A waiter served a couple during happy hour and offered to refill the man’s discounted Bud Light before time runs out. However, she quickly realized he was trying to break a rule that could get her in major trouble.
In a video with over 14,300 views, TikToker Bennett (@bennett_dev) sits in her car after a shift where she says many customers were “trying [her].”
She says a couple came in for the Tennessee bar’s happy hour, which is held from 3 to 6pm. The man ordered a tall Bud Light.
“It was 15 [minutes] ’til 6, and I said, ‘Hey, do you want me to go ahead and order you another one while it’s still happy hour so you don’t have to pay full price?'” Bennett recounts. “He said, ‘Yeah, do that.'”
She says she brought him his drink, and the couple finished their food. Then, he asked her for a to-go box and a drink cup.
Bennett says she looked at the man’s beer and realized he didn’t drink the new one she brought out before the end of happy hour.
“All I could see was her empty glass of water, your tall beer, and the little bit left of [the first one],” she says. “I know exactly what you’re doing, sir.”
Can You Bring A Happy Hour Drink Home In A To-Go Cup?
Restaurants and bars typically hold an on-premise alcohol license. This means that they can only sell alcoholic beverages to customers who plan to finish them in the building.
In order to allow customers to bring drinks home, a business would need an off-premise license as well, according to Rodriguez Law. Allowing a customer to take a to-go cup with alcohol could cause the bar to lose its liquor license entirely.
Plus, taking a to-go cup with alcohol can have legal consequences for customers, too. Many states outlaw open-container alcohol in public or in cars.
How Did The Server Respond?
Bennett says she gave the man a box with no to-go cup. He asked again for the to-go cup, and Bennett recalls asking, “‘What for?'”
“He goes, ‘Uh, uh, a water’ and f—— winked at me,” she continues. “I said, ‘Absolutely not. I am on camera, and I would lose my job.'”
On-screen text reads, “Your $5 beer isn’t worth losing my job, sir.”
In other videos on her page, Bennett shares other stories of times she had to set boundaries with customers. She adheres closely to her restaurant’s rules and local law, too, writing, “I’m not breaking the law just for a good tip.”
Other servers in the comments shared how they would have handled the situation.
“Go get a fresh Togo water, drop it and say ‘I got you a fresh one,'” one said.
“No because why would I have got the to go cup and grabbed her mostly empty water and poured it in the to go cup with a smile and a wink back,” another wrote. “Then I would have asked her if she wanted me to top her off?”
“I woulda just filled the cup with ice water and brought it to them,” a third added. Bennett responded, “I didn’t trust him not pour it in the empty beer glass. I had tables waiting on me, so I couldn’t stay to keep an eye on them.”
BroBible reached out to Bennett via TikTok direct message for further comment.