French cafe charges customers more for being rude

A French cafe has now joined an Italian cafe in charging snippy customers more for a cup of coffee than those who say the magic words "Hello" and "Please."

A blackboard outside La Petite Syrah in Nice advertises that rude customers are charged 7 euros for a coffee. If customers add a "please" at the end of their order the coffee costs 4.25 euros. And those lucky patrons who amp up the kindness with a "Hello" are charged a mere 1.40 euros.

The cafe owner says the sign is intended as a joke and its pricing system has not yet been enforced.

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"It started as a joke because at lunchtime people would come in very stressed and were sometimes rude to us when they ordered a coffee," Fabrice Pepino, who has owned the cafe with his wife for three years, tells The Local. “It's our way of saying 'keep calm and carry on.'”

While French culture is known for its everyday formalities, Pepino says customers often forget their manners when they are rushing.

"I know people say that French service can be rude, but it's also true that customers can be rude when they're busy," he says.

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Aside from customers forgetting their "please" and "thank you", they are also notorious for being glued to their cell phones.

In a similar spirit to tackle the cell phone issue, a number of restaurants -- from Los Angeles to Lebanon to Israel -- have started offering customers discounts for ditching their phone prior to a meal.

What are your thoughts on these efforts to civilize customers? Do you think they work?