Couple Leaves Waiter $100 Tip for Bad Service: "We've Both Been in Your Shoes"

Makenzie Schultz and husband Steven's anniversary dinner didn't go as planned, but they didn't want to punish overworked waiter for that

By Rebecca Macatee Sep 30, 2014 2:15 PMTags
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Makenzie Schultz and her husband, Steven, didn't quite have the anniversary dinner they were hoping for.

The couple went for sushi in a Cedar Rapids, Iowa, restaurant, but, as Makenzie said in a Facebook post Saturday, their service "sucked." Instead of being upset with their waiter, though, Makenzie and Steven generously tipped the waiter $100 on a $66.65 meal.

Yep, even though it took "20 minutes to get water, 40 minutes for an appetizer and over an hour four our entree," the Schultzes paid a 250 percent tip (!) to their overworked waiter.

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"People all around us were making fun of the restaurant & how bad the service was," explained Makenzie, admitting, "Yeah, it was pretty terrible. But, it was very obvious that the issue was being short staffed, not the server."

The waiter, who "was running around like crazy," had "12 tables plus the bar" at one point, wrote Makenzie. And even though this was "more than any one person could handle," the server "never acted annoyed with any table."

"As I sat there and watched him run back & forth and apologize for the wait, I said to Steven... Wow, this used to be us. Waiting tables. I don't miss it at all and I never loved that job. I did it for the tips," wrote Makenzie. "Steven and I agreed it would feel good to make this guys night when he would probably be getting minimal to no tips due to slow service."

So the Schultzes left a hearty tip, writing on the receipt, "We've both been in your shoes. Paying it forward."

"This definitely was not the largest tip there ever was," Makenzie later told Today. "We thought it could make his night a little bit easier."

The couple "walked out before he saw this," she wrote, "and I'm not posting this for a pat on the back. I'm just sharing this as a friendly reminder to think of the entire situation, before you judge. And always always always remember where you came from."

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