Manley_Bensen_Seaside.jpg

(Clatsop County Jail )

They remembered to tip their waitress – in crystal meth, police said.

Police busted two suspected methamphetamine dealers at a Seaside restaurant after they slipped their server an envelope stuffed with the psychoactive drug, authorities said.

Ryan Bensen, 40, and Erica Manley, 37, spent Thursday night having dinner and drinks at the

, said

Chief Robert Gross.

When it came time to settle their tab, the cash-strapped couple first plunked down a gift card to pay their bill, Gross said. Later, they offered their waitress an envelope with a question mark scribbled on it.

Inside the envelope the waitress found a stash of crystal meth, authorities said.

“She was like ‘Whoa -- what the …?’” said Steve Keszler, a manager at the downtown steakhouse. “We’re not a little dive bar or hole in the wall. We’re a classy place.”

Clutching the tip, the server calmly walked away and called the Police Department, Keszler said.

Bensen and Manley were still at the restaurant when authorities arrived and found more than 17 ounces of meth in Manley’s purse, Gross said.

“While I should be shocked and surprised, it’s just another example of how dumb these users and dealers are,” Gross said. “The whole thing almost made me chuckle.”

Police later obtained a search warrant to comb through a room at the nearby

, where both suspects had been staying, Gross said. There, police uncovered a meth lab comprising a small torch, batteries and other items, police said.

Authorities charged Benson, a Beaverton resident, with possession and manufacture of methamphetamine. Manley, Cascade Locks, was charged with possessing, delivering and manufacturing meth.

-- Shane Dixon Kavanaugh