Diner tips waitress $0 on a $300 bill after she ignores their drink order: 'I think it's messed up not to leave tips'

Author image for Remy Millisky
Remy Millisky • Writer and Editor
May 30, 2025 11:00 AM EDT

Who deserves a tip, and who doesn't? It's a question that Americans have to give consideration for more and more. Should you tip for your coffee? For a sandwich? For a haircut? For an online package delivery? Tipping generally used to be reserved for food services: you'd tip your waiters, pizza delivery dudes, and your baristas. But these days, even if you buy prepackaged food or are just handed a package, you might still have an iPad rotated towards you, leaving you to choose if you want to tip 15%, 20%, or 25%. 

However, there are some circumstances where you know you'll be keeping those dollar bills safe and sound in your wallet, because that server isn't getting a dollar of your hard-earned money. If a server is impolite, or if the restaurant botches your meal and is impolite about it, you might think twice about tipping. 

Next up, read about this older guy who was close to getting his pension after working at a place for 15 years, only for his company to sneakily try to oust him: "[He] asked HR to prove it." 

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  • 01

    "AITA for not tipping a waitress on a $300+ tab?"

    AITA for not tipping a waitress on a $300+ tab | The other day, my friend's girlfriend broke up with him, so the boys and I decided to take him to a club to cheer him up. was the last to arrive, and they had already gotten a table and were all drinking alc ol. When the waitress came up to me and asked what I wanted to drink, I couldn't have alc ol because of the medicine I'm on, so I ordered
    via u/Nerd_Rat
  • 02
    a Sprite. She gave me an awkward smile and said okay. Ten minutes went by, and I still hadn't received my Sprite. However, she came back and asked my friends at the same table if they wanted another round. They all said yes, and then they ordered shots as well. I reminded her about my Sprite, and she nodded and left. She then brought all the alcol and shots back out for my friends, but still no Sprite.
    via u/Nerd_Rat
  • 03
    About 10 to 20 minutes later, she returned and asked how we were doing. Everyone said they were fine, and I said I still hadn't gotten my Sprite yet. She nodded again but didn't even walk back to the bar; instead, she started talking to another girl. After waiting an additional 10 or so minutes, I decided to go to the bar myself and get a Sprite and a water. I paid the bartender, left a tip, and went back to the table.
    via u/Nerd_Rat
  • 04
    We hung out for another few hours, my friends drinking a lot of alc ol and eating hors d'oeuvres. When we were ready to leave, she brought our checks and gave me one for the Sprite that she never brought. I told her, "You never gave me the Sprite; I got it from the bar." She responded, "Oh, the bar transferred it to me," and I replied, "No, I paid the bar." She said okay and took the check away.
    via u/Nerd_Rat
  • 05
    I don't know why I was so upset about the Sprite; it's just a Sprite. But my friends were also upset that I was being treated that way, so they all paid their tabs, left no tip, and wrote on the checks, "You should have brought my friend a Sprite." I think it's messed up not to leave tips, and I would have told them not to do that if they had let me know in advance, because people rely on that money for their livelihoods.
    via u/Nerd_Rat
  • 06
    But I also don't like being discriminated against because I can't drink alc ol due to my medications. Do you think we were being for not leaving a tip?
    via u/Nerd_Rat

    Why would you tip this person? She gave them pretty terrible service, and tips are supposed to reward exceptional service. Some people think you should tip no matter what, but this waitress isn't going to convince anyone in that party that they should shell out extra money for her incompetence. 

  • 07
    B FEDERALARY PECK UNITED STATES OF 1460 E ON DOLLAR
    via Golden Horn Bridge on Unsplash+

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • 08
    Srvntgrrl_789 NTA. I've worked as a bartender, waitress, and a barista. That kind of behavior doesn't just deserve a no tip, it also deserves a call to the bar owner to let them know WHY the waitress didn't get a tip.
    via u/Nerd_Rat
  • 09
    FigSuspicious7079 NTA It was up to your friends to leave a tip and they chose not to. She was not catering to the whole. party just the drinkers. I wouldn't have tipped her either
    via u/Nerd_Rat
  • 10
    International-Age... NTA, I've been a bartender and waitress. This service deserves no tip. Soft drinks and waters take less than 10 seconds to make
    via u/Nerd_Rat
  • 11
    PEDERAS UNITED STATES OF BG B 1460 E CONNE DOLLAR
    via Lala Azizli For Unsplash+

    The image does not depict the actual subjects of the story. Subjects are models.

  • 12

    This is the real issue: even the friends noticed her impolite behavior, and they weren't going to just ignore it

    CarryOk3080 Nta. I have been a server, bartender, and restaurant manager. She didn't provide. a service to get tipped for. Your friends saw that she was blatantly ignoring you.
    via u/Nerd_Rat
  • 13
    That equals no tip. Maybe next time she won't be so snobby and refuse to serve a Sprite. You could have been the DD for all she knows, and she alienated the sober person of the group. Drink people can be savage, your friends just stood up for you.
    via u/Nerd_Rat
  • 14
    LibraryMouse4321 Hopefully the tips aren't pooled and she was the only one not getting a tip. You should let the owner or manager know about the waitress's behavior.
    via u/LibraryMouse4321
  • 15
    AndieMarie16 NTA....a tip is for providing GOOD service! Completely ignoring a patron is not at all good service! Also you technically left a tip...to the bartender, who got your drink so you didn't owe her anything period! But your friends aren't AHs either, she was a crappy waitress!
    via u/AndieMarie16
  • 16
    Theodora1976 Omg, she brought you a bill for a sprite she never served? NTA
    via u/Theodora1976
  • 17
    asbestospajamas Dude, the title of this almost gave me an instant "YTA" reaction from me, but reading your account of the event changed my mind. And it sounds like it was your friends chosing to not tip the server in solidarity with your treatment. So, double-NTA here.
    via u/asbestospajamas

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