That not-so-little fat mistake Subko made

A customer shared a bill he received at the popular café Subko in Bangalore after noticing an allegedly body-shaming description of himself on his bill. Pic/X/Indian Tech & Infra

Does the coffee shop you frequent say something about you? In an ideal world, it shouldn't. But, in the world where we live, where carrying a Subko or Boojee takeaway cup somehow makes you cooler than the one carrying a Costa cup, yes it matters.

But last week, Subko posted an apology that said "we're not addressing this because it's gone viral". They referred to a post on the Reddit account of Bangalore Foodies, where a Bangalore customer of the Subko Koramangala outlet, posted a pic of his bill where he was referred to as "little fat black shirt". He noted that the "cafe reduced him to his physical appearance and clothing rather than treating him with basic dignity". The café said it had taken "strongest disciplinary action" and they were sorry to the guest for "Not for how it looked. For what it was."

Netizens are naturally upset, at the fat shaming, and at the alleged use of AI to write the apology. And Subko, hopefully, has learnt an important lesson on how to train their staff. But, to me it's more about how we all have been reduced to the coffee we drink, the café we drink it in, the money we spend on it, and how we look while we drink this said coffee.

For me, coffee is a necessity. I used to drink Nescafe Gold at home, and these days, since I have a whole pour-over and espresso set up at home, I make my own coffee. At times, I order Starbucks - that's sacrilege, I know, to niche coffee drinkers. I like it, yo! But I have never understood how the coffee shop we went to started deciding how cool we are?

Take for, instance, all the coffee shops in Bandra. There is Boojee, Subko, Bokka, Blue Tokai, Tuskin, Method, Javaphile, etc, etc, etc. The line outside Boojee is too much for me to handle, so no thanks. I once encountered a wet, dirty bathroom at Subko, and since then I have never wanted to spend R400 there for a coffee. I liked my coffee at Bokka as it was a recommendation by the staff and it was tasty. The rest to me is just another cup of coffee.

I usually go to a coffee shop for the experience of hanging there. Where did the staff smile at me, and asked me how I was doing that day? Who found me a table, despite it being packed? Who brought me something to sample? Which one had good music playing? Which was affordable as well as cool? Which had a clean bathroom? And a cosy table by the window? And last but not least, which café made me feel I fit in, no matter what I may be wearing, or however I looked that day.

And it's no wonder that I only end up going to Bokka, or The Bombay Salad, every single time. They are owned by the same person, by the way. The other café I used to like was first Barista, then Café Coffee Day, and then Starbucks on the corner opposite Carter Road. Why? The view, and the breeze. And the people watching - varied people come here - lovers, students, fancy Bandra peeps, and not-so-fancy tourists. No one was being judged here.

But times have changed. Going out for coffee now costs R450 and it's associated with a lifestyle, and an aesthetic Instagram post. It's no longer an outing for fun, where we just hung around talking about nothing for hours. On top of that, the Subko mishap showed us that now, it's not just the other coffee drinkers that are judging you, it's the staff itself.

To me, why Subko deserves the flak it got, because for this price point, and this level of clout, a basic respect for whoever is walking in, is not something you need to now take notice of. It should have already been ingrained. Hope this incident will teach specialty cafes that they need to lose their snob factor, and come down to earth. No amount of fancy coffee will soothe over a mess that involves treating a customer with disrespect.

The rest of us - if you really are a coffee lover, slowly invest in a set up at home. But, if you just want to go to a coffee shop to spend an evening or two, don't go to the one you need to post on Insta about, but to the one where everyone knows your name, leading to no mistakes on the bill. Got it?

See you next time.

Ranting and raving about all that's trending on social media, Aastha Atray Banan is an author, creator, podcaster, and the Editor of your favourite weekend read, Sunday mid-day. She posts at @aasthaatray on Instagram.
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