• Three Hours for Makeup and Household Chores: Japanese Prime Minister’s Admission Sparks Public Debate

  Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has said her daily schedule is significantly more demanding than those of her male predecessors. In addition to her official duties, she spends several hours a day on makeup, bathing, cooking and other household tasks. Her remarks have sparked a heated debate about gender stereotypes and the expectations placed on Japanese women, The New York Times reports...

• “Grandparents Now Need Permission to Hug”: Controversial Ad Pulled After Backlash

  A controversy has erupted in Ireland over a public awareness campaign urging grandparents to ask their grandchildren for permission before hugging them. The video, created by the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre and funded by the Department of Justice, sparked accusations of absurd political correctness, disrespect toward older people and the misuse of public funds. The justice minister eventually demanded that the video be taken down...

• The Pharaohs Forgot to Sign the Paperwork: Scottish Museum Removes Mummies Over Lack of Consent

  A scandal worthy of a museum exhibit of its own has erupted in Scotland: ancient Egyptian remains have been removed from a Glasgow museum because people who died thousands of years ago never gave permission for their bodies to be displayed in public. Visitors are now greeted by explanatory signs instead of mummies — apparently the safest exhibit in an era when even pharaohs have suddenly been found to have personal-boundary issues...

• Hermès Steps Up Boutique Security After Riots in France

  French luxury house Hermès has tightened security at its stores following widespread protests in France, during which one of the brand’s boutiques in Marseille was looted. The company is also facing a new challenge: demand for its products is slowing, and sales of clothing and accessories have declined for the first time in several years, Reuters reports...

• Outrage Over Inaccessible Luxury: Why Dior and Hermès Boutiques Were Looted in France

  Riots in France have led to the looting of boutiques belonging to Dior, Celine, Hermès, Louis Vuitton and Saint Laurent. Images of ransacked stores have become some of the most widely discussed scenes from the protests sweeping the country. But, as The New York Times fashion critic Vanessa Friedman observes, the attacks on luxury brands may reflect not only street violence but also growing resentment over social inequality...

• Luxury Yachts, Secret Palaces and Private Hunting Grounds: How the World’s Most Brutal Dictators Spent Their Holidays

  While millions of North Koreans struggle with hardship, Kim Jong Un appears to spend his summers very differently — aboard a luxury yacht equipped with swimming pools and water slides, the Daily Mail reports...

• Kylie Jenner’s $50 Million Fantasy Bra Set for Private Sale: Who Could Own the Most Expensive Victoria’s Secret Showpiece?

  The $50 million Fantasy Bra worn by Kylie Jenner during her Victoria’s Secret runway debut in 2026 is being prepared for a private sale. According to Page Six Style, the extraordinary piece will return to Jacob & Co.’s New York boutique, where wealthy buyers will have the opportunity to purchase it...

• French Looters Regret Stealing iPhones After Apple Locks Devices and Tracks Their Locations

  Looters who ransacked an Apple Store in Lille, France, during widespread riots have faced an unexpected consequence: the stolen iPhones have been disabled, and their locations are being tracked...

Guests at Michelin-starred French restaurants are taking home far more than pleasant memories of fine dining.

Increasingly brazen customers have been helping themselves to cutlery, designer knives, candles, flower pots and even... toilet-roll holders, according to The Telegraph.

Chefs and restaurant owners say the disappearing inventory is costing them hundreds or even thousands of euros every year.

Romain Hubert, co-owner of Michelin-starred restaurant L’Emulsion and Lo Fieu, a Bib Gourmand-listed bistro in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, said: “Human nature is wonderful. I could write a book about all these thefts.

“Even before we received our Michelin star, someone stole our toilet-roll holder. And they didn’t simply take the holder itself — they unscrewed it along with the screws and wall plugs, leaving a bare patch of plaster on the floor.

“It wasn’t a piece of priceless gold antique or an exclusive work of art, but it was a perfect illustration of the depths of human stupidity.”

What are diners stealing most often?

Among customers’ favorite “souvenirs” are:

• Cutlery and knives: At Lo Fieu, diners have developed a particular obsession with the restaurant’s signature wooden-handled Opinel knives. The owners even tried to outsmart the thieves by attaching a locking ring so the knives could not be folded away and slipped into a bag. It didn’t work: during the first year, at least 40 of the restaurant’s 90 knives were stolen.
• Decorative items: Expensive candles from ladies’ rooms and hand creams have also disappeared. The restaurant eventually replaced tubes of hand cream with dispensers because the tubes were vanishing every two weeks. At one establishment in Isère, a diner even managed to empty the soil from a flower pot into the toilet before walking away with the pot itself.
• Bizarre incidents: One Dutch diner attempted to smuggle a water jug out of a restaurant by hiding it under his T-shirt. Meanwhile, five-star hotels reportedly lose around 100 bathrobes every year. During one particularly bad summer season, all 150 specially selected pool towels disappeared.

According to a recent survey by specialist culinary website bouillante.com, which polled 500 restaurant owners, 94% of respondents had experienced at least one theft.

The statistics also suggest that the more expensive and prestigious the establishment, the more likely it is to encounter light-fingered customers.

‘We are declaring war on thieves’

Laurent Lapeyre, owner of Michelin-starred Agapé in Paris’s 17th arrondissement, says he has been waging a “war” against restaurant thieves for 18 years.

The restaurant uses silver napkin rings that also double as knife rests, designed by Andrée Putman for Christofle and costing around €200 per set. Waiters always remove them before dessert to make sure none have disappeared.

“Unfortunately, these rings quite often end up in customers’ handbags ‘completely by accident’,” he said.

Lapeyre has a remarkably effective way of dealing with the problem.

“We simply add the missing item to the bill, and magically, the item is found. If someone tries to play dumb, I simply ask them to return ‘the souvenir the lady happened to leave in her handbag’.”

Adrian Descoul, manager of Michelin-starred restaurant Origines in Auvergne, encountered an even more brazen stunt.

A female diner got up from her table and helped herself to a designer knife from a neighboring empty table. When staff politely asked her to return it to the reception desk, she caused a scene.

“How dare you! This is outrageous!” she protested.

But after staff showed her CCTV footage of what she had done, the woman was forced to admit it.

Descoul showed little sympathy.

“I told her: ‘We asked you nicely, and you started making a scene, so now we’re filing a police report because our knives cost €210 each.’”

Follow NEWS.am STYLE on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram