A Virginia restaurant is facing backlash after it reportedly social-media shamed a teenage boy who paid his bill with quarters after treating his friends to lunch.
In a now-deleted post screencapped by WSET, Beer 88 wrote, “How NOT to pay at a restaurant cause that’s the nicest thing we can think to say about this ridiculousness” alongside a picture of a $20 bill and a plethora of quarters. The post also included the hashtags “#we are Beer 88 not coinstar,” “#at least they left a tip,” and “#no home training. ”
The post rubbed many users wrong, leading some to tell Beer 88 that their comments were in poor taste. Some posters claimed they were going to pay their next bill at the Lynchburg restaurant with quarters, according to the local station’s report.
“Obviously the SARCASM and HUMOR of this post is lost on most of y’all,” Beer 88 reportedly snapped back in the comments.
Yao Liu, the owner of Beer 88, said they’re sorry for the unsavory hashtags but didn’t apologize for the post itself.
“I was going to delete it, then after all that they said, you know what, I’m not backing down, because, originally, we never meant anything bad to them,” Liu told WSET. But apparently, the restaurant owner had a change of heart, because the post — along with the restaurant’s Facebook page — are no longer active.
Cohen Naulty, the teen who paid in quarters, also commented on the controversial post to point out that he left a $10 tip. The teen went on to create a Facebook page called The Quarter Boy, where he gave his side of the story.
The Quarter BoyTHE QUARTER BOY·MONDAY, JULY 16, 2018Took a few friends out to lunch and only had enough to pay for…
Posted by The Quarter Boy on Monday, July 16, 2018
Nautly explained that he had gone out with a few friends but only had enough money to cover their meals with quarters. Vice’s Munchies noted that the teen also works in a restaurant and had saved up his change until he could treat his friends to lunch.
Despite providing a “great tip,” Naulty wrote that he was upset to learn that the restaurant had called him out. Nevertheless, the teen said he wants to channel the unpleasant experience to do something positive in his community.
“I decided that I would find restaurants out there that didn’t mind being paid in quarters and treat a patron at least once a week, just to see what this simple act of kindness could do for them! We will post videos so that you can see too how big a change just a little ‘change’ can make,” he wrote.
[Featured image: Beer 88/Facebook; Cohen Naulty/Facebook]
