‘I know I’m not the only one’: Woman’s ‘restaurant collection’ goes viral—but critics have another word for it

Who doesn’t love a good restaurant aesthetic? There is something so cute and charming about receiving a glob of ketchup in its own tiny silver dish, or French onion soup served in a quaint little crock. It’s things like that which set apart the experience of dining out versus cooking in. 

For one social media user, these worlds are not separate. She decided to share a selection of tabletop items she allegedly has “collected” over the years, and most responses are skeptical, to say the least.

‘My restaurant collection’

C’Ashia McCrary, a self-proclaimed entrepreneur, working in realtor, hair styling, and more, posted a video where she went through what she calls “my restaurant collection.” The video, posted on Mar. 12., 2025, has gone viral, with over 6.1M views, 865.8K likes, 15.7K comments, and 43.7K saves on TikTok (@cecemccrary), and 2.3M views, and 6,530 comments on Instagram (@cecemccrary).

“So today we’re going to talk about all the things that I’ve collected from restaurants over the years,” the video starts out. “I’m a collector, as you can see.”

McCrary is seen in a dimly-lit kitchen, standing behind a kitchen counter with several basic kitchen items laid out in front of her.

“To me, it’s like a souvenir, something for me to remember what I collect from restaurants,” she explains. 

Most of the items are commonly-used items from restaurants. McCrary claims to have about “50 cups” like glass and ceramic ramekins, and metal sauce holders, but she also has some larger plates and even a tool used to hold tacos upright. 

She’s able to recall what some of the items held, like the larger white ramekin that may have previously held “mashed potatoes or corn or something like that.”

McCrary prides herself on collecting “good quality” items and listed off a few of the places where she’s gotten the items from – Eddie V’s, Ruth’s Chris, Big Fin, Capital Grill, to name a few, most likely from the Orlando area where she calls home. 

@cecemccrary I’m Just Trying To Build My Collection🤣 #fyp #explorepage #fypシ #foryou #foryoupage #exploremore #trending #funnyvideos #souvenir #restaurant #collection #florida #viral #viralreels #contentcreator ♬ original sound – CeCe McCrary

How did she get all of these things for her restaurant collection?

At one point, she lifts up a black bowl that would be noticeably missing if one was working in a restaurant.

“How did you get that bowl out?” she poses the question. “They told me I can keep it,” she replies, insinuating the restaurant granted her permission to take it.

McCrary decided to call the video “Things you see at a restaurant that you’ll see in my house.” 

However, towards the end of the video, she dropped a major bomb on the viewers, hinting at how she really procured her collection.

“I know I’m not the only one,” she cryptically admits. “And guess what? I’m not the first and I’m not going to be last.”

“So some of y’all do it,” she continues, calling people out for similar behavior. “Let’s just be honest. You do it. And you just probably don’t want to say that you do it.”

How often do people steal from restaurants?

Restaurant tableware theft is an all-too-common issue. Darron Cardosa, a veteran waiter, explained to Food & Wine that “restaurant customers are a notoriously thieving bunch” and that “their fingers are stickier than a laminated breakfast menu at a Waffle House.”

“If a diner feels they simply must have the ceramic creamer that came with their coffee or the wooden mallet that came with the crab, they might consider buying those at the same place the restaurant did,” Cardosa added, explaining that it’s easy for anyone to visit a restaurant supply store or Williams-Sonoma.

While McCrary never admits it outright, most people in the comments of her posts implied she had perhaps acquired these items with a “five finger discount.”

“Howww did you get away with thisss,” asked TikTok @theseynan in the comments.

“Technically we paid for it,” McCrary replied.

“do u mean stolen?” added TikTok user @ffsethan.

“Not the kleptomaniac collection fall winter 2025,” added TikTok user @jayannlopez_.

“Collect???” wrote Instagram user @glowmaven in the comments. “Do the restaurants know you’re collecting these items?”

McCrary posted a second post on Instagram and TikTok Mar. 13., 2025, showcasing larger items in her collection – two wooden cutting boards, three silver trays, squeeze bottles, and several large dishes.

“Cece how you manage to take the people plates and platters?!!?” wrote Instagram user @uhlanjuh. “And the lil squeeze bottles?! Come on man”

“Girl what did you do?” TikTok user @mon_ster8 also asked. “Pretend the board was a fan in your hand when you walked out? How big was your bag?”

Can someone go to jail for stealing from a restaurant?

Many people commented about the criminal offense McCrary was subliminally owning up to in her video.

“Restaurants security remembering your face,” Instagram user @girl.empowermentquotes added in the comments.

“Them agents at your door rn,” added TikTok user @jerroldhtims.

Others admitted to doing the same thing.

“My most prized piece is my Parmesan grater from Olive Garden,” TikTok user @whatwouldoliviado owned up to in the comments.

“My best friend’s mom constantly takes stuff from restaurants and every time I come over,” wrote TikTok user @harrywwallace also replied. “We play this game where she shows me things and I have to guess what restaurant it came from.”

Dining and dashing – the art of eating at a restaurant but leaving before you pay for your meal – is definitely considered a crime, but the law isn’t as clear when it comes to miscellaneous items like silverware, plates, and other accessories.

Restaurants do try and account for most of their inventory going missing, and they can afford to do so when many items are bought wholesale. However, it still doesn’t give you permission to hoard a tiki glass in your purse, or walk off with salt and pepper shakers.

And sadly, restaurant staff are often the ones punished, not the customer, when it comes to stolen goods.

“In an effort to manage inventory and deter theft, many restaurants force their staff count valuable items like leather-bound menus or flatware on a nightly basis,” wrote food and beverage veteran Peter Camarero. “But those same restaurants balk at charging guests for the items they stole when they catch them red-handed…. Staff is blamed for its lack of vigilance.”

The Daily Dot has reached out to C’Ashia McCrary via Instagram DM for comment.

The internet is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here to get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.