On one Sunday evening in San Antonio, Texas, a restaurant became a setting for an uncomfortable drama, eventually leading to a little misunderstanding and eventually getting dubbed as "The Big Tip Controversy".
Big Tip Controversy
The news around town was how a polite waitress was refused her $2,000 tip by the restaurant’s owner. How did this happen and what the owner had to say in his defense? Let's find out.
Server Gets Denied Her Tip By the Restaurant
The story takes an unexpected turn of events as the server gets denied her tip by the restaurant. When the waitress decides to take matters into her own hands, we see the tables turn.
The server, Emily Bauer, a mother of two, says she started working at Red Hook Seafood and Bar, located at Northwest Loop 410, two weeks before the incident.
The Original Story As Told By Emily Bauer
Bauer recalls the incident to KENS 5, a local ABC affiliate, where the original story was published. The incident occurred during a busy Sunday at Red Hook Seafood and Bar. A couple, who happened to be sitting at a table in her section, noticed how overworked the poor server was.
According to Bauer, the customers appeared to sympathize with her condition and were patient as the server took her time.
The Generous Tippers Empathy Towards the Server
Bauer recollects that she apologized to the couple because she felt like she wasn’t being efficient enough. The couple understood the nature of the work and how demanding it can be sometimes. “I kept apologizing. ‘I’m sorry. I’m being slow.’ He was just like, ‘I understand.’ He also mentioned he owned restaurants, so he knew how hard it was to be a server,” Bauer said.
She believed that the customers had an affluent background and displayed a calm and empathetic demeanor towards her.
The Customers Leave a Big Tip
As she noticed that the gentleman sympathized over her hectic duties as a server, they left the restaurant, leaving their bill on the table.
Bauer recalls that they canceled their order after seeing how it was becoming difficult for the server to work multiple tables at the same time.
The Payment Was Made In Silence
According to Bauer, the noble gesture by the client was done in complete silence, as she did not expect the gentleman to leave such a large amount for her tip.
The patron did not leave any details about his identity, which is why it became difficult for the press and the restaurant to track him.
Bauer Notices the Big Tip From the Generous Patron
She canceled the order, as instructed, and handed the gentleman the ticket he asked for. As the couple left, Bauer quickly grabbed the ticket. She didn’t take notice of the tip amount until she went behind the drink station at the restaurant.
She was astonished to see a whooping $2,000 tip left by the customers. The ticket also said, “Merry Christmas! Keep working hard!”
Bauer Is Taken Aback By the Large Tip
Bauer expressed the joy she felt after finding the unbelievably big tip.
“I was like, 'Wait.' I just opened it and started crying. I was like, 'Oh, my God! My kids! I’m going to spend it all on my kids,” Bauer expressed, whose boys are 2 years old and 5 months old. “I was like, 'Oh, my God.' I’ve never had a Christmas where I’ve been able to, like, splurge on them.”
The Restaurant Refuses To Pay Her For the Tip
To acquire the payment tipped by the customers, she provided the restaurant with the billing detail. However, she never received the generous tip.
She says the manager simply refused to allow her to process the money, saying that restaurant policy forbids them to do so. There is a tipping limit, which Bauer was unaware of.
The Tipping Limit Is $500
The tipping limit is $500, according to the restaurant's policy. Bauer's colleagues suggested that she be given her payment into four sections of $500 each, Bauer says.
She didn’t receive a single penny from her employer, as the restaurant completely refused to give her the amount from her tip.
Bauer’s Colleagues Express Their Opinion On the Big Tip
Bauer's colleagues, on her behalf, tried to help her get her payment. The policy was also unknown to the other employees of the restaurant.
She recalls, “Everybody I’ve talked to has been like, ‘I’ve never heard of that before.’ If it’s left to you and signed by that person, then you should be able to get it.”
Bauer’s Response To the Restaurant’s Policy
"I don't think it's our responsibility as a server to say, 'Oh, you can't tip me that much, I'm sorry. Oh no, there's a limit, I'm sorry.'
If that's the case, there should be signs posted in the restaurant or the receipt to say there's a limit of $500," said Bauer.
The Tipper Reaches Out To the Restaurant
She mentions that the manager told her later on that the man who left her the generous tip called the restaurant to express his disappointment that she hadn’t been able to receive her payment.
The manager also says that the restaurant didn't take any of the man's personal information when the server asked for it.
Bauer Expresses Her Gratitude Towards the Gentleman
Bauer turned to social media and posted the ticket on her profile in the hopes that the generous tipper would hear of it.
She expressed her gratitude by saying, "Even though I can't receive it, thank you. Thank you for having such a big heart. This world is filled with messed-up people. It's like how did he know I needed that?”
The Media Reaches Out To the Restaurant
Soon, the media covered the events and reached out to the restaurant's manager to get their side of the story. As they were unable to reach the restaurant's owners, KENS 5 aired the story.
