The customer, who cannot be named until he appears in court, had purchased a takeaway from Barcelos Flamed Grilled Chicken from Gem City in Phoenix, north of Durban over the weekend.
But he was unhappy with the buns when he got home so he called the outlet to complain that the buns were stale. At first Barcelos denied this, but relented and asked him to collect a courtesy meal the next day, which he did.
On receiving his free meal, he complained that it was too small. A rowdy argument between the man and the manager ensued, in full view of other customers.
According to security company Reaction Unit South Africa's Prem Balram, the angry customer went to his car, fetched a panga and allegedly hacked the manager on his head, then fled the scene. The manager was taken to hospital.
KwaZulu-Natal police spokesman Thulani Zwane said the suspect had handed himself over to the police. He said a charge of assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm was opened against him at the Phoenix police station.
Barcelos operation director Shaun Stoltz confirmed the manager was treated in hospital and released shortly after receiving treatment. He said this was a "new experience" for the franchise.
"We are shocked," he said.
Stoltz said it was difficult to comment on the sizes of their meals. "For some a portion of any meal may be too small, and for others it may be too big," he added.
Stoltz said that from time to time the franchise, which has outlets in 16 countries including South Africa, receives both complaints and compliments on its customer care line and website.
"We have an operational team that deals with complaints. Usually each complaint is dealt with in a turnaround time of between 15 and 20 minutes."
Phoenix residents took to Facebook to express their shock at the assault. Muhammed Agjee said: "Not worth going to court. All a headache and time-consuming, just for a bigger chicken." Roshan Rajkumar wrote: "Yasis. People want to kill each other over a piece of chicken."
A court date is yet to be set.
Source: The Times via I-Net Bridge
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