A customer who was asked to leave a tip on a Toast touchscreen POS system decided to devise an innovative way to determine what kind of gratuity was left for the employee processing their transaction: a game of Tic-tac-toe.
Martin Apablaza (@startinofmartin) uploaded a viral TikTok detailing his trick, racking up a whopping 1.2 million views and tons of comments from other users on the app who had varying opinions on the game. Some found it “fun,” others thought it was annoying, and then some thought that Apablaza was “trash” for tipping 18%.
Apablaza’s video begins with him and the employee playing a game of Tic, Tac, Toe on the signature section of the POS touch screen. The match reaches a stalemate, and the grand total, including 18% gratuity, ends at $34.34.
One commenter didn’t seem too happy with the video, stating that they thought it was lame that they were holding up the line just to have a little bit of fun on a touchscreen device. “The people infront of me while I’m running late,” they wrote.
Another person joked that they should’ve just kept the game going until there was a clear victor: “should’ve reset it and played until someone wins.”
However, others pointed out that the tipping tablet order is set up as descending from right to left, so that the highest tip amount, which would typically be on the right is, instead, on the left.
“I like how they reverse the order so the highest is on the left as most people count from low to high left to right,” one user said.
Someone else thought that Apablaza should’ve simply just ditched the tip altogether. “Just press no tip already,” they said.
Another user suggested a new set of rules for the POS game they were playing. “Start in the center, each time the server wins you go to the next tier, each time the customers win you move down,” they wrote.
@startinofmartin #tips #tictactoe ♬ original sound – Martin Apablaza
This isn’t the first time customers have turned giving an employee their tip into a game. TikTokers previously forced a worker to reach behind themselves to nab one of four bills, which many on the platform found to be humiliating and dehumanizing.
Another server said that they, too, were asked by a customer to play a game that would give him a chance to win $300 as a gratuity. The thing is, they wanted to record the whole thing for their social media channel, something that the restaurant employee was not cool with. He says he told the diner straight up he had zero intention of participating in his game because the customer only wanted to look generous online.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Apablazan for further clarification.