'Angel' customer leaves waitress $1,070 tip on $122 restaurant bill

Samantha Meyer, a waitress in Ohio, received a $1,070 tip on a $122 bill. (Screenshot: YouTube/Fox 8)
Samantha Meyer, a waitress in Ohio, received a $1,070 tip on a $122 bill. (Screenshot: YouTube/Fox 8)

A lucky waitress earned a $1,070 tip from an “angel” customer, just for doing her job.

On Thursday night, a middle-aged man and woman visited Mama Catena Vino e’ Cucina in Euclid, Ohio, an authentic Italian restaurant operated by sisters Rina and Fran Catena for the past 30 years.

Samantha Meyer, who has worked at the restaurant since she was 15, waited on the out-of-town guests, who ordered three appetizers, wine, and one entree, the owners tell Yahoo Lifestyle. When Meyer served the diners a $92 bill, the man left her a $100 tip.

Meyer was not available for comment, however the Catena sisters tell Yahoo Lifestyle that she got teary-eyed.

"He had left me a $100 tip, so I turned around, I said 'Sir, I think you made a mistake,’” Meyer told Fox 8. “And he said 'No, I didn't make a mistake. You were wonderful, this place is wonderful, I'd like you to have a good night', and I got a little choked up.”

Before they exited, the man decided to order a $30 bottle of wine to bring back to his hotel room. But his next gesture baffled all the employees.

An Ohio waitress was left a tip for $1,070 dollars on a $122 meal. (Screenshot: YouTube/Fox 8)
An Ohio waitress was left a tip for $1,070 dollars on a $122 meal. (Screenshot: YouTube/Fox 8)

“He left me a $970 tip to make the tab an even $1,000 and I couldn’t even move,” Meyer told Fox 8. “I was so shocked, so I ran outside actually to catch them because I didn't know what to do with that. I just showed him the receipt and he said, 'I know, I want you to have a good night, turn around and go back inside, I'm happy to do it.' And I said, 'Who are you?' and he just shook his head and said, 'Have a good night.’”

Fran and Rina tell Yahoo Lifestyle, “We have no idea who this man is, but we are so touched by this. Especially for Sam — we practically raised her.”

The owners also told Fox 8 of the customer, “He's our angel, he was an angel for us and for Sam.”

Meyer plans to split the earnings with her coworkers. "You have no idea. I was walking up to that table all night, thinking, 'I have so much that I have to pay in the next week’ and it was like some sort of miracle when he tipped that at that time,” she told Fox 8. “God works in mysterious ways, you know.”

Related: Connecticut Waitress Tipped $500, Customer Notices Broken Hearing Aid

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