A New Jersey family has denied
allegations they stiffed a lesbian server on a tip because of her
“lifestyle.”
Donations poured in for Dayna Morales,
a server at Gallop Asian Bistro in Bridgewater, after she claimed
that she received a critical note instead of the customary 20 percent
tip on a nearly $100 meal from a family of four.
“Sorry I cannot tip because I do not
agree with your lifestyle & the way you live your life,” a
handwritten note on the receipt reads.
Morales, who served in the Marine Corps
for two years, wrote about her experience in an email to the blog
Have A
Gay Day. The response was overwhelming.
But NBC
4 New York on Tuesday reported that the family has stepped
forward to deny the allegations, saying that they did leave a tip and
never wrote the note.
The couple, who asked to remain
anonymous, showed the news outlet their receipt for the same $93.55
total, except with an $18 tip. The receipt appears to have been
printed at the same date and time as the receipt Morales passed
around. A Visa bill also shows the couple were charged $111.55 for
their meal.
“We've never not left a tip when
someone gave good service, and we would never leave a note like
that,” the wife said.
“Never would a message like that come
from us,” said the husband, who noted that he voted against
Governor Chris Christie because of the governor's opposition to gay
marriage.
When asked about the claims, Morales
insisted that she had not made up the story: “I don't know, all I
know is what I've been saying.”
The couple believes a misunderstanding
was behind the incident, saying that they were surprised when Morales
appeared at their table after they thought the hostess who sat the
family told them that they would be waited on by “Dan.”
Morales has said that she received more
than $3,000 and that she planned on donating some of the money to the
Wounded Warrior Project.
“I just felt like people have a right
to know that – it's fine if people want to donate to her or to the
Wounded Warriors, but they're doing it under a false pretense,” the
wife told the outlet.