Something Personal
He was starving, he couldn’t wait any longer. He stopped in the parking lot to chow down on his 30-piece chicken nugget meal.
But as he was wiping down his oil-covered fingers he noticed something lying at the bottom of his bag. He didn’t know how to feel at first, but soon rage overcame him. Did it really say that?
Hunger Strikes
Getty
Daniel and his girlfriend were coming home from visiting family in Flagstaff, Arizona when their stomachs started growling. They realized they hadn’t had anything to eat.
Then Graham noticed a Chick-Fil-A up ahead. They didn’t even need to say anything to each other before Graham was already pulling into the parking lot. They knew what they wanted to order but they didn’t ever think they’d get something extra with their order.
Inside Joke
YouTube / Bon Apetit
Graham’s girlfriend waited in the car while the 22-year-old walked through the door and got to the counter to order what they both that decided they wanted – a 30 chicken nugget meal.
Daniel’s server’s name was Jordan and he told Daniel that he’d have to wait a little while since they were quite busy. Daniel was a little annoyed since he heard laughter in the back. How could they have time to mess around if they were busy?
Not Comfortable
YouTube / Mashed
Daniel didn’t actually mind if they wanted to have a little fun during work. But he couldn’t help but feel a little uncomfortable when the people preparing his food didn’t take it seriously.
When Daniel’s order was finally ready, he walked up to the counter, took the bag, and walked back to his car. He could really feel his hunger at this point. So he didn’t notice all the eyes on him as he left the restaurant.
Time To Eat
Credits
With all the whispering and laughing at the restaurant, Daniel was a bit worried that they might have tampered with his meal. Did he do something wrong? Did they have reason to give him messed up food?
He tried to forget about it and didn’t even tell his girlfriend about it. He passed her the food and they both chowed down. They hadn’t noticed anything out of the ordinary, yet.
Surprising Find
BPM Media
With their combined hunger, they wolfed down their food in no time. After the nuggets were finished, the fries quickly followed.
Daniel was so full. He was satisfied with his meal and went to throw away the bag his meal came in. Then he realized he still needed his receipt he needed for his budget, he took the crumpled receipt out and looked at it a little closer.
Not Your Standard Receipt
YouTube / Bon Apetit
Daniel was no stranger to Chick-Fil-A and had always kept his receipts. This receipt, however, was different from all the ones he had received before.
It looked like something he wasn’t supposed to see. Like something the workers used to communicate. Upon reading it he thought it must have been a mistake that no customer should find out about.
This Can’t Be Right
YouTube / Bon Apetit
Daniel saw that something was written on a ticket. Thankfully he hadn’t thrown it in the trash. He asked his girlfriend for a second opinion on what was on the ticket.
Jordan, his server, must have put the ticket in with his order by mistake. This clearly wasn’t something he was supposed to see and the ticket concerned him.
Rude Note
YouTube / Harris Clayton
His girlfriend said that he should go give them a piece of his mind, she was defensive of her boyfriend and wanted him to act. How dare they pick on Daniel like that and then have the gall to put the note in with his food.
Daniel felt embarrassed enough. He didn’t want to go back in there and rather thought of a much sweeter way of getting back at them.
Doing Something About It
Credits
He took the ticket and positioned it on his lap. He cleaned his fingers, took out his phone, and went into camera mode.
He wouldn’t let the restaurant workers leave him worse off. He logged into Twitter while still feeling completely offended. They were going to pay for this, he was going to make sure of that.
Followers
YouTube / Harris Clayton
Daniel knew exactly what he had to do to teach the staff at Chick-Fill-A a lesson. It was far from over – in fact, this was only the beginning.
It was fortunate that Daniel already had quite a large following on Twitter, and he intended to notify every one of them about what had happened. He took a photo of the offensive receipt. But he never expected a response like this.
Outrage
Twitter / Zin Zaddy
Daniel sent out the tweet, accompanied by a picture of the receipt and a selfie of himself flipping the camera off with a rude hand gesture, making a point of showing off his favorite knitted sweater.
Several minutes passed in silence. Then, the responses began to roll in. But what could have been on the receipt that was so outrageous that it sparked such a furious Tweetstorm?
‘My Sweater?’
Jam Press
Daniel posted the ticket on Twitter, calling the restaurant out for their unprofessional behavior. Even though Daniel told the server his name, Jordan had decided to identify him by his opinion of his fashion sense, writing “ugly sweater” as well.
“It was NOT MY PLEASURE TO EAT CHIC-FIL-A TODAY,” Daniel wrote, referring to the chain’s trademark sign off “my pleasure.” But he never expected his Goodwill sweater would become an online sensation.
Responses Pour In
Twitter/Zin Zaddy
Daniel and his girlfriend could never have anticipated a response like this. There were a lot of mixed feelings about the incident, and it left the Twitterverse divided. While some users complimented the sweater, others agreed with the cashier that it was ‘ugly’.
Some users even went as far as to criticize the size of Daniel’s order, but he quickly corrected them, explaining that the 30-piece nugget box was for him and his girlfriend to share.
Mixed Reactions
Tripadvisor
Despite all the mixed responses and comments, most users felt that Daniel’s reaction was completely justified. Many users agreed that the cashier’s rude comment was uncalled for and very unprofessional.
And then, Twitter users began to rally behind Daniel. They wanted to help with his crusade to call them out on a public platform. But would he get justice?
Going Viral
YouTube / Harris Clayton
The tweet attracted 150,000 likes, 17,000 retweets, and 700 comments. “I’m not mad,” insisted Daniel, who eventually started to see the funny side. “But I am sad and I will take reparations in free chicken sandwiches,” he added, hoping to get the attention of the manager.
But many commenters told him he was making a big deal over nothing, suggesting they were within their rights to call out his clothing like that.
Bad Service
YouTube / Harris Clayton
Customer service is intended to be about providing good service to the customer. But in this case, the service Daniel was provided offended and saddened him – he didn’t appreciate the jab at his clothing choice at all.
But what could he do about it? Daniel didn’t have time to make an official complaint, he was too busy answering questions from users that were directed at his post.
A Million Questions
Facebook / Chick-Fil-A
There were a lot of questions from followers and strangers. But most of them weren’t about what had happened, but snide remarks about the food Daniel had ordered.
But some, contrary to most responses, tried to explain to Daniel that the term ‘ugly sweater’ isn’t really an insult at all. And one woman posted a photo of her own that made Daniel laugh out loud.
Coincidence
Twitter/Zin Zaddy
As a crazy coincidence, it was a photo of a girl wearing the exact same sweater! But soon after, another notification popped up. And this time, it was from Chick-Fil-A. The manager of the branch apologized profusely for what had taken place and said that it had all been a misunderstanding.
He explained that the receipt that Daniel had gotten in his bag hadn’t meant to be seen by him – it was used by the cashier to call out an order or name. This cashier’s receipt acted as a cheat-sheet so that staff could easily remember the name of a customer… or, in Daniel’s case, a sweater.
Ugly Is In
YouTube / Harris Clayton
“They‘re not wrong though,” said one commenter after seeing the sweater in his disgruntled selfie. Others pointed out that “ugly” isn’t even an insult for a fashionable sweater like that.
“OK, but ‘ugly sweater’ is what cute sweaters like that are called, sir!” a fan of his loud sense of style offered. Would you have been offended if a server dropped a note like that in your lunch?