Well… this sounds like a bunch of bullshit.
Every now and then, you’ll hear about these heartwarming stories of people who leave a ridiculous amount of tip money for a restaurant server, simply out of the goodness of their heart.
It’s the kind of thing that can really turn it around for a server that’s busting their ass.
However, you never hear about the server getting punished for it…
Until now.
According to Fox 59, an Arkansas waitress named Ryan Brandt and another server, were tipped $4,400 after working a party of over 40 people at the Oven and Tap in Bentonville, Arkansas.
Each customer chipped in $100 a piece, as they believed the money would be split between both servers.
Grant Wise, one of the generous customers who was with a party following a conference in town, said:
“We knew servers really hit hard through COVID, and it was something that we had come up with to help give back.”
However, Brandt’s manager told her that she must split the money with her co-workers who didn’t work the party.
She said:
“I was told that I was going to be giving my cash over to my shift manager, and I would be taking home 20 percent.”
Sheesh, talk about a slap in the face for getting rewarded for working a party of 40.
When Wise, who owns a real estate company called Witly, found out about the ordeal, he demanded the restaurant to return the tip money back to Brandt, who deserved $2,200.
That’s when Brandt was FIRED the next day.
She told CBS 5:
“They fired me from Oven and Tap over the phone and I’ve been there for 3 1/2 years and that was really heartbreaking. Especially because I didn’t think I did anything wrong.”
In a statement released by Oven and Tap, they said that she was fired for unrelated reasons to the tipping incident, and that they “fully honored” the generous tippers’ requests to pay their servers in full at the party.
It read:
“After dining, this large group of guests requested their gratuity be given to two particular servers. We fully honored their requests. Out of respect for our highly valued team members, we do no discuss the details surrounding the termination of an employee.
The server who was terminated several days after the group dined with us was not let go because she chose to keep the tip money. The other two servers who received generous tips that evening from the Witly organization– including one who also received $2,200– are still members of our team.”
After hearing the news, Wise began a GoFundMe for Brandt, and has raised up to $8,732 by this morning.
Brandt added:
“It was devastating. I borrowed a significant amount for student loans. Most of them were turned off because of the pandemic but they’re turning back on in January and that’s a harsh reality.”
Absolutely crazy.
