A video of 20 people dining and dashing at a Houston, Texas, restaurant over a gratuity added to their bill went viral after it was posted to a community account out of concern.
The TikTok posted by local account @grizzlyshoodnews shows the large party leaving Crazy Cajun during the lunch rush, upset that a 20% gratuity was automatically charged to their bill, which totaled $542.67.
An employee filming the incident also captured the group walking to their cars.
At one point, a woman threatened employees, shouting from the parking lot:
“I will shoot y’all motherf**kers.”
You can watch the TikTok, below.
@grizzyshoodnews #dinendash out of a group of 20 people only two people pay their tab. The rest of the people walked out without paying. 290 and Hollister
Assistant manager Brenda Garcia told the Houston Chronicle that the large group came in during a busy time, but they said they were coming from a funeral so Garcia decided to accommodate them, despite being understaffed at the time.
She noted that they did complain throughout their visit, audibly unhappy about waiting and about their food and, of course, about the added gratuity.
Garcia comped several of the party's drinks and also offered a 15% discount. But apparently that wasn't good enough.
Then, Garcia explained:
“They started getting a little aggressive."
She also said that four members of the party returned later to pay their bill, and one woman called the restaurant to apologize and explain she left with the group because she was concerned for her own safety at the time.
“She explained to us that the woman that threatened my coworker showed them the gun."
Many viewers of the video were angered by the group's behavior.
Those are some damn adults! Lol this is pathetic
— Alpha-Bravo (@aburk203) October 20, 2023
Seriously 😳??
— SAKA👹 (@SakaPR_) October 21, 2023
so disrespectful
— tinati (@tiinnaatii) October 21, 2023
Others noted that they should have at least paid for the food and drinks they ordered.
Gratuity is a reward for the service received, were they not pleased? Fine, don't give gratuity, the staff will then know they need to improve, but to walk away? That's robbery...
— oscar (@oscarbutron) October 21, 2023
Several people said restaurants should have procedures in place to avoid these types of incidents.
They should pre-pay for large parties after they order the food. If paid before they eat, problem solved.
— nevadageologist (@nevadageologis1) October 20, 2023
You can't do that at McD's. It's pre-pay.
— E J Luczak (@eluczak22) October 21, 2023
Pre pay coming soon.
— lumberjack commando (@lumberjcomando) October 21, 2023
Garcia told the Houston Chronicle she initially shared the video with Grizzy's Hood News to alert others in the community about the incident, but had no idea how many people the video would reach.
"I wanted to put it out there as a 'watch out for this lady' thing, but I didn't expect it to get this big."
The TikTok, which was just posted on October 6, has been viewed more than 1.4 million times.
We'd say she got the word out.
@thesinkingcanoe/Instagram
