Food Fight: Harvard Professor Contacts 'Authorities' After $4 Overcharge at Brookline Restaurant

A Harvard Business School professor who by his own admission may have better things to do went to extreme lengths to rectify a $4 overcharge at a family-run Brookline restaurant.

Ben Edelman, who also graduated from Harvard, said he alerted local “authorities” when he discovered the $53.35 worth of Chinese food he ordered from Sichuan Garden should have actually been $49.35, according to Boston.com.

Read the full Boston.com report by Hilary Sargent

Ben Edelman: Harvard Business School professor; warrior for fair Chinese food prices.

Edelman, who explores consumer protection and online advertising at Harvard, said the prices he saw on the restaurant’s website were slightly lower than what he ended up paying.

“Your restaurant overcharged all customers who viewed the web site and placed a telephone order,” Edelman wrote in an email to Ran Duan—one of the restaurant’s managers, according to Boston.com. The pair engaged in a three-day email exchange in which Edelman attempted to school Duan on the intricacies of state law governing restaurant advertising. Edelman demanded the restaurant give him a $12 refund—three times the overcharge.

“The tripling reflects the approach provided under the Massachusetts consumer protection statute, MGL 93a, wherein consumers broadly receive triple damages for certain intentional violations,” Edelman wrote, according to Boston.com.

Duan said the website was outdated and called it an honest mistake.

That didn’t satisfy Edelman.

“Increasing the price of each and every item, and not updating the site for a long period—that just won’t fly,” Edelman wrote. “I count myself forunate to live in a state that deems that practice unlawful.”

Duan apologized and asked Edelman if this was all worth his time.

“You’re right that I have better things to do,” Edelman responded—before increasing his ransom to cutting his entire bill in half.

Duan eventually agreed to the discount if the proper authorities deem it necessary.

Looks like that Harvard education is really paying off for Ben Edelman.

Photo: A dish from Sichuan Garden in Brookline. (Credit: A T. via Yelp)