
I mean, this is out of control, completely, totally nuts.
Look -- no one on your staff is behind the bar
to stop them from taking the key.
This is a disaster. Do you see what they are doing?
We have the employees stealing from us,
and now we're having an angry band
getting ready to drive our fire truck?
They're not thinking about all the times that you did pay them.
They're thinking about the time right now
that they're getting stiffed that you aren't paying them.
That's a liability. David, you got to do something about that.
[ Siren wailing ]
NARRATOR: After conducting an undercover sting operation
at Redballs Rock & Roll Pizza in Moorpark, California,
the Mystery Diners have revealed that manager Jesse
is collecting an unauthorized cover charge
at the door and inside the restaurant...
Who does this guy think he is?
...lying to the bands about their payment...
and even worse,
instructing waitress Erika to ring up pizza as beer
so they can pay the band with alcohol
and keep the money for themselves.
This is a disaster. Do you see what they are doing?
They're not thinking about all the times that you did pay them.
They're thinking about the time right now
that they're getting stiffed that you aren't paying them.
[ Siren wailing ]
That's a liability. David, you got to do something about that.
It's unbelievable. People wanting to sneak off in your fire truck.
DAVID: What the [bleep] are you guys doing?! What are you, crazy?
Come on! Let's go! Get out!
And I'll take care of you. You know me.
You -- big fella -- take a walk, man!
I ain't ever [bleep] seen you before.
Get the [bleep] out of here.
You, Jesse -- you just stay right [bleep] here.
You don't move.
Erika, you're coming with me.
Follow me, please.
Come on.
We're going next door. Let's go.
What the hell is this?
My name's Charles Stiles with a company called Mystery Diners.
Your owners called my company because they had a huge loss
in a lot of their pizza supplies.
You recognize Amber over here? She was a waitress in training.
She's been in the restaurant for a few days.
She works for me.
You recognize Grant?
You tried to charge him a cover,
and all's he wanted to do is buy pizza!
And you recognize Robbie?
You thought he was just a band member, but you know what?
He's an undercover Mystery Diner band member.
We used him as a mole,
and he showed us how you treat the bands.
DAVID: When you stiff the bands,
you're really screwing up our whole place.
What do you guys have to say?
Well, I never thought that it would happen like this.
I got greedy.
And you, Erika, we sat here and watched you all night long
ringing up pizza under beer so that --
I'm just doing what Jesse told me to do.
If you're an employee and your manager's doing something wrong,
you tell the owners.
He propositioned me,
and I just couldn't turn away the money.
"Oh, I didn't have enough money."
I don't have enough money, either.
CHARLES: And, Jesse, what about the $50
that you're supposed to be paying the band members?
You put the money in your pocket.
This is really embarrassing.
For years and years, and we trusted you guys.
And you killed that.
That's it. You're both fired.
Get out of here!
See you.
Listen, this is the music business, you know?
Everybody's got an angle.
I needed some extra cash, and I did what I did.
That's how it is.
Thanks, Charles.
I really appreciated you help us going through that.
It was kind of, like, painful,
but, you know, better to know than not to know.
Well, you know, and that's why you called my company --
so you could get this stuff figured out.
We're really thankful to Charles and Mystery Diners
for coming and helping us out.
Now we can get back to our real business of rocking out.
Dude!
NARRATOR: Since being fired,
Jesse and Erika have moved on to other jobs,
pizza cook Mike has been promoted to manager,
and David and Petra are happy to report
that they are no longer experiencing discrepancies
at Redballs Rock & Roll Pizza.