A group of Ohio restaurant employees received a surprise early Christmas gift after a customer left a $5,600 tip on a bill for the staff to split.
The customer, who wished to remain anonymous, was dining at Souk Mediterranean Kitchen in Toledo on December 12 when he left the giant tip for all 28 staff members — including those who were not working that day.
Each staff member received $200 after dividing up the tip.
“There was a lot of tears, I’m tearing up now talking about it,” Moussa Salloukh, Souk’s owner and chef, told CNN. “Your restaurant staff becomes your family and everyone cares about each other. I’ve been staying out of the kitchen to give employees hours to get through and put gifts under the tree for their kids, so this was so huge for us.”
Restaurants, bars, and those who work for them have been hit hard by the pandemic, facing multiple restrictions on operating as well as having to worry about keeping their employees from getting sick from the virus.
The National Restaurant Association said that as of December 1, more than 110,000 restaurants had closed either temporarily or permanently, according to a survey released this month.
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