A viral video posted to TikTok this week raised a discussion about the high prices on Chick-fil-A and other fast food menus, particularly where healthier options like fruit and vegetables are concerned.

Holding a half-full cup of fruit salad up to the camera, TikToker Brooke (@frankgallagherdupe) called it “highway robbery” that she paid $6.29. The video has amassed over 134,800 times since it was first posted July 28.

Viewers were quick to point out that the fruit cup isn’t the only shockingly high-priced item on the restaurant’s menu.

Viewers weigh in on the fruit cup value

“12 count grilled nuggets are $8.29!” one wrote.

“They made me pay for an empty salad container today,” another user shared. 

One Chick-fil-A worker was surprised by the meager contents of the cup. “That’s a large and should have been a lot fuller than that,” @fearless.me.76 opined.

A fixed high cost of fruits and vegetables that has trended for a decade in the U.S. has led Americans to pay 40% more for them, while the country continues to import much more produce than it exports (though the rate of vegetable imports is about 25 percent higher than that of fruit.)

Rising fast food prices

Fast food prices in general, as noted by the Consumer Price Index, are rising at an inflation rate of 5.8 percent earlier this year. Customers didn't need data to tell them that, however. Many fast food fans are in uproar over increased prices lately.

Several viewers noted that the apples layered on the bottom of the fruit cup often tasted bitter. According to their website, Chick-fil-A sources most of their produce from West Coast states like California and Arizona, but the apples served in their fruit cups come from various locations depending on region and time of year. West Coast restaurants serve apples predominantly from Cashmere, Washington while East Coast locations get theirs from New York farms in the western part of the state. 

Other users suggested cheaper alternatives for buying fruit in the TikTok’s comment section, including Panera and Whole Foods. “We sell them same fruit mix and all, wayyyy cheaper,” one Panera worker shared. 

“It’s like 3 bucks and the box is full, sometimes they even have 50 percent off,” user dani3elaa said of Whole Foods fruit cup offerings. 

@frankgallagherdupe

the chicken minis were great tho

♬ original sound - brooke

The Daily Dot reached out to Brooke via TikTok direct message.

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The post ‘They made me pay for an empty salad container today’: Customer can’t believe how much Chick-fil-A is charging for fruit cups that ‘aren’t even full’ appeared first on The Daily Dot.

In a shocking moment caught on video, two Marshalls customers admired a display of Lululemon bags when a store employee abruptly came over the intercom and demanded they leave. 

“Both of you, get out now,” a voice can be heard shouting in a viral TikTok video posted by user Rebecca (@beckster0426.)

Stunned, Rebecca and her friend filmed their exit, despite there being 30 minutes left until the Marshalls closed, she later revealed. 

“There’s people coming in,” she said in the TikTok, which has been viewed 6.8 million times since it was first posted on July 13. 

In a follow-up video, the friends shared that they were window shopping at the Marshalls around 9pm, dispelling some viewers’ speculation that, because it was dark outside the store’s windows, they were there after closing. 

“We don’t 100 percent know that she was talking to us, but it was just kind of a coincidence,” Rebecca explained in the follow-up video. “We didn’t see any ‘you twos’ there besides us.”

@beckster0426 #fyp #marshalls ♬ original sound - Rebecca

Viewers are divided

Viewers were torn between sympathy for the employee—it was late and the workers likely wanted to balance their cash drawers and go home—and confusion for her reaction, stating that 30 minutes before closing was a reasonable amount of time to still be inside the store. 

“It’s normal for people to come in 30 minutes before we close just to look,” one retail worker shared. “That worker should’ve been nicer if that was directed towards the two of you. Y’all weren’t acting like fools.” 

“People act like other people don’t get off work late and wanna go shopping?” another viewer pointed out.

In another follow-up video, Rebecca stated that, before the seemingly targeted announcement was made, an employee announced that the store would be closing in 30 minutes and that customers should start making their way up front to the registers to check out. As she and her friend began heading that way, they noticed the bags and stopped to record them. 

@beckster0426 Replying to @Taylor Price ♬ original sound - Rebecca

“I don’t think she was talking to us,” she reflected in the TikTok. “There were a lot of people there and we weren’t even buying anything. We were just looking, we were on our way out.” 

