A TikTok troublemaker has divided the internet after publicly dragging a restaurant customer who couldn’t afford to leave a generous tip.
The man — known on TikTok as “KingJ24” — shared a bill from an Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar in Staten Island last week, showing that the patron had left a gratuity of around 9%.
The person’s meal came to a total of $73.45, with Applebee’s suggesting an 18% tip of $12.14 or a 20% tip of $13.49.
However, the customer left just $6.55, along with a handwritten note which stated: “You was great. Holidays are just rough right now.” They added a sad face to the end of the message.
The bill shows the server’s name at the Applebee’s restaurant was Dana G. It is unclear how KingJ24 obtained a copy of the receipt, or whether he also works at the establishment.
On his TikTok account, KingJ24 shared footage of the bill, accompanied by the song “Oh No” by Capone-N-Noreaga, indicating his disapproval. Watch the full clip — which had racked up nearly 700,000 viral views as of Wednesday evening — below:
“Your thoughts?” he captioned the clip.
“Some people save up for weeks to take the family out for an $80 meal. At least they left SOMETHING!” one person commented, defending the patron.
“If restaurants paid a decent wage it wouldn’t be the responsibility of the customer to solely compensate with tips. Once again corporate America wins,” another person added.
However, others chimed in saying it was inappropriate for the patron not to leave an adequate gratuity. One stated: “If I can’t afford a 20% tip, then I’m not going out for a $80 meal.”
“If money is tight, don’t eat out. They server needs the tip money to support her family most likely too,” a second concurred.
The Post has reached out to Applebee’s for comment about the viral post.
Meanwhile, KingJ24 is not the only TikTok user to post a viral video about restaurant work in recent weeks.
Last month, a 25-year-old Tennessee waitress, named Liny, took to to TikTok to share a video showing her paystubs, claiming she made just one cent for six weeks of work.
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