A Pennsylvania restaurant, famous for being featured on the hit show “The Office,” is suing a customer for more than $3,000 after the patron left a very generous tip for a waitress and then disputed the charge on his credit card – leaving the restaurant to hand out the money for their server.
Mariana Lambert, a waitress at Alfredo’s Pizza Cafe in Scranton, Pennsylvania, was elated when a customer left several thousand dollars as a tip for her service.
She felt like she had just hit the jackpot, until the generous patron decided he wanted the money back and now the restaurant is taking the man to court.
The customer identified as Eric Smith had ordered a stromboli for just $13.25. He charged the item on his credit card, added the $3,000 tip, and wrote, “Tips for Jesus.”
The male patron claimed the generous tip was part of a social media movement called Tips for Jesus.
Lambert, who was “in shock,” said it was an extremely generous gesture that “really touched my heart,” at a time when many people and businesses were getting back on their feet after COVID.
“It really meant a lot to me because everyone goes through things,” she said.
But Lambert discovered that the generous customer wasn’t so generous after all, and challenged the charge with his credit card company.
However, the restaurant had already handed over the $3,000 to Lambert.
Mariana Lambert, a waitress at Alfredo’s Cafe, said she was stunned to receive such a huge tip. “It really meant a lot to me because everyone goes through things,” she said. Weeks later, the patron disputed the charges and the restaurant had to hand out the money to pay Lambert
The customer identified as Eric Smith had ordered a stromboli for $13.25. He charged the item to his credit card, added the $3,000 tip, and wrote, “Tips for Jesus. He claimed the generous tip was part of a social media movement called ‘Tips for Jesus’
Alfredo’s Pizza Cafe is suing the patron for $3,000. The manager said the restaurant hoped it was just a big misunderstanding and made several attempts to reach the customer on Facebook but their messages went unanswered
When the restaurant contacted Smith about the charge he was contesting, they had hoped it was just a big misunderstanding and had started talking to Smith via Facebook.
The restaurant management hoped to resolve the incident, but after many of their messages went unanswered, they had to get the magistrate’s office involved and press charges.
Zachary Jacobson, the manager of Alfredo’s Cafe, described the whole ordeal as “worsening.”
“We’re just out of money right now and he said we should sue him, so that’s what we’re going to do, I guess,” Jacobson said in part.
Zachary Jacobson, the manager of Alfredo’s Cafe, described the whole ordeal as “worsening.” “We just don’t have any money right now and he said we should sue him, so that’s what we’re going to do, I think,” Jacobson said in part.
A scene from ‘The Launch Party’ that appeared in the fourth season of The Office. The episode attracted more than 8.91 million viewers, a report said
Dunder Mifflin’s Michael Scott (Steve Carell) during a scene in The Office during the hilarious episode of ‘The Launch Party’
Jacobson initially said that when his server got the staggering tip, he was happy for Lambert, saying, “Somebody was actually trying to do something right.”
Three months later and nothing has been resolved. He hopes they will win the court and get their $3,000 back
Meanwhile, he calls Lambert a “hardworking” waitress who made the money and the incident as “a nice piece of PR for a small business.”
“I hope he allows his actions and comes forward and pays for this because you shouldn’t have done this if this was the end result,” he said.
In Season 4 of ‘The Office’, Alfredo’s Pizza Café was mentioned in the episode: ‘The Launch Party”Do you know what’s best? Alfredo’s Pizza Cafe or Alfredo’s Pizza?”
Alfredo’s Pizza Cafe is a real restaurant in Scranton. Alfredo’s pizza is not.