The Daily Dot reached out to Rebecca via email and Instagram direct message. 

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In the name of food transparency, a former McDonald’s corporate chef and TikToker is sharing some little-known facts about the fast-food chain. 

Beginning in 1940 as a stand-alone restaurant operated by brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald in San Bernardino, California, the chain has since expanded to tens of thousands of locations across the world. A list of their suppliers can be found on the company’s website, including three potato farms and two dairy providers.

1. Only 1 supplier for pies

However, according to Chef Mike Haracz (@chefmikeharacz), only one supplier exists for the restaurant’s pies. Though unnamed in the June 28 TikTok, a 2018 article from the Chicago Tribune reported that Bama Companies, who operate three factories in the Tulsa, Oklahoma area, work with McDonald’s to produce treats without any artificial colors, high fructose syrup or preservatives. 

Haracz also shed light on the meaning of the term “McDonald’s done” for 26,000 viewers, stating that it referenced food safety. 

2. Higher cooking temperature

“Most things are cooked to 165 degrees. But when you set cook times and temperatures for food safety, you have to put in a buffer to make sure that if you get the biggest chicken nugget, and it is cooked in the worst efficient fryer, that it will still be cooked all the way through,” Haracz explained. 

This results in higher average cooking temperatures that are 10 or 15 degrees higher, he added. 

“It will be well overcooked for food safety,” he assured viewers. 

@chefmikeharacz Former #McDonalds corporate chef tells you three things you might not know. #McDonaldsTikTok #mcdonaldssecrets #mcdonaldsccsing #mcdonaldschallenge #mcdonaldshacks #mcdonaldsdrivethru #fastfood #fastfoodstories #fastfoodlife #FYP #food #foodfestontiktok #tiktokfood #foodtiktok #foodtok ♬ original sound - Chef Mike Haracz

3. Large training space

Haracz also described a large training space, now closed, that once contained several kitchen setups that could be operated in accordance with hourly sales statistics from different McDonald’s locations, allowing crews training there to simulate a busy day at a specific location accurately. This helped corporate analyze best crew and equipment practices, he said.

“It would be like walking onto a movie set and seeing all these multiple kitchens with all this action and people lined up like they’re going through drive-thrus,” he said in the video.

Currently located in Chicago, Illinois, McDonald’s Hamburger University is attended by thousands of aspiring restaurant managers and operators who study “Hamburgerology,” including customer service, restaurant policies and procedures, and leadership.

Viewer weigh in

Some viewers expressed fascination with the chef's TikTok.

“I’d love to go to that test kitchen and see how it’d be doing a time square during peak hours rush,” one small town McDonald’s manager commented. 

“Could that replication kitchen really replicate the Karen at the counter screaming at you because someone forgot her fries?” another user jokingly wondered.

The Daily Dot reached out to Haracz via email and Instagram direct message.

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The post ‘The nuggets are different’: Ex-McDonald’s corporate chef reveals 3 things you don’t know about Micky D’s appeared first on The Daily Dot.

A humorous video posted to TikTok started a viral discussion about inflation and high convenience store prices after a customer revealed his nearly $80 bill during a trip to 7-Eleven. 

According to the checkout screen in a May 20 video posted by ThomTheTroll (@tomthetroll), the store charged him $5.39 for a gallon of milk, $23.98 for two foam coolers, and $29.98 for two five-gallon water jugs.

Peering over the rims of a blue pair of sunglasses, Thom can be seen staring skeptically at the cashier, who waves when he flips the camera. “Sometimes I just be trolling the 711 guy tho,” he acknowledged in the video’s text overlay.

Though it is unclear from the video what it’s for, a fourth charge of $14.99 appeared on the total, which amounted to $79.69—an unbelievably high convenience store bill to some of the video’s 2.1 million viewers, who argued that the items should not have cost more than half that.

Others found it unsurprising, pointing out that customers pay for convenience at places like 7-Eleven and that he should have gone to Walmart or another big-box store for lower prices on an item like the cooler. 

