A TikTok video from creator @maxwellsvision, which had surpassed 970,000 views and 5,600 comments at the time of writing, describes a lunch outing with his friend Mike, which the creator said escalated after Mike was repeatedly rude to restaurant staff.
Maxwell said he picked Mike up on his lunch break and noticed he was already in a bad mood, later slamming the car door upon getting in. He told Mike to get out and close the door properly before they continued with their plans to eat at Chili's.
The TikToker said Mike explained his frustration stemmed from repeatedly covering for a coworker's mistakes at his job, which he described as a physically demanding job stacking boxes. He sympathized with Mike and suggested they get drinks at Chili's before returning to work.
Once they arrived, the man said there was a lengthy wait because the restaurant was busy, and the hostess quoted a 35-minute wait. Mike refused to consider other restaurants despite their limited lunch break and became argumentative with the hostess, at one point threatening to contact HR.
@maxwellsvision I woulda spit in ur food too
♬ original sound - Maxwell
Maxwell said the server appeared to be new and noted a stain on her shirt, which she said came from an earlier mishap on her third day of work. His friend immediately criticized her appearance and initially asked for a different server.
The creator then stepped in to place their order and reassure the server, telling her not to worry about Mike's comments. The server appeared upset and began crying after stepping away from the table, which he said he could hear from where they were seated.
He then warned Mike to change his behavior, but Mike defended his actions. "The customer is always right. It's people like you that get spit in their food," Mike said, but Maxwell disagreed.
After their food arrived, Mike took a bite of his burger and said it tasted unusual. The creator said Mike found what he described as spit inside the burger after opening it, then demanded a replacement from the server while threatening again to have her fired.
The server complied and returned about ten minutes later with a new burger, which he said Mike ate without further incident before they returned to work. He later told Mike that he understood why the server may have retaliated after being treated that way on her third day.
Viewers share how they handle rude customers while working in food service
Reactions to the video included various perspectives on how to handle difficult customers in food service roles. One commenter shared how they handled rude customers. They wrote, "I worked at Starbucks, I'd give decaf if they were rude."
Another commenter said they had started responding more directly to rude customers. They wrote, "I'm gotten to the point where I'll just be rude back tbh."
Another commenter said they would delay service rather than tamper with food. They wrote, "No matter how rude a guest is. I will NEVER mess with their food. I will mess with their wait time."
Another commenter thanked the creator for standing up for the server. They wrote, "All I can say is, 'Thank you.' It's people like you that make customer service worth while. We need more customers like you!"
The Daily Dot was unable to independently verify the claim that the food was tampered with, the identity of the server, the restaurant location or the employment details described in the video. The story is based on information shared by @maxwellsvision on TikTok.