This led to another turn of events that turned this whole situation into controversy.
The Restaurant Responds To the Aired Story
KENS 5 aired the story, which primarily centered around Bauer’s account and had no say from the restaurant.
The original article was published on December 2nd, 2020. Shortly after the article was published, the restaurant commented on the channel’s Facebook page.
The Restaurant’s Response
The restaurant commented, “Unfortunately, KENS 5 did not tell the entire story, nor did Emily. The tip was tried multiple times by management, by Emily, by the owner, and would not post. It was INVALID.
The gentleman called and was told the tip would not take. We asked him to come back to the restaurant to pay Emily in cash or check. He said “ok” and hung up, but he did mention he had a lot of money & owned 3 restaurants in San Antonio. Unfortunately, he has not come by the restaurant. We told Emily to contact the news, but she left out details…”
The Restaurant Claims the Story Is a “False News Report”
The restaurant claims that the gentleman’s card was declined as the restaurant processed the money to give to Bauer. The comment continued: “KENS 5 never questioned us, instead they ran a FALSE news report about our business. Please stop harassing us. We don’t have the $2000 tip, nor was it ever posted, because it was INVALID!”
Bauer Responds To the Restaurant’s Comment
To the restaurant’s post, Bauer replied, “I wasn't going to address this because I did not contact the news to harass my place of work, I contacted the news because you told me to. I did not lie about anything, and I didn't leave out anything.
I told the truth and the whole story; they only chose to add what they wanted and edited out some of it, that's what the news does. Our interview was 15-20 minutes long, I told them everything from start to end…”
The Response By the Public
The public appeared to favor the server, as the comments following the story said, “San Antonio needs to boycott this restaurant if the owner does not give the waitress her tip. The name of the restaurant is very visible." Waiters and waitresses don't earn much because restaurants count the tip as part of their salary. They get paid below the minimum in some places.
The Gentleman Reaches Out To the Restaurant
“The Gentleman called after he left that evening asking if Emily would be able to receive her tip he was told by management that the tip would NOT process and if he could come by & pay her in cash or a check written out to her he said OK then hung up quickly,” the eatery stated on its Facebook page.
However, they said the man had not yet been to the restaurant to pay her.
Bauer Defends Her Prior Statement To the Press
Bauer expressed her concern for her place of work and defends the statement she gave to the press.
She stated in her post that her intention was not to publicly shame her place of work but rather pay gratitude to the kind benefactor.
Bauer Writes On Social Media
She proceeded to write in her post, “…I did exactly what I said I was going to do, I’m trying to draw attention to the man that left it am I not?
I am not leaving anything out and everything I have said is 100% THE TRUTH.” It is unfortunate that she has even needed to state this.
The Restaurant Is Defamed Because Of the Tipping Controversy
After the restaurant dubbed the report a "FALSE news report", they proceeded to express the damage the restaurant faced at the hands of the media.
The tip controversy has brought harm to their business. They stand by the statement that false news circulated among the public.
The Restaurant Is Challenged By Bauer’s Statements
In an interview with the press, the restaurant said that they had been facing an overwhelmingly negative response from the public. The bad publicity has caused them "zero customers all day", according to an employee.
The restaurant soon posted a picture of the amount processed on the customer's bill, which was $69.01 - the cost of the diner’s meal.
The Owner Takes Matters Into His Own Hands
The issue was finally resolved when the restaurant’s owner decided to take matters into his own hands. The owner, John Cheng, wrote Bauer's check of $2,069.01, which was the total of what the customer intended to pay Bauer. Cheng told the press, “It’s Christmas time and everybody is struggling. I’m ready to give it to her as a Christmas gift.”
The Noble Gesture By John Cheng
The owner of the restaurant said that he understands that winters are a critical time, especially for essential workers who don’t make as much.
He wished the best for Emily Bauer and expressed sympathy towards all essential workers.
The Restaurant Clarifies the Situation
The restaurant manager, who preferred to remain anonymous, confirmed that the customer intended to pay the server. However, the amount didn't go through.
The customer’s credit card appeared to trigger a fraud alert, which made it difficult for the patron to tip the server.
Who Is the Mystery Tipper?
The press continued to try to find the generous man who started the whole controversy, but as of yet, his whereabouts are unknown.
There are no leads whatsoever as to who the mystery tipper was that made Emily Bauer’s day. The restaurant also remains unsuccessful at tracking down the generous tipper.
Bauer Expresses Her Gratitude Towards the Restaurant
Bauer received the payment offered by the owner and called the entire situation a big misunderstanding between her and the restaurant and apologized for the public incident.
“The fact that the owner of my job is willing to give it to me, even though it wasn’t his mess-up, I can’t thank him enough for that,” said Bauer tearfully.