Diners’ disgust at restaurant attack

By Sarah Schwager
A MAN was knocked unconscious in the middle of a crowded Hampton Park restaurant on Saturday night, leaving onlookers appalled.
The 45-year-old Dandenong man was punched in the face at about 9pm after three men approached him after he asked the table of guests to quieten down.
A Narre Warren man who witnessed the incident at Ling Wah Chinese restaurant on Hallam Road did not wish to be named but contacted the News express his disgust.
He said a group of about 15 people in their late 30s and early 40s were celebrating a birthday party and became very noisy.
He said a number of people, including himself, had asked the guests to be respectful of the other restaurant patrons.
But he said it became apparent that the party was getting out of control.
“Once they realised they were being annoying to everyone they started taking full advantage of that.”
He said he told the restaurant’s manager, Tim Chung, that he should call the police.
“Within five minutes a guy was lying on the floor,” he said.
“The party then fled the restaurant. It was absolutely unacceptable and disgusting.”
Mr Chung said such incidents happened too often at the restaurant.
“Sometimes people drink too much and they get noisy,” he said.
“You try to stop them but it doesn’t always work.”
He said he had asked the party to be quiet twice before the incident and it was unfortunate that someone had been hurt. “There were heaps of customers there so I didn’t see anything,” he said.
Mr Chung said he felt sorry for the other customers.
“Some of them left and didn’t finish their meals so I didn’t charge them,” he said.
The Dandenong man was rushed to Dandenong Hospital on Saturday night.
Luckily his wife was a registered nurse and so was able to help him until the ambulance arrived.
The Narre Warren man, who was at the restaurant with his wife, 8-year-old daughter, mother and father, and therefore did not want to get involved, urged people to be on the lookout for the man.
He described the man as about 167 centimetres tall, with shoulder-length brown hair and blond tips on the lower parts of his hair.
Cranbourne police have asked any witnesses to come forward, including those who took camera footage on the night.
No one has been arrested in relation to the assault.
Anyone with information can contact Detective Senior Constable Ollie Gaspari at Cranbourne CIU on 5995 4577.