Matt Reigle
Videos by OutKick
A woman in New York has gone viral — and fanned the flames of debate — after posting a TikTok video in which she talks about walking out on a first date because the dude wouldn’t pay $3 to add cheese to his burger.
Meet Dafna, she’s the young woman documenting the perils of eating in the Big Apple via TikTok. Territory left completely unexplored by TV shows, movies, books, podcasts, and magazines over the years.
Dafna said that she ordered branzino while her date (who I’m going to guess is something of a finicky eater) went the burger route.
The type of food you choose on a first date is important. Maybe going to the Renaissance Faire and housing mutton with your bare hands sounds fun, but save that for a few dates into the relationship.
Burgers are a fringe first-date food. They’re better than saucy wings or garlicky pasta, but it runs the risk of being a bit too messy. Still, it’s an acceptable meal in most situations.
However, the burger wound up being this dude’s downfall. When he inquired about slapping a little cheese on that puppy, he was told it would be an additional $3. This thrifty fella decided to stick with a hamburger.
This did not impress our heroine, Dafna.
She finished eating and excused herself to the bathroom. However, she went up front, paid the $55 bill, and split without giving the cheeseless wonder back at the table a courtesy peck on the cheek goodnight.
Some have called this move rude, while others have slammed the dude for not just getting cheese on his burger. As for me — a humble man who puts words on the Internet — I’m torn.
Is Dafna In The Wrong, Or Should The Dude Have Just Bought The Cheese?
First, let’s address the big cheesy elephant in the room: on what planet is cheese on a burger a $3 upcharge? As Dafna so accurately pointed out, it is New York City, but at what point will the citizens rise up and say enough is enough?
I’m going to run for mayor of New York. The central part of my platform will be doing away with the cheese tax banning.
“Yeah, crime’s bad, but you know what’s really criminal? $3 to add cheese to a burger… people getting pushed onto subway tracks by random lunatics is also an issue, but let’s take things one step at a time… starting with cheese.”
It’s a ridiculous price tag, but I still think the guy made a mistake here. It’s a first date, you’ve got to puff your chest out a little. If that means forking over a few extra singles for a slice of American cheese. Dude, you want cheese, get the cheese.
Dafna wanted a dude who had ambition. Instead, she got a guy who on their next date would’ve been proud to show up with a Kraft Single in his wallet to save a couple of bucks.
Does Dafna come across as high maintenance? She does, but she should be commended for the decency to pay the bill before splitting.
I think that makes a massive difference. Had she skipped out on the dude because he wouldn’t pony up the bread for cheese (mmmm… cheese bread) that would’ve been outrageous. It would’ve been a crime worthy of an old-school tar-and-feathering. Maybe a couple of days in one of those boards with the holes for your head and hands like that have at that colonial village you visited on a lame middle school field trip (yes, I know they’re called stocks).
She didn’t do that. She cut her losses with class then went back to flicking through Hinge in hopes of finding her prince who will pony up for provolone should the need arise.
That said, did she really teach a lesson to a dude who wouldn’t pay $3 for cheese by giving him a free meal?
I don’t think so. I think this anonymous cheapo just found himself a new first-date trick.
Follow on Twitter: @Matt_Reigle
Well–couple of things here that require some clarification…
One is the type of restaurant?
Two is the type of cheese?–if we are talking about American cheese wrapped in a celophane wrapper–then NO. I would not pay $3. If we are talking about a Fench Brie? A thick slab of Cheddar? Absolutely. It is all in the context.
As an aside, I have a standing bet with my buddies that none of them can order a traditional fast food burger with and without a slice of American cheese and tell the difference blindfolded. I hae yet to lose that bet. That alone begs the question of why anyone would pay even $0.01 more for “cheese” and should be a sociological experiment by a grad student!
How fortunate for this guy to find this out on the first date and have her react this way. He values product versus dollars. She values perception versus other people’s money. If this had progressed into a shared relationship she would have drained his account asap.
Plus she had no basic human to human respect for him anyway based on the way she left the date and then broadcast it to the world. Fortunately he found out sooner rather than later on this one.
I don’t get this. Dafna (red flag #1) ordered the branzino, typically not a cheap dish. But she paid for dinner. And now she is upset that her date tried to save her money?
It sure feels like this dude wasn’t going to win, no matter what. Because she could have easily gone the other route and hollered about her date spending $3 on cheese because she is footing the bill. He should count his blessings that Dafna was just another date
Yep, she did him a favor. Better luck next time buddy.