Restaurant gives taxi drivers free meals for safely getting their customers home (Canada)

NL, Canada — Taxi drivers suffer a lot of pressure when it comes to their passenger’s safety. But picking up a drunken passenger in the middle of the night for a safe ride home is another story.

For those reasons, it’s good to know that local pubs are acknowledging these risks that taxi drivers have to go through.

So, as a “thank you”, St. John’s Bier Markt offered free lunches to taxi drivers who play a key role in ensuring their customer’s safety.

“It’s such a nice thing that we have these people in the community who really help us as restaurant operators,” St. John’s Bier Markt manager Megan Gauci says. “We’re serving a lot of beer, and as restaurant operators, it’s part of our social responsibility to make sure that the people that are in our restaurant are getting home safely, and not just paying the bill and leaving and then we hope that everything works out.”

Between 11:30 A.M and 1 P.M., then 4:30 to 6 P.M., Gauci and another restaurant manager went out to offer free lunch to any taxi driver who slowed down to get one.

Megan also proceeded to explain that it’s both a legal and moral obligation to help ensure that customers get home safely. In fact, if necessary, Gauci and her staff would willingly arrange a ride to keep someone from getting behind the wheel.

She adds, “I’m a mother myself and I can’t imagine anyone that’s leaving there. I’m always thinking, that could be my children on the road, too, and so I want to make sure that people are leaving in a safe way.”

Amanda Hynes, from Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) Canada, expressed her delight in Bierk Markt for such action. “It is our hope that all businesses would take the route that the Bier Markt is doing, but some people, some bars, they do have a tendency to over serve.”

Amanda also stated that safety isn’t just a thing for bar operators, but it’s on the public as well. “They have to take that responsibility that they’re going to call the taxi or call a friend and go home. But the taxi drivers, they really are often the unsung heroes of our evenings out with friends.”

“If you’re gonna go out to drink, try not to be mean to anybody, especially taxi drivers. They have a lot to deal with,” she said.