A customer at a Tampa J. Alexander’s restaurant recorded a confrontation with a manager after he was allegedly presented with a previously unmentioned packaging fee on his bill. The incident, captured in a TikTok video, shows the customer questioning the charge and then being told to leave the establishment.
According to the video’s creator, the video, posted by a user identified as mamonzita, opens with on-screen text that reads “J Alexander’s Tampa Florida scam.” The footage shows a man, who is the customer filming, holding up a receipt and expressing his frustration directly to the camera. He then turns to address a man in a white collared shirt, who appears to be a restaurant employee.
The customer can be heard in the video saying, “you guys, um, they give them the bill and you don’t tell anybody when they’re placing an order that there’s a packaging fee, but you expect them to pay it?” The employee, identified in the video as the Assistant General Manager, responds to the customer.
The manager allegedly asked the customer to leave the restaurant
The exchange continues with the customer asking, “Is that what you’re asking? I’m gonna have you trespass.” The Assistant General Manager then asks, “Well, who’s the general manager?” The customer replies, “I, I’m the assistant general manager.” The customer then asks, “You are? Okay, do you have a card?” The Assistant General Manager states, “Uh, no, but I’m gonna have you, uh— so here he is, guys. So this.”
The customer then asks the Assistant General Manager to leave the restaurant, stating, “I’m gonna ask you to leave the restaurant now.” The Assistant General Manager then asks, “Is that what you’re asking? I’m gonna have you trespass.” The video’s public caption includes several hashtags, such as #viralvideo and #foryoupage.
The TikTok video has drawn numerous comments from viewers who expressed their reactions to the posted confrontation. One commenter wrote, “trespassing for asking a billing question? thats just crazy.” Another comment read, “A packaging fee ? These restaurants be wilding lol.”
Other viewers focused on the business implications. One comment stated, “For $3 you risk loosing a customer witch costs you a $100 to acquire 🤔.” Another commenter suggested, “He knows he’s wrong that’s why he wants you to leave.” The video appears to have prompted some viewers to state they would avoid the restaurant chain.
One commenter declared, “They WON’T be getting my business.” Another wrote, “I will not go back to a J Alexander’s restaurant and I go a lot. He is calling the police for trespassing? Shut them down!!!” The video’s caption does not specify the exact date the incident occurred. The threat of police involvement over a billing dispute highlights how quickly customer service can escalate, as seen when a woman found a bat in her Vrbo rental and was told it was expected.
