A TikTok user has gone viral after claiming that he was charged $12 (R200) for a “stolen orange” after eating one off a counter at a restaurant.
In a video with over two million views, TikTok user Franky Bernstein (@frankybernstein) can be seen peeling an orange. A server quickly comes up to him and tells him that those oranges are used to make drinks.
“Excuse me, those are oranges we use to make drinks with,” the staff member can be heard saying in the now-viral video.
“We’re in a citrus shortage ... I’m putting it on your bill.”
Bernstein was not fazed as he calmly responded, “Okay” before he proceeded to eat his orange.
Everything that he had ordered at the restaurant, such as the burgers, chicken skewers, prawns, and oysters, was listed on the bill.
However, he was shocked when he noticed his bill included a charge for the “stolen orange”.
Surprised, Bernstein asked, “You were serious?”
“Yeah,” the staff answered, “I was serious.”
It turned out that they charged him such a high amount to ensure he would not do it again. “Maybe you can learn your lesson,” the server tells him.
“I learned my lesson, but an orange?” he said.
@frankybernstein The “Stolen Orange” 🤦♂️
♬ Frolic (Theme from "Curb Your Enthusiasm" TV Show) - Luciano Michelini
The video garnered a lot of attention from viewers who were just as taken aback as Bernstein by the high cost of one “stolen orange”.
“$12 for an orange is insane,” wrote one user.
“The fact that they have a button for ‘stolen orange’ means that it’s happened more than once, so they put the fruit there deliberately,” wrote a second user.
A third commented: “It’s not ‘stolen’ if it was paid for, now is it?”