A restaurant tried to shame a customer who paid partially in quarters, Yahoo reported.

Beer 88 in Lynchburg, Virginia, posted a photo to Facebook of a receipt, a $20 bill, and a pile of quarters alongside the caption, "How NOT to pay at a restaurant" and "that's the nicest thing we can think to say about this ridiculousness."

The 17-year-old customer, Cohen Naulty, said he was treating his friends to a meal and paid with tips he earned at his own serving job.

Naulty told INSIDER he was shocked the restaurant would "try to insult a paying customer."



A restaurant in Virginia publicly called out a 17-year-old customer for paying part of his bill in quarters — even though he left a 28% tip.

Beer 88 in Lynchburg posted a photo of the receipt next to a heap of quarters and a $20 bill with a caption that read, "How NOT to pay at a restaurant," adding, "that's the nicest thing we can think to say about this ridiculousness."

Beer 88 later said the post was "intended as joke." The Quarter Boy/Facebook

The post included hashtags reading "we are Beer 88 not Coin Star" and "no home training."

Cohen Naulty, the 17-year-old who claims to be the customer in question, took a few friends out to lunch and only had enough to pay for their meal with quarters, he wrote in his response to the incident on Facebook.

"I was just shocked in the way that they would try to insult a paying customer," Naulty said. "It was disappointing to be treated like somebody that doesn't care about other people because that [is] simply untrue."

Naulty said he left $10 in addition to the $35 bill — a 28% tip. The quarters were his tips he earned from his own serving job.

"I love paying for people's meals even if I have to scrape together my last quarters to do so," he wrote on Facebook.

Naulty paid for his friends' lunch with tips he made working as a server. Cohen Naulty/Facebook

The post was deleted after hundreds of people commented in defense of the customer, according to Yahoo.

Beer 88 said the post was "intended as a joke."

Beer 88 posted a statement before deleting their entire Facebook account, according to local Lynchburg TV station WSET.

"In response to our earlier post, it was posted as a joke, intended as a joke and should be taken as a joke," the statement read. "It was posted as a light-hearted way of saying that something like this can be annoying to people that work in the restaurant/retail industry. In no way did we publicly shame ANYONE for paying OR tipping. We try to keep our page funny and relatable. And had no idea that this would be offensive to anyone."

Beer 88 did not immediately respond to INSIDER's request for comment.

"It is hurtful that the owner is playing this off as a joke when the hashtags were hurtful," Naulty told INSIDER.

People were furious at Beer 88's post and expressed support for Naulty.

Beer 88's post was inundated with comments from people who said the restaurant shouldn't try to shame a paying customer, according to WSET.

Naulty's Facebook post was flooded with hundreds of comments of support.

"We need more people like you in the world," Facebook user Dee Taylor wrote. "Thank you for what you are doing. It's a great idea and don't let them discourage you."

"It shouldn't matter how he paid as long as he paid,"Katrina M. Wood wrote. "Restaurant was wrong for putting down a customer. I think everybody should go get a meal 'n pay with change now."

Others in the restaurant industry said he was welcome to pay in quarters at their establishments.

"You can come into Applebee's on candlers mountain anytime we will gladly take your quarters, dimes, nickels, or pennies money is money!" Melissa Jennings wrote.

The customer wants to "turn the negative into a positive" by treating others to free meals — and people are donating to his cause.

"That night when we received so many supporting messages I thought how can I impact our community and use what happened to me as a platform to bless other people," Naulty told INSIDER, adding that it made him realize how much he loves treating people to meals.

"I decided that I would find restaurants out there that didn't mind being paid in quarters and treat a patron at least once a week, just to see what this simple act of kindness could do for them!" he said.

Naulty started a fundraiser on Facebook and had received $2,729 in donations in two days at the time of publication.

125 people had donated at the time of publication. Cohen Naulty/Facebook

He promised to use 100% of the donations to pay for others' meals and post videos of their reactions.

"My plan is to raise enough money to give away meals for the rest of the year," Naulty told INSIDER.

He said he would consider eating at Beer 88 again if they would be willing to "make peace" and accept his change as payment.

"The best part of this whole experience was actually being able to take my friend out to lunch," he said.

For more great stories, head to INSIDER's homepage.