Group of friends mistake a sushi bar for an all-you-can-eat-restaurant — then they saw the bill

All-you-can-eat restaurants or buffets can be tricky to navigate. Customers are often at risk of penalties for wasting food and sometimes they can even be kicked out for eating too much. Thus, any mistake in such restaurants can cost people. However, a bigger mistake to make would be to eat at a regular restaurant thinking that it’s an all-you-can-eat. TikTok creator Amber (@leon.aa) made such a mistake.

Here's what happened when the bill came

Amber and her friends ate at a sushi place that had a rotating table, thinking it was an all-you-can-eat. They did not check before picking up the plates and trying out new things. However, when the bill came, the group of four was shocked and their reactions were captured in a TikTok video which now has over 8.8 million views.

In the video, one person said, “Guys, I thought it was like $70” while nervously laughing at the bill. Amber’s caption implies that the group thought they were eating a $70 all-you-can-eat meal. In the video, all of her friends could be seen laughing and giggling at the situation. 

The video’s overlay text read, “POV: You keep grabbing plates at a revolving sushi restaurant without checking the price of each plate and finally get the bill.” In the comments section, Amber explained that their group was charged $200 for food at the revolving sushi restaurant which her viewers found to be “insane.” Furthermore, Amber said that she didn’t expect the bill to be that much, given that she found the quality of the food to be not that great. She did clarify that it wasn’t bad either. “I’m used to paying 125 for four people for AMAZING quality sushi,” she added.

However, the price of the food sparked a debate in the comments section with people quarreling over whether it was reasonable or not. One viewer (@gamingabcs) said $20-$30 worth of sushi in Japan is enough to be stuffed. US restaurants just upcharge everything. To this, another user (@meeks) added that in Japan, the sushi would cost just $1.

Another customer (@Fernando) chimed in with a different opinion saying they thought it would be $700 but $200 sounds rather reasonable. This was because the viewer had spent $200 while eating alone at the restaurant. Several people replied to the comment saying they too got bills of $200 for four people and even Amber clarified that she was surprised.

Meanwhile, another viewer's (@agnes) comment indicated the state of the economy as she said she once had the same meal for just half of the price Amber had paid. To this even Amber replied that this economy was indeed "crazy." 

Amber's case also highlights the high cost of eating out in America. Since the pandemic, restaurants have struggled with staffing issues and record-high inflation causing menu prices to rise across the nation. As per a Yahoo Finance report, menu prices are further expected to rise with restaurants in several states being forced to raise the minimum wage of tipped workers. 

Editor's note: This article was originally published on April 8, 2024. It has since been updated.