Waitress says she was fired after customers tipped her $4,400

A waitress who was fired from her job after a table tipped her and another server a whopping $4,400 had the last laugh.

Back in December of 2021, Ryan Brandt was working as a server at the Oven & Tap in Bentonville, Arkansas.

One night, she and another server were tasked with taking care of a huge table of 40 business professionals from a company called Witly - an automated ad platform.

At the end of the service, a video captured by Witly employee Rebecca Soto showed the moment Witly CEO Grant Wise presented Brandt with a tip she'll never forget.

"Excuse me, I'm so sorry to disturb everyone's dinner," Wise said as he addressed the restaurant, standing alongside Brandt. He then expressed his gratitude at being able to spend the evening with his co-workers, before going on to explain why they were there. "Tonight we're hosting a $100 dinner club," he said.

"Everybody at this table has contributed or tipped $100 for you, and for the other waitress, who unfortunately had to go home because she wasn't feeling well," Wise told Brandt. "And then we put it out to our social media channels, and we actually had quite a bit more money sent in. So we are tipping you a total of $4,400 for you to split with the other girl that took care of us."

Explaining the kind gesture in the video's caption, Soto wrote: "I have been blessed, so it is wonderful to pay it forward and bless someone else. Can you help the world?? Yes you can, start with yourself, then help lift someone else."

Brandt was quickly moved to tears after hearing about the wonderful gesture.

However, those tears of joy soon came to an end.

Speaking to KNWA News, Brandt revealed that despite the Witly employees stating that the $4,400 tip was for the two servers to split, her bosses were only permitting her to take home 20%.

"I was told that I was going to be giving my cash over to my shift manager, and I would be taking home 20 percent," she said - adding that she had worked at the restaurant for over three years and had never had to split her tips with her co-workers in the past.

After learning about the restaurant's demands, Distractify reports that Wise swiftly requested that the full tip be returned to him.

Once he had the money back, he handed Brandt the money outside of the restaurant premises - guaranteeing that she would keep every last penny.

Sadly, when Brandt returned to the restaurant, she was fired. Speaking to KNWA, she described the restaurant's decision as "devastating", adding: "I borrowed a significant amount for student loans. Most of them were turned off because of the pandemic, but they’re turning back on in January and that’s a harsh reality."

Brandt claimed that she was fired because she allegedly broke the company's policies by informing Grant about the restaurant's plans to have her split the tip.

In a statement to KNWA, reps for Oven & Tap said: "After dining, this large group of guests requested that their gratuity be given to two particular servers. We fully honored their request. Out of respect for our highly valued team members, we do not discuss the details surrounding the termination of an employee."

However, it would appear as if Brandt had the last laugh, as a GoFundMe was set up for by Wise in an effort to help her financially after losing her job.

Wise wrote on the GoFundMe page: "I've started this GoFundMe page to help our server a few nights ago. I was hosting a $100 Dinner Club where each person at dinner tipped $100 to give to the servers. We were able to raise $4400 in tips to be shared with two servers from our attendees and our social media channels. It was a beautiful moment and one I'll never forget.

"I am deeply saddened to learn that the server has been fired from her job at the restaurant. I can't fully understand why this would happen, especially so close to the holiday season. What I do know is that we want to do everything we can to help this sweet woman through the holiday season and get back on her feet."

Credit: GoFundMe

Describing Brandt as "a very kind woman that was working two jobs to get by through the pandemic", Wise revealed that she "has incredible aspirations to grow her own business".

"Life can be really tough but I hope we can all band together to make sure this wonderful woman knows there are still really good people out there that will help when they can," he concluded.

After setting an original target of $6,000, donations started to pour in, and the GoFundMe closed with a whopping $18,367!

An incredible story that proves kindness really does pay off.

Featured image credit: GoFundMe