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Forum -> Yom Tov / Holidays -> Pesach
Beware Pesach Hotel Scam
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amother
OP


 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 2:26 pm
Beware of any Pesach program that is brand new and cheap. There is a Pesach program operator who has two programs every year for 1200 people in each program but only serves enough food for 700 people. He is currently being sued by 200 guests from last year.

Every year he CHANGES THE NAMES of the Pesach programs and gets new gullible people. So if you Google the new names, you won't see all the bad reviews. We know people who ended up going home after the first two days because they were hungry. Even worse, the programs completely ran out of food by the last days.
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amother
OP


 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 2:55 pm
Here is a thread from 2017 about this SAME SCAM

https://www.imamother.com/foru.....40103
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amother
OP


 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 3:01 pm
https://www.collive.com/show_n.....50192

Quote:
Guests of the Royalty Pesach Retreat held at the Glen Cove Mansion and Conference Center on the North Shore of Long Island in New York said they are speaking out because they want to warn others to expect a negative experience if they sign up to attend retreats run by the same company.

People who spent Pesach at the program this year and in past years both described similar faults such as food shortages, lack of programming, staff walkouts, and filthy and unhygienic conditions.

Moshe Press, a resident of Flatbush who ran the program and a parallel one at Mountain Laurel Resort in Pennsylvania, dismissed the claims and said they were driven by hate.

The guests that spoke with COLlive.com said the criticism - that was first shared by private individuals on Facebook - was long overdue.

"What I truly don't get is how he commits the same egregious 'mistakes,' year after year, and he continues to organize a program every Pesach, each year cheating hundreds of people out of hard-earned money and not delivering on anything they expected to receive," one past guest of the program told COLlive.

One guest, a resident of Crown Heights, described attending the program 4 years ago and being told that the room for his children was assigned in a neighboring hotel. His kids "had to cross a major highway to get to their room."

A larger issue was insufficient food, he said. "The chef said he had been told to cook for 700 when in reality there were 1200 people there. There was no tea room either, so basically everyone was hungry for much of the time. At some point, my kids found a trailer of mangoes and avocados and we were sharing it around because we were starving."

Buffets were described as "war zones," with food being brought out in trays for about 200, which needed to serve 1,000. After the first day, much of the food was old and recycled and leftovers were served, 95 percent of which was spoiled, guests reported.


Other guests described mealtimes that were "disastrous," with food not appearing on the Seder night until 2:00 am, and other meals hours late or even canceled at the last minute.

One guest said the year he was there with his extended family, to their horror, the kitchen was shut down by the health department, after one of the many guests who fled the program after the first two days contacted authorities about the mismanagement.

"I myself went into the kitchen to try and find a Kiddush cup I had misplaced, a few days into Yom Tov," he told COLlive. "The kitchen was indescribably filthy. You had to slide through the kitchen because the floor was covered in a layer of slime and filth, and the sinks and counters were overflowing with dirty dishes, pots, pans and food - some still left over from the Seder."

This year as well, stories from disappointed guests have been making the rounds on social media, combined with photos of messy kitchens, burned food, and meager portions.

Many people did make alternate arrangements after the first two days, citing many ill guests and terrible conditions.

The worst part of it, many of the guests we spoke to said, was the lack of management. "There was no one to talk to. Mr. Press was nowhere to be found for most of the time. There was no one to ask for help or to complain to about the lack of service and the entertainment and other programs which never materialized as had been advertised.

"I think the time has come for someone to shut this down. How is it possible this is still happening 4 years later? He is not an honorable person. He cannot continue to steal and cheat people for so many years without anyone stopping him," he said.

"To add insult to injury, he gave my credit card to different vendors, and then for months after Pesach he kept giving my card number to vendors. I was charged 3 times what I was supposed to pay. I had to dispute many charges and was forced to change my credit card number to block him."
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amother
Aqua


 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 3:01 pm
Is it a scam or is it a low-cost Pesach program with no frills and people are demanding a 5-star program for a low sum.

I have come across too many frum people who want to live a luxurious lifestyle but don't want to or cannot afford to pay for it and have unreasonable expectations that others should subsidize their extravagances.
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amother
OP


 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 3:04 pm
amother [ Aqua ] wrote:
Is it a scam or is it a low-cost Pesach program with no frills and people are demanding a 5-star program for a low sum.

I have come across too many frum people who want to live a luxurious lifestyle but don't want to or cannot afford to pay for it and have unreasonable expectations that others should subsidize their extravagances.


This is an actual scam. Even on this low budget there should still be enough food for 1200 people. As you can see from the article the chef was told to cook enough for 700 people. They do this every year.
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Raisin




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 3:06 pm
amother [ Aqua ] wrote:
Is it a scam or is it a low-cost Pesach program with no frills and people are demanding a 5-star program for a low sum.

I have come across too many frum people who want to live a luxurious lifestyle but don't want to or cannot afford to pay for it and have unreasonable expectations that others should subsidize their extravagances.


I don't think its spoilt people. My friend went on it and it sounded awful. Mouldy food, not enough food...

