I took my girlfriend to a fancy dinner for our anniversary, but the evening didn’t go as planned. The waiter was rude throughout the night and made us move from our window table due to a mix-up. After paying the $180 bill, he handed it back to me, saying, “Sir, you forgot my service fee.” I replied, “Your service was zero,” and left without tipping.

The manager then came over and, instead of apologizing or trying to de-escalate the situation, criticized us for not leaving a tip. He called it an “unwritten rule” since waitstaff rely on tips, and mentioned that no one had ever left a $0 tip before. I stood my ground, saying they should focus on better training their staff rather than lecturing customers.

Upset, I went home and wrote a detailed review about their unprofessional behavior. The next morning, I received a call from the restaurant group’s headquarters, accusing me of lying and exaggerating. They even threatened legal action for defamation unless I removed the review or provided proof of the poor service I described. This has left me even angrier—I just wanted a nice evening out, but now I’m being called a liar.