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NARRATOR: Tonight on "Mystery Diners"...
Don Dial, owner of Rocco's Cafe
in San Francisco, California,
is concerned about his new manager, Erik.
I heard he might be doing things his own way.
I can't have that.
Is Erik running a tight ship
or running scams on the customers?
What kind of restaurant has a service charge
to return something or change a food item?
The Mystery Diners are going undercover
in order to show Don what's really going on.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Is that really Jamie Foxx?
I don't know. It kind of looks like him.
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 Don Dial, better known as Double "D,"
and I'm the owner of Rocco's Cafe
here in San Francisco, California.
Rocco's is named after my grandfather.
You know what? I just wanted to honor him.
All the food is great here.
But one of the things I like to highlight is the chicken Marsala.
It's to die for.
One of the other dishes I love making here
is the eggplant parmigiana.
Covered in marinara and provolone cheese,
it is the best you've ever had.
We also have a killer chicken piccata --
white wine, butter, lemon, and capers.
That's something you must try.
Oh, my God. Mwah!
One of the first things you notice when you come to Rocco's
is Rocco's Wall of Fame.
The pictures on the wall really mean a lot to me.
I have tons of family photos, special customers.
There's athletes, there's actors, actresses.
Basically, if you mean a lot to me,
you're probably on my wall somewhere.
The only person I trust running this place is me.
But I want to spend more time with my family.
So, after 23 years, I finally hired my first manager.
His name is Erik.
I need a manager that's an extension of myself.
And, unfortunately, I'm hearing from the staff
that he can't be trusted, and I'm all about trust.
The staff is telling me that he's making decisions on his own
and running promotions that I never approved.
I got to get to the bottom of this.
Hey. How are you?
Great. Charles Stiles, "Mystery Diners."
This is Brianna.
Brianna, how you doing?
Double "D"?
Before we talk any business, though,
you got to try some Italian food here at Rocco's.
Chicken Marsala.
The best way to eat this is with the heels of bread.
You're gonna enjoy that.
This is the best Marsala I've ever had.
That is a killer sauce.
Thank you. I appreciate that.
You know what, Charles?
After 23 years doing everything myself,
I decided to hire a manager for the first time.
His name's Erik. He's been with me five months.
About a month ago, I started hearing reports from my staff.
What do you mean? What kind of reports?
I heard he might be hustling customers
and doing things his own way.
Are you losing money?
I'm losing sleep.
I mean, after 23 years, this is my first manager.
He's got some big shoes to fill.
When you bring somebody and you introduce somebody new,
I know sometimes the problem can be actually the employees.
Are they just really uncomfortable
dealing with him and his style,
or is it really an issue behind this guy and his character?
NARRATOR: For this sting, Mystery Diners will be focusing on Erik,
a recently hired manager who may be
running unauthorized promotions behind the owner's back.
Let me tell you, Don, a little bit about how we operate.
We'll put cameras and microfilms everywhere
so that anyplace a customer or employee can be,
Perfect.
One of the other things that we like to do
is we like to bring in undercover Mystery Diners.
Yeah, I think it would be great for me to come in
as a waitress in training,
and we'll see what's going on when you're not around.
Either way, I got to get to the bottom of this.
Otherwise, what's the point of me taking time off
if I can't even enjoy myself?
NARRATOR: To carry out the sting, cameras have been hidden
at key locations throughout Rocco's Cafe.
Four cameras have been set up in the main dining room
to give an overall perspective
of the restaurant and its customers.
Three cameras have been set up in the kitchen,
one camera has been set up in the dishwashing station,
and one camera has been set up by the main entrance
to track any action that happens outside.
Mystery Diner Brianna
will go undercover as a waitress in training,
and Nate will pose as a customer.
Wow! Man!
CHARLES: You got front of your house, dining areas, kitchen areas.
Every place an employee or customer can be, we've got it covered.
Yeah, this is awesome, man.
There's some good food coming out of the back of that kitchen.
Oh, yeah. Makes you want to eat something.
