Surprising a server with an unexpectedly large tip is a heartwarming trend. But a waitress in Arkansas recently got an unpleasant surprise after her pleasant surprise, getting fired from a restaurant where she and another server had just been given a $4,400 tip. Ryan Brandt and a coworker waited on a party at Oven and Tap in Bentonville with 40 customers affiliated with Witly, a local real estate company. Each member of the party left a $100 tip, KNWA reports—$2,200 per server. Grant Wise, owner of Witly, called the restaurant in advance to check the tip policy. “To see her reaction was awesome,” Wise said. But Brandt says she was told she had to turn the windfall over to her shift manager and could only keep 20%.
That had never happened before. Brandt had worked at Oven and Tap for more than three years and had never pooled tips with other staff before. Brandt told Wise that she hadn’t been able to keep all the money earmarked for her, KSFM reports. Wise returned to the restaurant and asked for the tip to be refunded and gave Brandt her money outside of work. That’s what got her canned, Brandt said. Oven and Tap said in a statement that Witly was welcome to direct tips however they chose, but that tip pooling is a common practice. “We recognize and regret that a recent incident in our restaurant could have been handled differently by reminding our team how we would be splitting any tips prior to the event,” the statement read. Meanwhile, Wise has kicked off an online fundraiser for Brandt, who says her pandemic relief from student loans ends next month. (More tipping stories.)
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