There are low cost pesach hotels which advertise as no frills and people are happy with them and don't complain.
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causemommysaid




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 3:14 pm
amother [ Aqua ] wrote:
Is it a scam or is it a low-cost Pesach program with no frills and people are demanding a 5-star program for a low sum.

I have come across too many frum people who want to live a luxurious lifestyle but don't want to or cannot afford to pay for it and have unreasonable expectations that others should subsidize their extravagances.


No frills means basic accommodations, low level entertainment like movie or game night, and basic not fancy food.

There still needs to be hygienic conditions and enough food for the number of guests.

You can serve chicken kugal and salad but there has to be 1200 portions not 700.
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notshanarishona




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 3:39 pm
Why isn't anyone publicizing who this family is so people will know to stay away?
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flowerpower




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 3:51 pm
notshanarishona wrote:
Why isn't anyone publicizing who this family is so people will know to stay away?


Someone said it’s a new name every year so people wouldn’t figure it out. I personally would only go to one with reference from those that already went previous years.
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sky




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 3:57 pm
There was a pesach retreat last year at a luxury location and the hotel wasn’t paid in full and they wouldn’t let any guest leave until the difference of their room was paid. It wasn’t in America so they didn’t have who to turn to. The people running the program disappeared the night before.
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notshanarishona




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 4:02 pm
If it's the same family , just with different names of the programs , it shouldn't be so hard to prevent them from doing it again. Unless they r changing their family name as well. But it's a good reminder not to trust anything unestablished .
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naturalmom5




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 4:15 pm
Are we talking about PesachwithChefflam in Connecticut

4000 for a couple
We are planning to go there

My husband is nervous it will be like
Pesachforless 8 years ago
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amother
OP


 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 4:42 pm
naturalmom5 wrote:
Are we talking about PesachwithChefflam in Connecticut


No. It's at the Glen Cove Mansion again this year. The other program was at the Mt. Laurel in Pennsylvania last year. They are charging $1,600 a person.
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rainbow dash




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 5:13 pm
amother [ OP ] wrote:
No. It's at the Glen Cove Mansion again this year. The other program was at the Mt. Laurel in Pennsylvania last year. They are charging $1,600 a person.


Wait, so they have the nerve to do it again this year? How many more years is this going to be allowed to happen?
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amother
Aqua


 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 5:39 pm
amother [ OP ] wrote:
This is an actual scam. Even on this low budget there should still be enough food for 1200 people. As you can see from the article the chef was told to cook enough for 700 people. They do this every year.


I read the article along with the comments.
Some claim it’s a scam, others say you get what you pay for and they were satisfied with the program.
It’s incredulous to me that a warning was published on Collive.com with the name of the person running the program clearly mentioned.
Yet the program is being run in the same hotel as last year.
Possibly with the same hashgacha?
Presumably if thousands of people were scammed the certifying agencies would have heard of it.
And people are being told they only accept cash and this doesn’t raise any suspicions?
I find it hard to believe that 1,000+ people are being scammed.
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Orchid




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 6:18 pm
Why did noone sue the guy?
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naturalmom5




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 8:11 pm
amother [ OP ] wrote:
No. It's at the Glen Cove Mansion again this year. The other program was at the Mt. Laurel in Pennsylvania last year. They are charging $1,600 a person.


Thanks

In the interest of fairness
Glen cove mansion is a gorgeous place
All year around it costs 150/200 a night
Without any food
So 1600 a person with any food they serve is fair
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amother
Wheat


 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 8:15 pm
naturalmom5 wrote:
Thanks

In the interest of fairness
Glen cove mansion is a gorgeous place
All year around it costs 150/200 a night
Without any food
So 1600 a person with any food they serve is fair


Not if they tell you they’ll feed you - and they don’t!
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amother
Khaki


 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 8:39 pm
naturalmom5 wrote:
Thanks

In the interest of fairness
Glen cove mansion is a gorgeous place
All year around it costs 150/200 a night
Without any food
So 1600 a person with any food they serve is fair


I didn’t hear one complaint about the actual hotel, that part was okay.
The issue was with there being insufficient food at meals , kitchen was horribly dirty and not sanitary conditions I saw pictures , many. people were throwing up from the food .. this isn’t about “fair”
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DrMom




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Apr 14 2019, 9:58 pm
amother [ OP ] wrote:
https://www.collive.com/show_news.rtx?id=50192

Quote:
...

A larger issue was insufficient food, he said. "The chef said he had been told to cook for 700 when in reality there were 1200 people there...

Buffets were described as "war zones," with food being brought out in trays for about 200, which needed to serve 1,000. [b]After the first day, much of the food was old and recycled and leftovers were served
, 95 percent of which was spoiled, guests reported.
[/b]

Other guests described mealtimes that were "disastrous," with food not appearing on the Seder night until 2:00 am, and other meals hours late or even canceled at the last minute.

If there was so little food, how were there any leftovers to serve as later meals?

Ah... I bet these were leftovers from other Pesach programs that were being trucked in. (I guess that would explain why Seder night food didn't arrive until 2am...)
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