Katherine copped a furious tirade when she complained about this $12 Domino’s ‘hot mess’. Now the hungry gran reveals the REAL reason she was so angry – as the pizza boss speaks out
A grandmother has revealed new details about what led to her fiery confrontation with a Domino’s store owner after she complained about the condition of her $12 pizza.
The franchisee, Akhil Antony, says he is sorry after threatening to ‘smash’ Katherine Pickles’ face during an angry tirade at his store in Mount Gambier, South Australia.
Ms Pickles tried to return her home-delivered meal on Saturday, calling it a “hot mess” that looked like two pizzas rolled into one.
She had ordered a The Lot pizza, which comes with five different meats and a range of vegetables, but instead got dinner delivered with a side of ham, pineapple and mushrooms – as well as peppers, which she asked to be removed .
A video that has now gone viral shows the moment she entered the store and told staff that the pizza that arrived on her doorstep the night before was ‘made like shit’.
Her complaint caused Mr Antony to lose his temper, pointing at the door and shouting ‘Go away’ while waving a broom.
“I own the damn store. If you don’t leave, I’m going to smash your fucking face.”
Domino’s Pizza franchisee Akhil Antony has apologized for threatening the face of a South Australian grandmother who was unhappy with her $12 pizza
Ms Pickles claimed Mr Antony threw the pizza at her and showed 7News a smear of sauce left on her jacket, along with several pieces of ham.
However, that moment was not captured in the viral video.
Mr Antony told Daily Mail Australia he was deeply remorseful about the incident and said there was ‘no excuse’ for his behaviour.
“As anyone who has worked in customer service knows, some days are more challenging than others and you need patience and a calm attitude,” he said.
‘In this particular case, I let my emotions get the better of me. But that’s no excuse.’
Mr Antony admitted that ‘no one deserves to be spoken to’ in the way he confronted Ms Pickles.
“My behavior was unacceptable, and I am deeply apologetic and ashamed,” he said.
“I hope the Mount Gambier community will see that I am a human being who made a mistake and give me, and by extension my team, another opportunity to serve them.”
Mrs Pickles said she sent the pizza (pictured) back because she thought it looked like two pizzas had been combined into one pizza
She ordered The Lot, which comes with ground beef, bacon, bell pepper, pepperoni, Italian sausage, chicken, smoked ham, pineapple, onions and olives
Ms Pickles told Daily Mail Australia she ordered The Lot pizza on Friday evening.
It comes with ground beef, bacon, bell peppers, pepperoni, Italian sausage, chicken, smoked ham, pineapple, onions and olives, but the grandmother asked for no bell peppers on her pizza because it gives her “terrible reflux.”
The fact that the pizza did indeed arrive with peppers on it was just one of many complaints.
‘There’s ground beef on half of it, two slices had mushrooms, the slices over the pizza didn’t match at all. It was just a hot mess,” she said.
The grandmother claimed she was made a liar when she called to complain, and ended up not eating anything that night.
She said she was told a driver would be sent to pick up the pizza and refund the money, but when that didn’t happen, she went to the store the next day.
In the full video, Ms. Pickles appeared frustrated as she entered the franchise and tried to explain the situation to a female store manager.
She told the manager that she had called the store a day earlier to complain to someone about the pizza, but added: “He called me a liar and I’m not impressed.”
Katherine Pickles (pictured right with another family member) tried to return her home-delivered meal to the Mount Gambier store on Saturday
Mr. Antony finished serving another customer before attending to Mrs. Pickles and said, “Yes?”
Ms Pickes said: ‘You don’t just have to say yes to me, you’re meant to be a manager.’
‘So yes?’ he asked.
She said, “So you’re supposed to be a bit more professional, thank you.”
He asked, “About what?”
Mrs. Pickles became angry and asked, “Excuse me?” Are you real?’
He asked, “About what, sorry?”
“About your call last night,” she replied.
He said, ‘Yes, how do these two different pizzas taste? Can you tell me?’
She clarified, “I said it looks like two different pizzas, not that they were two different pizzas,” and then raised her voice as she told him not to argue with a customer.
The situation escalated when he asked: ‘Are you serious?’.
Mr Antony (pictured) told Daily Mail Australia he was deeply remorseful about the incident and said there was ‘no excuse’ for his behavior
“As anyone who has worked in customer service knows, some days are more challenging than others and you need patience and a calm attitude,” said Mr Antony (pictured left).
Mrs. Pickles then bellowed, “Are you serious!”
She told 7News she cried all the way home and has had trouble sleeping since the incident.
“I’m quite shocked by it,” she told the programme.
“People shouldn’t be afraid to complain if something isn’t acceptable, if you paid for it.”
A Domino’s spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia it has launched an internal investigation into the incident.
“Domino’s takes safety and well-being very seriously and has zero tolerance for aggression, intimidation or abuse of any kind in our stores,” the company said in a statement.
‘As soon as we became aware of this incident, we launched an internal investigation, including into the circumstances that led to the recorded interaction. We will take appropriate measures following this investigation.
“We have attempted to engage with our customer through multiple channels, including the information provided with her order, and encourage her to contact us so we can discuss this important matter further.
“This customer’s experience does not reflect the high standards and values we pride ourselves on, and we sincerely apologize for that.”