Working in the service industry often means dealing with unwanted romantic or sexual advances from customers.
It’s a reality that many restaurant workers have exposed online. One LongHorn Steakhouse hostess, for example, shared that a customer had to be removed after he harassed her while his wife laughed.
In another case, a young Florida server reported experiencing a similar situation and wasn’t sure how to respond, despite behavior that could have justified involving the police.
For restaurant workers who rely on tips, pushing back against customers isn’t always easy.
TikTok creator Kristabelle’s (@itsabelleslife) storytime video on the platform perfectly illustrates such a situation.
In the clip, which has garnered over 7,400 views, she recounts an uncomfortable situation she found herself in during her time working as a restaurant hostess.
What Happened During Her Shift?
“Okay, this is a story time about when I used to work at a restaurant,” she begins. “It’s just a funny story.”
She explained that she normally worked busy dinner shifts as the lead hostess but once agreed to switch with a coworker so she could take a quieter lunch shift instead.
“I want to work lunch so I can do nothing and get paid for it,” she says. “Even though I won’t make tips, I’m okay with that.”
Kristabelle says she arrived expecting an easy shift and spent time chatting with a bartender while the restaurant remained slow. Eventually, two older men walked in and chose to sit at the bar.
After seating them, she returned to the hostess stand but noticed one of the men repeatedly trying to get her attention through a glass partition separating the entrance from the bar area.
When she approached, he made small talk before handing her something.
“He gives me this envelope, and I’m like, ‘Oh, is this trash?’” she recounts.
It wasn’t. In fact, inside she found $400 in cash, which she initially tried to refuse.
“I walk back, and I’m like, ‘Sir, I cannot take this. I cannot, like, this is way too much,” she says.
The man insisted she keep it, and she says she put the envelope in her purse before returning to work. Soon after, he began calling her over again “every five minutes.”
“He just wanted to talk,” she says. “I got envelope after envelope.”
The tips were growing. “I mean, I got to $1,000 fast, and it’s all in my purse,” she remembers.
She says even the restaurant owner got involved after hearing about the situation.
“I’m like, that guy, he’s making my whole week,” she says. “And we’re laughing.”
The Customer Then Makes An Unexpected Request
According to Kristabelle, the two men stayed for drinks but never ordered food. As they prepared to leave, the customer called her over one last time.
“I have a question for you,” he says.
She says the conversation took an uncomfortable turn. “He’s like, ‘How would you feel about being my sugar baby?’” she recalls.
Kristabelle says she was caught off guard and worried that rejecting the offer might make the man ask for the money back, so she tried to handle the situation carefully. She decided to “act dumb” and asked him, “Oh, what’s that?”
The man offers to explain it to her over dinner. “Well, can I have your number?” he asked.
Instead of sharing her personal phone number, she says she gave him the restaurant’s work phone.
“I’m never ever gonna call you or text you off my off the work phone,” she says.
The man called the number immediately to confirm it worked and asked her to text him later. “I’m gonna tell you what to wear and what shoes to wear,” he reportedly told her.
After the men left the restaurant, she says she quickly blocked the number. The customer never came back to the restaurant, nor did he try calling with a different number.
In total, she says the customer gave her about $1,500 in cash before leaving. “I was shocked,” she says.
Commenters Are Envious
In the comments section, most users thought she should’ve entertained his offer further.
“Girl I would of went to dinner and got paid again and then never see him again,” one user wrote.
Kristabelle responded, “I was so scared at the time but trust I wish I would have just done it lol.”
“The money was a down payment…” offered another.
A third expressed envy. “Why don’t these things happen to me lol,” they pondered.
What Is A ‘Sugar Baby’?
The term typically refers to a relationship between a younger person and a wealthier partner, in which the wealthier partner provides financial support or gifts in exchange for companionship.
That companionship can include regular communication, social outings, or intimate activity. Both parties usually set the ground rules and expectations.
On Reddit’s Ask Me Anything forum, r/AMA, one user who claimed to have been a sugar baby for five years answered questions about their experience.
In the discussion, they described the relationships as similar to traditional dating and said they never felt pressured to do anything they didn’t want to do. They added that the biggest challenge was emotional attachment, particularly when one person wanted more than the other.
However, a Psychology Today article on sugar relationships notes that these arrangements can sometimes be emotionally complicated for both parties.
However, a marriage and family therapist told the site that as long as there is consent and communication, there should be no shame associated with this type of relationship.
@itsbelleslife Story time when I worked at a restaurant part 2 #storytime #restaurant #hostess #story
BroBible has reached out to Kristabelle via TikTok messages for comment.