Jersey Shore

New Jersey Restaurant Workers Thanked With $1,000 Tip on Breakfast Order

NBC Universal, Inc.

Workers at a restaurant in Jersey Shore thought it was a mistake when they saw someone had left them a $1,000 last week.

After taking a closer look at the $43 receipt for a breakfast one family had over the July 4 weekend, Allyson Smith and her co-workers at the Starving Artist restaurant in Ocean Grove realized it was no error.

"I was shocked. I had to look at it ten times," Smith told NBC New York.

The family who left tip had been coming to the restaurant for two decades, and they left a thank you along with the tip.

"Thank you so much for working through this tough time! You are a BIG part of our O.G. community. My family looks forward to our morning with you every summer," the note read.

Indeed, the time is tough for workers in the foodservice industry due to the coronavirus forcing restaurants to do takeout and delivery only. While outdoor dining is now allowed after three months of shutdown, indoor dining is still on hold indefinitely in New Jersey as well as in New York.

Governors of the two neighboring states have both cited the rise in COVID-19 cases in other states that had reopened bars and restaurants earlier, as well as travel, as the reason to keep customers out for the time being.

Co-owner of The Starving Artist Arnold Teixeira was choked up when he talked about how the kind customers left a thank you note for his workers.

"They earned it. They’ve been working like dogs for me. They’ve been doing anything and everything to help me and I’ve been extremely touched," Teixeira said.

The thousand dollars tip was split up among all seven staff working that day, with each of them getting more than a hundred dollars.

"It’s really sweet to know they care about us as much as we care about them," said another worker, Melissa Bridge.

Copyright NBC New York
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