Former Married At First Sight New Zealand contestant Samuel Levi has accused an Auckland restaurant of "daylight robbery" after paying $27 for a "small piece of sh*t salad".
Levi, 29, rose to prominence after participating on the 2018 season of Married At First Sight, during which he was paired with former partner Tayler Morgan. Last year, Levi revealed he had found love with another of the controversial reality show's alumni - Married At First Sight Australia's first bisexual groom, Liam Cooper.
After receiving his salad at the unidentified restaurant on Monday, Levi shared a photo of the dish to his 102,000 followers on Instagram - branding the dish "tiny" and "sh*t".
"Paid $27 today for this tiny and small piece of sh*t salad. Bloody hell Auckland. This is damn rough and daylight robbery," he captioned the photo.
"I won't tag the place directly... Where NOT TO GO and visit while in Auckland," he added, alongside facepalm and eye roll emojis.
The photo of the dish, which was uploaded to his Instagram Story, appeared to show a handful of salad greens drizzled with oil, cherry tomatoes, a sprinkling of Parmesan and some pieces of crisp bread on the side.
It is unclear where Levi dined in Auckland, despite the former Married At First Sight groom saying he would share the location of the venue.
As of Tuesday, Levi and Cooper have continued their travels in New Zealand and arrived in Rotorua, Bay of Plenty.
Inflation and the increasing cost of importation have caused the prices of groceries and other goods to skyrocket in Aotearoa, prompting a number of restaurants and eateries to increase their charges in order to cover the additional costs of ingredients and their overheads.
Last month it was revealed that annual inflation had risen dramatically. According to the Consumer Price Index (CPI), annual inflation had increased 7.3 percent since the June 2021 quarter; the largest year-on-year increase since 1990, following a 6.9 percent surge recorded in the March quarter.
Additionally, prices for the construction of new dwellings increased 18 percent in the March 2022 quarter, compared to the same period last year. Transport has been the next largest contributor to rising inflation, influenced by higher prices for petrol and second-hand cars. In March, the average price for 91 petrol in New Zealand was $3.05 per litre.
Inflation is on the increase worldwide, with the cost of food and energy hitting record highs. Factors contributing to inflation include demand and supply issues, the consequences of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine following Russia's invasion earlier this year, and oil and petrol prices.
