Venice restaurant that hit tourists with £1,000 bill faces £17,000 fines

Official checks find Osteria da Luca breached safety and food description rules, reports say

A restaurant in Venice that charged a group of Japanese tourists €1,143 (£994) for four steaks Florentine, a plate of mixed grilled fish, two glasses of wine and mineral water faces fines totalling at least €20,000 (£17,400), according to local media.

The La Nuova Venezia newspaper said police and local authority checks carried out at the Osteria da Luca near St Mark’s Square uncovered breaches of health and safety and food hygiene regulations, as well commercial code infringements including issues over the accurate description of goods.

Related: Venice authorities step in after four tourists charged £1,000 for meal