Right.
You know, so far, I mean,
Erik looks like he's doing a pretty good job.
He's making his rounds. He's talking to the customers.
I like what I'm seeing so far.
You know, I think now, Don, would be a good time to get Brianna,
our undercover Mystery Diner, started on her shift.
Sounds like a great idea. Thanks, Charles.
For this sting, I'll be going undercover
as a waitress in training.
I'll be wearing a pair of glasses
that have a hidden camera built right in
so Charles and Don can see firsthand
if Erik can be trusted.
How's it going, Don?
How's it going tonight? Things going okay?
This is Brianna.
This is Erik.
Listen,
my kid's got a football game tonight, so I got to go.
Brianna -- She's a new server I hired.
Show her the Rocco way.
Yeah.
Brianna.
It went great.
I don't think Erik suspects a thing.
Hi.
That's Angela.
She's a great, great server.
I trust her completely.
Okay.
So, who's this over here, cutting bread?
DON: That's my busboy Christophe.
Doesn't speak a word of English.
Christophe reminds me of my grandfather.
He was an immigrant. He didn't speak any English.
You know, that's what this country is all about.
So, Don, why is your busboy
going out in front of your restaurant?
Patrons aren't out there.
He's standing in front of the window,
and he's having a cigarette
right in front where everybody can see it?
You know what, go to the employee break area,
Exactly.
Looks like your manager, Erik,
is on his way outside to handle the situation.
That's what he's hired for.
Wait a minute, I thought he was
going out there to handle the situation.
What is he doing? I don't get it.
Yeah.
He's making it up.
CHARLES: He's cutting the ends off the bread, and he stuffed it in his pocket.
The guy's like a chipmunk.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Is that really Jamie Foxx?
I don't know. It kind of looks like him.
NARRATOR: Don Dial, owner of Rocco's Cafe in San Francisco, California,
is concerned about his new manager, Erik.
I heard he might be doing things his own way.
I can't have that.
Charles has set up a control room next to Rocco's
where Don can watch everything that happens in his restaurant
with our hidden cameras.
Wow, dude.
Mystery Diner Brianna
has gone undercover as a waitress in training,
and Nate will pose as a customer.
And after starting the sting,
Don watches how Erik reacts to busboy Christophe
for smoking in front of the restaurant.
He's gonna sit out and smoke in front of your restaurant, too!
That is very unprofessional.
Now, look at this.
Erik is the face of your restaurant,
and he's greeting customers with a cigarette in his hand?
I don't like that at all. That's wrong.
That's not me, that's not us.
Being a restaurant manager, if you're not doing your job,
no one's gonna respect you.
Christophe.
[ Conversation in Spanish ]
Do you know what your manager, Erik, just said to Christophe?
I know he told him to cut bread.
He's cutting the ends off the bread, and he stuffed it in his pocket.
Do you not serve that? Do you throw it out?
Let me tell you, Charles, that's the best part.
What the hell is he doing?
The guy's like a chipmunk.
Well, times are tough. Maybe he's bringing the bread home to eat.
[ Speaking Spanish ]
You see that?
No, I didn't, Charles.
He knows that he's not supposed to be eating while he's working.
Erik's supposed to be acting as manager.
He has no clue what's going on -- none whatsoever.
Thankfully, Angela's there to remind him of the rules of your kitchen.
That's management material, right there.
So, Don, is that true, what he's telling her?
I decide what goes on the wall.
He doesn't have any authorization.
What is he doing? I don't get it.
Definitely suspicious, considering
you're the one who decides what goes on the wall.
Absolutely.
Well, you know what? Now is a good time.
We'll send in Mystery Diner Nate,
have him come in and pose as a customer,
and find out how Erik treats him.
Okay, sounds good to me.
All right, Nate, you're up.
Erik has already proven himself to be a shady character.
Two.
So, for this sting, I'm gonna find out exactly what's going on
from a customer's perspective.
I'm gonna have the linguine with clams.
And my date is gonna have Double "D's" chicken.
