Fabel Friet, a small french fry shop on Runstraat in Amsterdam, has been forced to have limits placed on its queues outside after going viral on the popular social media app TikTok. The municipality has placed extra restrictions on the shop’s permit that mean no more than 10 people can form a queue outside the shop. 

Fabel Friet has called on the city to overturn the new restrictions

Unsurprisingly, the chip shop is not too keen on the new requirements. If more than 10 people arrive at the shop’s premises, the shop must close a cash register to sell less fries. The shop’s management says this is unworkable, and according to Het Parool, have taken the municipality to court in an attempt to overturn the policy. 

According to Het Parool at least 77 local residents have lodged complaints about the number of people waiting outside the shop. The lawyers of the shop have stated that the company “has taken many measures to prevent nuisance,” including hiring crowd managers to manage the queue, making sure that the queue does not block the road, and simplifying its menu so that orders can be processed more quickly. The shop also cleans up all waste left in the area, even though more than half does not come from Fabel Friet, the firm’s lawyer added. 

TikTok success not always good for business

The popularity of the shop on the internet should theoretically be good for business. Unfortunately, since the new restrictions were put in place this is not necessarily the case. Floris Feilzer of Fabel Friet has asked the court to do more to help the store thrive, rather than suffer from its success, namely by increasing the queue limit to 20, calling a higher number “more workable.”

The city acknowledged Fabel Friet’s efforts to help so far. “They are indeed doing their best, but it remains a major burden on the neighbourhood,” the municipality’s lawyer said in court.