Having a less-than-perfect dining experience is something that most people will be exposed to at some point in their lives. A daughter explained in a video that garnered over 2 million views on TikTok that she and her parents received bad service at the Hard Rock Casino in Ohio. Instead of requesting a change to their order, they went full Karen and took it out on the waitress. To make things worse, she even denied the waitress her tip.
The TikToker, Jenna Simpson, stated, “I went to dinner with my parents last night and we did not tip our server. I want to know what you would have done in our situation.” She then proceeds to discuss her experience with her parents at Hard Rock Casino Cincinnati. Jenna, along with her parents, decided to split a $26 chicken fajita dinner. When they asked the server about it, she told them that it was a “ton of food” and would be plenty for both of them to share. She took the order, including an espresso martini order, and went to retrieve their food.
Simpson then goes on to explain they were flabbergasted to find that the food looked insubstantial. It apparently looked nothing like the menu picture. She proclaims, “This was my parent’s ‘ton-of-food fajita'” and then shows the stingy portion that the restaurant prepared for them. Simpson was also displeased by the fact that the waitress didn’t put in their espresso martini order at the same time and they received the drink after their meal.
Displeased, Simpson and her family told the waitress that the food “is not like the picture at all” and that it wasn’t enough food. The waitress disagreed. They then spoke to the manager, who Simpson claims was yelling and “talking over them” in an immature fashion. The irony! After the group fought back and forth for a bit, a second manager was called in to handle the situation. When they weren’t able to obtain a resolution, they left the fajitas uneaten and left without leaving a tip.
Though some viewer’s comments included discussion such as “Can we normalize not tipping bad service?” and commenting on the particularly small size of the meal, others criticized her and her family’s actions in their handling of the matter.
“I would never have stiffed a server because I was angry at a manager,” one commenter stated. Others said that the waitress shouldn’t be punished for the unsatisfactory service. Hard Rock, however, apologizes to Simpson and her family. The casino also invited them back to the restaurant to make things right.
Though it is a blanket rule that you don’t legally have to tip waiters, it’s common decency to do so. That’s where most of their income comes from. Many servers make somewhere between $20,000 to $31,000 on average annually. That’s hardly a living wage, especially for those with families. Ultimately, it results in many living paycheck-to-paycheck. Stiffing a waiter of a tip could make or break the state of their livelihood.
Additionally, it’s important to point out that servers aren’t the cooks, either. They’re just there to serve your needs while you eat. Although it’s annoying to occasionally have an underperforming meal or server, stiffing a waiter of a tip could make or break the state of their living situation.