Angela seems like your most trustworthy employee.
Let's get her opinion on working with Erik.
Hey, Brianna, ask Angela
how she feels about the manager, Erik.
So, what's Erik like as a manager?
So, it's always like that?
But you guys have his picture
on the Wall of Fame now.
It's been my experience, when the staff feels
their superior is not worthy of their position,
a restaurant could fall apart easily.
WOMAN: Wow! Thank you.
I want to find out how Erik handles
a customer that has a complaint.
What I'd like to do is have Nate send it back
and find out how your manager, Erik, deals with that.
Let's try that.
Nate, I want you to call the manager over
and tell him you've changed your mind,
that you'd like to order the spaghetti and meatballs.
NATE: Okay, Charles, you got it.
Um, I think I'd rather get the spaghetti and meatballs.
Yes.
I didn't know this was white sauce.
I'm actually allergic to dairy.
If that's okay.
Yeah.
What kind of restaurant would have a service charge
to return something or change a food item?
Right.
Charles, I would never charge a customer a fee
to get their food sent back.
Yes. Fine.
My gut's telling me you'll never see a dime of that money.
That is all gonna go in Erik's pocket.
I was thinking the same thing.
Erik seemed to have scammed Nate on a whim.
It appears your staff's concerns are warranted.
And without you around, Erik feels like
he can do whatever he pleases.
This is really disappointing me.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Is that really Jamie Foxx?
I don't know. It kind of looks like him.
[Bleep]
I can't even believe it.
Looks like he's coming back in with a box.
This guy, all night long, has been scamming my customers!
I can't take it anymore!
NARRATOR: With the help of hidden cameras and undercover Mystery Diners,
Don Dial, owner of Rocco's Cafe, has learned that
his busboy Christophe is smoking in front of customers
and eating on the job...
He knows that he's not supposed to be eating while he's working.
...and manager Erik is charging customer a fee
to return orders
and interrupting the restaurant
to announce the arrival of a celebrity customer.
[ Cheers and applause ]
Is that really Jamie Foxx?
I don't know. It kind of looks like him.
What's going on here?
I treat everyone the same here, Charles.
Celebrities come in here all the time.
I would never kick out customers
for a celebrity, for anyone.
I don't care if it's the mayor of San Francisco.
Jesus!
I think it's pretty odd that Jamie Foxx
Absolutely.
Charles, that is not Jamie Foxx.
You're right. That's a Jamie Foxx look-alike.
Erik is hustling my customers!
He's making the real Jamie Foxx look cheap!
The only reason why I'm not going down there is I know these customers,
and I'm gonna give them the money tomorrow.
But I tell you right now, this [bleep] pisses me off.
Don, look at this camera over here.
There's Christophe, eating again.
Pretty soon, I'm gonna have to order extra bread just for him!
If you ask me, it's a direct result of Erik
focusing more on hustling your customers
than managing your restaurant.
And here he is, on his personal cellphone.
[ Speaking Spanish ]
[ Speaking English ]
Now, wait a minute, I thought you said
I'm speechless.
I-I -- yeah.
This is the first time I've ever seen him speak English.
Brianna, I want you to hurry up
and go in the back of the kitchen and flirt with Christophe
and see if he starts flirting back with you in English.
Hi. I don't think we've met.
My name is Brianna.
[ Speaking Spanish ]
Oh, I don't know that much Spanish.
Yeah.
Oh. Oh, yeah, I mean.
Mi nombre es Brianna.
[ Laughs ] Am I good at that?
[ Speaking English ]
That'd be easier for them if they knew that you speak English.
He's sitting here telling Brianna that he does this
on purpose so he can get out of work.
DON: I wanted to give him an opportunity here.
And here he is, totally taking advantage of me.
Yeah, that would be fun. For sure.
Okay.
Okay.
[ Speaking Spanish ]
This kid is a [bleep] liar.
This is definitely not the kind of guy
you want representing Rocco's.
I'm beside myself right now.
Now, wait, where is Erik going right now?
