A FAMILY that hosted a wake at a Dorset café have spoken of their fury after being shocked to find they were described as “depressed f****” by the venue’s staff.

A member of the family concerned said the offensive title was revealed on a receipt from the event, held at the Crossroads Café, in Crown Square, Poundbury, on February 13.

The café, which opened in 2024, said a 17-year-old member of staff had since been suspended over the incident.

Describing the impact of the naming, the daughter of the deceased person being honoured at the wake, claimed a more senior member of staff (who we have chosen not to name) was “rude, disinterested and visibly eager to hurry us along”.

“This was an incredibly painful and important day for my family and friends. Sadly, the service we received from … one of the business owners, was nothing short of appalling.

“From the outset, he was rude, disinterested, and visibly eager to hurry us along, as though our gathering was an inconvenience and he simply wanted to go home.

“There was no warmth, no professionalism, and certainly no compassion, something you would expect as a bare minimum when hosting a wake.”

Then, she said, the offensive remark was exposed as the family asked for VAT receipt.

“When we came to pay, we requested a tax receipt so we could properly invoice the wake expenses,” they said.

“He either did not understand what a tax receipt was or could not be bothered to make the effort to provide one. Communication was strained and uncomfortable, made worse by him smirking at his colleague while we were settling the bill.

“We later discovered the reason for that smirk. On the receipt, he had labelled our party as ‘Depressed f****.

“Let that sink in.

“This was my father’s funeral. We were a grieving family and a room full of friends paying our respects.

“To mock our grief and my father’s death in that way is beyond unprofessional, it is cruel, arrogant, and heartless. It shows a complete absence of basic human decency.

“His behaviour was cold, dismissive, and contemptuous throughout. To then discover that he had reduced our family’s loss to a joke on a receipt is unforgivable.

“It takes a truly callous individual to behave this way toward people in mourning. Disgusting. No compassionate human being could be so cold.

“I would strongly urge anyone considering this venue for anything other than to spit at. On one of the worst days of my life to be topped off with mockery and contempt. You should be ashamed of yourself.”

In response – and amid outcry on social media – the business said: “I was away this weekend and immediately cut my trip short as soon as I became aware of the situation. I am now back and dealing with this personally.

“Following a full internal review, I confirm that the incident involved a member of staff and, regrettably, the complaint is valid.

“I want to offer my sincere apologies to the family affected. The circumstances in which this occurred make it even more upsetting, and I am truly sorry.

“A full refund has already been issued. The staff member involved has been suspended pending further action, and I have requested a formal written apology from them.

“As a small, family-run business, we take pride in treating every customer with respect and compassion. This behaviour does not reflect our values, nor the standard of service we work hard to uphold. Please be assured we are taking this incredibly seriously.

“Once I have concluded the investigation and gathered all documentation, I will provide a further update. In the meantime, I appreciate the community’s patience while this is handled properly and responsibly.”

And a later update from the business added: “For a final time, and with complete transparency, I regrettably confirm that an offensive message was entered into our till system by a 17-year-old junior member of staff.

“It was completely inappropriate and deeply upsetting, particularly given the circumstances of the family’s visit. I am truly sorry for the hurt this caused.

“While the staff member’s age does not excuse the behaviour, it does provide context. As an employer of young people, I believe accountability must go hand in hand with education and guidance.

“Appropriate disciplinary action has been taken, the staff member was suspended immediately, and formal procedures have been followed.

“The family received a full refund without delay, I returned home as soon as I was made aware of the complaint to deal with it personally, and a public apology was issued.

“The staff member has also written directly to the family to offer a personal apology. Clear measures are now in place to ensure this cannot happen again.

“Neither I nor the co-owner had any involvement in this incident. The actions of one individual do not reflect the values or standards that our regular customers know and expect from us.

“Crossroads is a small, family-run business built over years of hard work, trust and community support. We have served our local area proudly without any previous incident of this nature.

“This situation has been devastating for the family involved and extremely difficult for our wider team, whose livelihoods have come under scrutiny because of one unacceptable mistake.

“We fully accept responsibility for what happened within our business and have acted swiftly, transparently and decisively.

“We are deeply sorry, we are accountable, and we are committed to rebuilding the trust our community has placed in us over the years. At the same time, we would like to stress that efforts to turn this into a broader hate campaign against the business risk causing further harm to staff and community members who were not involved.”