A Minneapolis-based foodie worried that he left an inadequate tip on a Chinese take-out order, and was “flabbergasted” with his own apparent negligence.
Tony Cu (@tonycueggrolls) posted his confession video to TikTok confession August 7. In it, he said that he felt “so disgustingly dirty” because he left a $15.84 tip on his $171 Chinese food order. As of Wednesday morning, Cu’s video explaining his predicament had over 12,900 views.
“I feel so dirty… I am usually a really generous tipper, but today I was thrown off,” he said. “[The] box was there; you know that little box you click on? I don’t know if it was 10% or 15%, but it threw me off.”
@tonycueggrolls Tipping on pickup #foodpickup #foodserviceindustry #tippingpeople #tippingculture #tipbetter #tipping #customerservice #tipyourserver #whattotip #howtotip #foodservice #fyp #trending ♬ original sound – Tony Cu | Foodie & EggrollKing
Cu’s bad feeling, he said, was compounded by his usual efforts to combat a negative stereotype.
“I’m kind of upset at myself because usually… Asian people are known to be bad tippers,” he said. “And I try to be the opposite of that.”
“Did my food come 15 minutes later than it should have and they were a little slow on that? Maybe,” he added. “Does that normally influence my tip? Not so much. I usually just tip ahead of time. I don’t care.”
He then asked viewers what they would’ve tipped.
“I average 10-15% on Togo,” one said.
“On pick up I do 10 percent and on dine in I do 15-25 percent,” another shared. “Depends on the service. But either way they still get something.”
“18% at the least,” a third viewer advised.
A handful of commenters said that to-go orders didn’t deserve tips, but that’s not exactly kosher. Last year, the Washington Post said that takeout orders shouldn’t receive lesser tips. “Even with takeout, you are getting a service when a restaurant staff cooks your food, wraps it up, and prepares it for your pickup. If you begrudge them a few dollars, go to the grocery store, pick up the ingredients for your meal and cook at home,” they wrote.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Cu via TikTok comment.