I have no idea.
We got a full restaurant! What the [bleep] is he doing?!
Looks like he's coming back in with a box.
I don't even want to know what's in that box.
So, do you sell T-shirts there?
No, Charles. This is *** me off.
You're kidding me!
I'm so [bleep] pissed right now. Got T-shirts.
Trying to make money off my grandfather's face?!
I've had enough, Charles!
He's ruining the Rocco's name.
Why don't you go down there and grab him, grab Christophe,
bring them both back up here,
and we'll deal with them up here.
DON: What I saw tonight made me sick to my stomach.
I trusted that man -- I gave him the keys to my restaurant
and the keys to my life!
And this is how he repays me?!
This is how he says "thank you"?!
You wait right here.
Christophe, let's go. Go! Let's go!
Let's go.
Come in here. Get your [bleep] here.
Get in here!
CHARLES: You guys have any idea what's going on in here?
No Inglés?
Really?
Does this girl look familiar to you -- Brianna?
And then you bring in some guy that's a Jamie Foxx look-alike!
Yeah, what am I -- Alec Baldwin?!
Who's he -- Charles Bronson?!
Nobody got hurt. I'm just trying to be like you.
I'm just trying to make a little money.
NARRATOR: After conducting an undercover sting operation
at Rocco's Cafe in San Francisco, California,
the Mystery Diners have revealed that busboy Christophe
is smoking in front of the restaurant,
eating on the job,
and lying about not speaking English
to get out of work.
He's totally taking advantage of me.
But even worse, manager Erik
is charging customers to return food orders,
take pictures with someone passing himself off as Jamie Foxx,
and purchase bogus clothing
with a picture of Don's grandfather, Rocco.
Come in here. Get your [bleep] up there.
Get in here!
W-What's all this, Don?
Let me tell you what's going on. My name is Charles Stiles.
I'm with a company called Mystery Diners.
Diners Misterioso?
I know this looks bad. Just give me a minute to explain.
Why don't you sit tight, 'cause we've got some things
we want to talk to Christophe about first.
No Inglés?
Really?
Does this girl look familiar to you --
Brianna, who you were talking to, trying to pick up?
She works for me.
She speaks perfect English, and so do you.
Fine, you caught me. I'm busted.
I was just trying to be under the radar and do my thing.
You lied to me, and I can't trust you.
Look, Don, I'm sorry, man.
I just -- I'm sorry I let you down.
Please give me one more chance.
You had your chance. You're fired!
I want you [bleep] out of here.
I screwed up. I let myself down.
I don't know what to say.
Don, Don, I didn't know he spoke English.
Of course you didn't know he was speaking English!
You're too busy trying to scam all of his customers,
running one bogus promotion after another!
I got to tell you, I'm astonished
at some of the stuff I saw back here.
Does this guy look familiar to you -- Nate?
You were charging him 5 bucks to change his order!
And then you bring in some guy that's a Jamie Foxx look-alike!
Yeah, what am I -- Alec Baldwin?!
Who's he -- Charles Bronson?!
C-Come on, Don. I mean, I --
Nobody got hurt. I'm just trying to be like you.
I'm just trying to make a little money.
The restaurant was being taken care of.
You know, everybody was eating.
Everybody was having a good time, you know?
No, you're having a good time,
and you're hustling them.
You're a joke as a manager, and you're a liar.
You are fired! Get out of here!
I don't care about your restaurant, man.
No, that was not Jamie Foxx, but that guy knows Jamie Foxx.
You know, Don, I know this was tough for you to go through,
but at least, at the end of the day,
you got your answers, you found the problems,
and now you can go back to running your restaurant.
DON: I really want to thank Charles and Mystery Diners.
I think they solved the problem,
and we're gonna be better for it.
NARRATOR: Since being fired, Erik has found employment elsewhere.
Christophe has a new job
and no longer lies about not speaking English.
Don has promoted Angela to assistant manager
and is happy to report that he is the only one
offering promotions at Rocco's.