Bartender Complains About Customer Who Tried To Pay With Cash, Says To ‘Just Bring Your Card’: ‘Stop Doing This’

The “cash is king” mentality is starting to become obsolete as digital payments have become the norm. Despite that, there is still a strong group of cash users that believe cash should always be accepted.

In a TikTok with over 89,000 views, Delaney Doylee (@delaneydoylee) shares how a man caused a whole ordeal on her last bartender shift and how much of a nightmare cash is.

“Why are people coming into bars without a card? No credit card, no debit card, no wallet, no Apple Pay. Nothing, literally. Stop doing this,” Doylee begins.

The passionate bartender details a situation from the night before. She says a customer ordered a drink and appetizer. Doylee says she asked for a card to keep on file. The customer informed her that he was going to pay with cash, she says.

“’OK, that’s fine. You can pay in cash at the end. I just need to put a card on file for you now if you are going to keep your tab open,’” she recalls saying.

Doylee says the man confirmed he only had cash on him, and so she told him he’d need to settle his tab immediately.

“If you want to order more, I can check you out again,” she says.

‘Just Bring Your Card’

“’Why can’t I just pay at the end? Everywhere else I go, whenever I sit down for a dinner, I can pay at the end. Why are you making me pay now?’” she says he questioned.

Doylee says she mentioned that it was a store policy to have a card on file for open tabs.

“’If you are going to sit down and have an open tab, I just need to have a card on file,’” she recalls explaining.

In response, she says the man whipped out a $100 and passively aggressively handed it over to Doylee.

“’Make this your card on file. This will cover a couple drinks and an appetizer,'” she says he demanded.

This startled Doylee, as she says she didn’t know where to place a $100 bill behind the bar.

“I don’t want to be responsible for that. If something happens. If someone steals it or if I lose it, like, that’s not my responsibility. Like, why can’t I just check you out. Give you your cash back and then just have you pay again if you need to. It’s not that big of a deal,” Doylee vents.

In frustration, Doylee offers a PSA for anyone going to the bar to make her life easier.

“PSA to anyone going to a bar: Just bring your card, like, it’s really not that deep, and this genuinely made me so mad,” Doylee concludes.

‘Bro Cash Is The OG Currency’

Viewers in the comment section were divided by Doyle’s PSA.

“Wdym bro cash is the OG currency that’s why they want to carry it,” one TikTok commenter wrote.

“Not everyone has a card. Us older people don’t trust banks and prefer cash,” another added.

“I only bring cash because I don’t wanna get drunk and spend too much. I set a limit to what I can spend in one night,” a third chimed in.

Other bartenders shared that they still prefer cash.

“Bartender at a dive bar here! Cash is very much preferred,” one shared.

“As a bartender I much prefer cash. I do not care about that card,” one commented.

And other bartenders simply weighed in on the situation.

“I mean I see both sides,” one wrote.

“That’s totally reasonable for you BUT you should be talking to management about a better way to handle cash because the customer should ABSOLUTELY be able to use cash,” one suggested.

“I’m with you on this. I’m not chancing it with everybody to walk out or BS with me, also it’s way faster if I have a card on file,” one agreed.

“Bartender here it is house policy at our bar.. we don’t do cash tabs because of counterfeits/ theft accusations,” one shared.

Is Cash Still King At Bars?

Bar tabs used to take forever to open and close with credit cards and often required a minimum amount spent. Credit cards were collected and stored behind the bar along with IDs. This filing system was complicated to organize, and during this period, “cash was king.” Giving a bartender cash was a simple exchange and usually the quickest way to get a drink, especially during a busy rush.

In the mid 2015’s having cash at the bar was the ultimate hack to getting the bartender to like you. However, some bartenders like Doylee despise the “cash is king” mentality as digital payments have become the standard.

The gradual shift away from cash in bars got amplified during the pandemic. Food establishments were forced to rely heavily on digital transactions, as hand-to-hand cash transfers were frowned upon.

In the past, credit cards used to slow down bartenders, but with new technology improvements to collect payment, service has been reported to be faster.

Moving to cashless transactions has offered bars greater efficiency and decreased the chances of the cash drawer getting robbed, Bar and Restaurant reports. Employees and management didn’t have to spend as much time counting cash and making bank runs.

One major con for bars integrating cashless transactions is the transaction fees associated with credit cards. Each transaction can range anywhere from 3% to 4%, which directly impacts the bars bottom line.

Food and Wine reports service industry workers will still prefer cash tips for tax purposes, as cash can fly under the radar and needs to be self-reported. On the flip side, some service workers do report cash tips, as it improves chances of getting a loan in the future.

BroBible has contacted Doylee via Instagram and TikTok direct message. The story will be updated if she replies.