‘First Time In My Life’: Alabama Man Picks Up $65 Domino’s Order. Then He Tries To Pay With $100

Recently there’s been an awful lot of chatter, online and otherwise, about the decline of customer service. People get really upset and angry about their treatment at the hands of corporations. But one Alabama small business owner has perhaps the “dad-est” take ever: He’s just “disappointed.”

Jeremy Harbin (@harbins_outdoors) took to TikTok to voice a complaint about a recent Domino’s Pizza interaction. He says he debated even taking it to the internet. Then he shifts slightly in his seat and holds up a $100 bill. “This is American currency. Produced by the Federal Reserve. It’s $100,” he says.

Next, he goes into a deeper dive, explaining that he’d gone to grab some pizza for a watch party during the recent college football National Championship. And he was almost denied his food because he tried to pay in cash.

The Customer Isn’t Always Right, But Can We At Least Meet In The Middle?

Harbin says his task was seemingly simple: Pick up food for a bunch of hungry, hard-working, blue-collar men. “Me and the guys, man, we just want to eat. We’re hungry,” he says.

So he ordered three pizzas, some wings, and extra ranch. The total for his order came to $65.

When he went to get the food, he revealed the young guy at the pickup window said to him, “‘Excuse me, sir. We don’t take large bills.'”

Prior to this, Harbin alleges he’s never had a problem before with paying in cash. Plus, he wasn’t told when he placed the order (on the phone) that he couldn’t pay in cash. Though he does say there was a sign on the window that they don’t take bills larger than $20. To compound the situation, he’s forgotten his wallet. It’s just him, some cash, and the hope for a meal.

Now he’s frustrated and hungry. He tries to work out a solution, from Domino’s paying him back the approximately $35 it owes him later to giving him credit since he’ll probably grab some food later on that same week.

For him, it ultimately wasn’t about the store’s policy. It was about the store’s inability or willingness to act in a manner that served both parties’ needs. “Moral of story: Customer service sucks nowadays,” he says.

Customer Service: Does It Even Exist Anymore?

Anecdotal evidence, meaning that found in the comments section of the video, suggests that overwhelmingly, people are tired. They’re tired of being expected to spend money the way the businesses they support want them to.

“Customer service isn’t dying. it’s aready [sic] dead,” exclaims BigBobBrewer (@BigBobBrewer).

Other users distinguish between the workers and the bosses. “It’s not the employees. Blame the Corporations!!!” another said.

But in a surprising twist, several users agree with Domino’s ban on big bills, “Has nothing to do with change. It’s safety of the employees. I run three restaurants and I don’t take hundred dollar bills in one of them. Domino’s is absolutely correct, you are 100% wrong,” says Gangsta_Gramps (gangsta_gramps).

‘This Note Is Legal Tender For All Debts, Public and Private’

Printed on the bill is the phrase: “This note is legal tender for all debts, public and private.” Though this verbiage suggests that businesses should be legally required to accept cash, that’s not true. What it means, as explained by Investopedia, is that the paper bill is essentially a promissory note backed by the U.S. Treasury.

Basically, while businesses or individuals can elect not to accept a paper note as payment, the U.S. government cannot.  In theory, that means citizens could be paying one another with sharks’ teeth or magic beans.

It’s unlikely that, as a citizenry, we’re gonna get into fossils or legumes as a way to buy that new car. Also at this particular point in history, trading beans for goods might be legally interpreted as bartering. And bartering, according to the IRS, is taxable. It’s taxed at the fair market value of the goods or services received from bartering.

Considering taxes are the funds paid to the government, that’s a full circle back to greenbacks.

Ultimately, Harbin got his food—and an explanation. According to a manager he later talked to, Domino’s has corporate inspectors out, and therefore, this Alabama store doesn’t keep cash on hand. But Harbin’s larger point is that there was no customer service—no attempt to “make the customer happy.”

BroBible reached out to Jeremy Harbin via TikTok direct message and with a comment on his video. BroBible also reached out to Domino’s Pizza via their media contact. We’ll update this article if either get back to us.