They were promised a sparkling night on the sands of Sydney's most iconic beach spent drinking and dining at an eight-course feast catered by celebrity chef Luke Mangan.
Instead, punters at A Moveable Feast on Bondi Beach were left hungry and parched, spending up to two hours waiting in drinks queues, with some even missing out on dinner despite having paid up to $500 a ticket for the event
And ticket-holders were quick to make their thoughts known on social media.
@LukeMangan $500 ticket for #amovablefeast #bondi NO food. 2 hour que for booze Worst event ever @dominos instead pic.twitter.com/fL69JH4uKC
— mike (@ArtichokeWeb) March 11, 2017
"Worst event ever moveable feast (sic) ... hoping to get a refund," Twitter user Mike said.
"My one photo at #amoveablefeast I wasn't looking completely appalled at how badly it was run," Tracey de Vries posted on Instagram.
The Saturday evening event, which played host to some 3000 guests, offered "chilled wine and a gourmet eight-course shared feast" with producer Hayden James billed as entertainment.
But famished patrons who either missed out on food, or couldn't wait any longer, were told they would not be allowed to re-enter if they left to get food.
"We asked if we could go run out to grab some food then come back and they told us we wouldn't be aloud (sic) back in if we left," Jacqueline Freestone said.
"You know what the best part of our night was? When we left a moveable 'feast' to go find our own dinner across the road, come back and being told by security that you cannot re-enter," Melina Kyprianou wrote.
The event's Facebook page was also overrun by angry diners demanding a refund after organisers gushed about the evening in a post after the night was over.
"What a night it's been," organisers said.
"This event was a disgrace and we should all be given a partial refund at the very least ... trade practices and consumer protection say we should get what we paid for and tonight we definitely did not," Gill Adby commented.
"Arrived on time and by the time we got in the food was gone. Had to share one hamper between six people," Paul Hotton lamented. "To top it off, a hair was in the dessert."
Under Australian Consumer Law, patrons may be entitled to a refund if they can prove the service did not deliver the results that the consumer and business had agreed to.
The event organisers have been contacted for comment.