Ryan Brandt GoFundMe page raises more than $8,000 after Oven and Tap waitress fired over $4,400 tip

Oven and Tap waitress Ryan Brandt and her co-worker recently received a $4,400 tip from business owner Grant Wise who organized a ‘$100 Diner Club’ at the restaurant in Bentonville, Arkansas.

However, Ryan was fired from the restaurant just days after receiving the tip as she refused to split her share of $2,200 with other staff members and informed the customer about Oven and Tap’s demand.

The restaurant reportedly ordered Ryan to keep 20% of the amount and asked her to share the remaining portion of her tip with other employees. Meanwhile, customer Grant Wise returned to Oven and Tap after learning about the situation and requested the venue to return his tip as pooling was against his intention.

The customer then handed over the cash to waitress Ryan Brandt outside the restaurant. Unfortunately, the latter was fired from her job following the incident. This led to Grant Wise launching a GoFundMe campaign to help the waitress sustain while she was looking for a new job.

The fundraiser was later disabled after it reached its desired goal and collected over $8,000 in donations. The organizer also mentioned that Ryan Brandt has managed to find a job at another local restaurant.

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The Ryan Brandt x Oven and Tap restaurant controversy explained

GoFundMe page for the waitress fired from Oven and Tap restaurant (Image via GoFundMe)

Earlier this month, waitress Ryan Brandt and her co-workers served a party of more than 40 people at an Oven and Tap restaurant in Arkansas. Organizer Grant Wise later revealed that the gathering was a ‘$100 Diner Club’ party and each attendee contributed $100 to collect $4,400 as a tip for the servers.

Waitress Ryan Brandt broke down in tears upon receiving the hefty tip and said that she would be using the amount to pay off the student loan she had issued to study Spanish at the University of Arkansas. However, she later told Fox59 that restaurant managers asked her to keep 20% of the cash and split the rest among other co-workers:

“I was told that I was going to be giving my cash over to my shift manager and I would be taking home 20 percent.”

Ryan also mentioned that she had never witnessed the concept of tip sharing during her three years at Oven and Tap, and told 5News that the order left her “disheartened”:

“I was definitely like just in shock and overwhelmed with joy and gratitude in that moment as soon as I realized what he [Grant Wise] was saying. To turn right back around and find out that I wasn’t keeping it, was kind of disheartening because we don’t tip share in any way.”

Following the demand, Ryan informed Grant about the situation and the latter returned to take back the tip from managers to then give it back to the waitress. The customer also mentioned that he called Oven and Tap beforehand and confirmed that it does not have any policy of tip pooling or sharing.

Unfortunately, Oven and Tap decided to fire Ryan Brandt after the incident for allegedly violating their rules by contacting the customer regarding the tip pooling situation. The server told 5News that the restaurant fired her over a phone call:

“They fired me from Oven and Tap over the phone and I’ve been there for 3.5 years and that was really heartbreaking. Especially, because I didn’t think I did anything wrong."

She also told KNWA that the sudden loss of her job had left her “devastated”:

“It was devastating. I borrowed a significant amount for student loans. Most of them were turned off because of the pandemic but they’re turning back on in January and that’s a harsh reality.”

Meanwhile, Grant Wise decided to launch a GoFundMe fundraising page for Ryan after learning about her situation. He also took to social media to share that the incident had left him “saddened”:

“I'm so saddened to hear that the girl we tipped the other night at our $100 Dinner Club has been fired from her job. I don't fully understand why this would happen to what seems like such a sweet and kind-hearted woman. Nonetheless, I'm committed to showing her that there are great people in the world that will do good when they can.”

Oven and Tap owners refuted Ryan’s claims and told 5News that tip pooling was always part of the restaurant’s policy for equal treatment of all employees:

“Oven & Tap has always been committed to providing fair and quality compensation to all members of our restaurant team. We recognize and regret that a recent incident in our restaurant could have been handled differently by reminding our team how we would be splitting any tips prior to the event, however, our policy has always been to participate in a tip pool/share with the staff. Tip sharing is a common restaurant industry practice that we follow to ensure all of our team members are adequately compensated for their hard work."

The restaurant initially refused to publicly address Ryan’s termination and said they “honoured” Grant Wise’s request of tipping the two waitresses who served them:

“After dining, this large group of guests requested that their gratuity be given to two particular servers. We fully honored their request. Out of respect for our highly valued team members, we do not discuss the details surrounding the termination of an employee.”

However, Oven and Tap later stated that Ryan Brandt was not fired because she refused to share the money:

“We commend the organization that dined with us and generously gave to our staff. They have an absolute right to tip whoever they want, and we honored that request. Oven & Tap doesn’t deliver terminations lightly. Because we value our employees and highly respect their privacy, we never discuss personnel issues. The server who was terminated several days after the group dined with us was not let go because she chose to keep the tip money. The other two servers who received generous tips that evening from the Witly organization – including one who also received $2,200 – are still members of our team.”

Ryan Brandt received immense support from people who donated to her GoFundMe page raising more than $8000 in a few days. She also successfully managed to find a new job at another restaurant in the locality.