Woman sparks debate with fake story about walking out on date who didn’t want to pay $3 for cheese on burger

Several social media users call out the woman’s ‘extreme’ reaction

A woman sparked debate on social media with a story about walking out on a date who did not want to pay extra for cheese on his burger - before revealing that version of events didn’t actually happen to her.

Dafna Diamant told her original story in a TikTok video that has gathered over six million views after being uploaded on 10 March.

“So we schedule to go to dinner, we’re sitting at the restaurant and he seems very nice. Not a catfish,” she says in the video.

“Things are going well, and the waitress comes over, she wants to take our order.”

When the waitress asked if they wanted extra cheese she says her date asked: “Is this gonna be extra?“

“And she says, ‘Yes it’s $3 extra.’ He said, ‘Okay never mind.’”

“I’m like what the actual f***? I’m like okay, I’m hungry I’m gonna get my branzino and see what happens.”

“And he’s like, ‘Oh my God, you have to pay extra for everything these days,’ and I’m like, ‘Yeah. It’s New York City.’”

As they ate their food, Diamant said she left for the washroom and paid for the meal at the counter.

“I just paid and walked out of the restaurant,” she said.

“So I texted him and said, ‘The check is taken care of, you should have gotten the cheese.’

“Then I blocked him.”

Her video has received backlash from social media users with many calling out her “extreme” reaction.

Diamant addressed the criticism in an interview with NBC News days later - and revealed the real story.

She said that she and her date had overheard a man at another table decline the $3 cheese add-on because he found it too expensive. This prompted their own debate about how they would react if the person across the table did the same.

“If I’m sitting on a date with a person and I feel like he’s cheaping out on something that will make his meal more enjoyable, he’s going to keep cheaping out on the rest of our dates,” Diamant explained to NBC News. “It’s not about the cheese. It’s about going to a restaurant and enjoying a good time with your date.”

She said her date agreed with that conclusion - and with her idea to pose the question on TikTok as if it’d happened during their meeting.

“He thinks it’s funny as well. And we’ve only had one date, so he’s not obliged to me in any way, but he’s checking in to see that I’m fine,” she said. “And I try to not take it personally, because it didn’t really happen.”

Diamant said she has since tried to avoid the negative comments that have continued to pour in on her video.

“That’s a little harsh. I would have just never met up with him again,” one user wrote.

“That seems extreme. I mean maybe he isn’t always frugal but he’s struggling right now like so many people are,” another comment said.

Some users on Twitter also called out her “overreaction.”

“I thinkkkkkk she overreacted lol. It’s not like he wasn’t gonna pay for the meal … this is principle. Lol paying $3 for cheese on a burger is crazy to me.”

Diamant addressed the backlash she received in a separate video in which she said the criticism was getting personal.

“You really need to take it easy. Some people are going through all my videos saying I’m ‘ugly’ and that I don’t deserve love.”

“That’s not okay,” she said.

She added that she’s “going on a second date” with the same man as he had seen the video and thought it was funny.

“I’m a student, I’m an unpaid intern, my rent is half my pay check. I have a huge credit card debt. But I’m fine about it. It’s going to be okay,” she said.