A French waiter has allegedly been shot dead by an irate customer who got frustrated waiting too long for his sandwich.

The waiter's colleagues called police after he was shot in the shoulder with a handgun, according to the French news agency AFP.

The incident happened in the Noisy-le-Grand suburb east of Paris on Friday night at a pizza and sandwich eatery, according to French media

The 28-year-old died at the scene.

According to a witness, the gunman lost his temper "as his sandwich wasn't prepared quickly enough".


He shot the man and fled the scene.

Police told AFP a murder investigation has been opened and the gunman is on the run.

Residents gathered around outside after news of the incident spread.

Some shocked residents emphasised what they said was a degraded neighbourhood with problems of drug-dealing and public drunkenness, the newspaper Le Parisien reported.

It said the restaurant had opened three or four months before the incident.