@tomthetroll 🤨711 Guy tryna scam me🤦‍♂️🤬 #711 #seveneleven #troll #trolling #trolled #gasstation #trolls #troller #200views ♬ Big Back Big Back thecincomedy - thecincomedy

Though Thom is notable for joking around with gas station employees on his TikTok page, many viewers were adamant that he had been scammed by the 7-Eleven for the prices he purportedly paid there. 

“That’s not a joke,” one said. “I can get all that for like $30 at Walmart down the road from a 7-11.”

“I’d turn around walk out and leave everything on the counter,” another decided.

Other viewers wondered about the mysterious $14.99 charge, speculating that it belonged to the sunglasses Thom wore in the TikTok. 

Facing the pressures of inflation in 2024, convenience stores like 7-Eleven often focus on providing loyalty programs for customers to promote value over cost. For example, the 7REWARDS program offered by 7-Eleven lets users earn points in the app for each purchase they make, which can then be used as a cash substitute to spend on store items—a suggestion several viewers jokingly gave Thom. 

The Daily Dot reached out to ThomTheTroll via direct messages on TikTok and Instagram.

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Fast fashion online retailer SHEIN may now be the place to find other popular labels at lower prices, according to a viral video posted to TikTok.

“They have shops now that are Zara, LoveShackFancy, House of CB, Missguided—actual, literal Missguided—and I’m going to show you how to get it,” fashion content creator Emily (@emilyrodriguee) assured 1.1 million viewers. 

Emily searched the names of several SHEIN shops, pointing out how the clothes displayed on each page resembled those sold by other fast fashion labels. In the June 15 video, she compared ENCHNT’s catalog to items sold by LoveShackFancy, PARTHEA’s to those sold by House of CB, and Maija’s to those sold by Zara, even commenting on how the models shown on the SHEIN page looked familiar. 

“Missguided? All you have to search is Missguided and it’s literal Missguided,” Emily revealed next, demonstrating for viewers. Searching “Free People” yielded a similar result, though the inventory was mostly shoes, she said.

@emilyrodriguee Profile> my reference> USB344 is the code! #zara #houseofcb #loveshackfancy #misguided #sheinhack #sheinmarketplace #sheincoupon #sheindiscount #shein #sheinfashion ♬ original sound - EMILY

Is SHEIN selling the real deal?

This isn’t the first time shoppers have taken to TikTok to speculate about the origins of clothes sold by the online retail outlet. Another viral video recently suggested that SHEIN not only sells dupes of items from other fast fashion brands, it also sells the items themselves.

This theory was echoed by several viewers.

“I literally spent 40 bucks on a top from Zara then saw it on SHEIN 3 weeks later. The same one!” one shopper claimed. 

“I just recently bought a Shein dupe for [the] Pietra dress from House of CB,” another shared.

Other viewers were more wary, stating that the quality of the items was often poor and not worth buying in spite of the lower prices.

“Don’t waste your time,” @serenamatthews96 warned. “The ‘House of CB’ dresses on the app have a zipper. The real ones have a corset you can actually adjust and don’t have weird proportions and lengths and materials.” 

Speculation over why SHEIN appears to sell these items also revived criticisms of the outlet, including high levels of carbon dioxide emissions and alleged human and labor rights violations. 

“It’s because all of those places also participate in the unethical behavior of fast fashion,” one viewer opined. “Zara is no better than SHEIN.” 

“U guys pay for the name only, they’re the sameeeee,” another pointed out. 

The Daily Dot reached out to Emily via email. 

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Tonight I watched my girlfriend add items to her new classroom wishlist. This recently became a hobby of mine, ever since she graduated last month with that teaching degree she vowed to get as long as I’ve known her.

We met in a high school A.V. class neither one of us wanted to take. We commandeered a tiny, cramped editing booth each day and spent most of the period talking about our vastly different lives, until the subject of our sexualities—you could say gay in those days—haltingly surfaced and it turned out we had more in common than previously thought.

This continued for a year or so until a letter confessing feelings I hadn’t realized I shared was tucked into my hand as we left A.V. for the last time and dashed off to our remaining final exams. Now we’re here, shoulder-to-shoulder as I study for my law school entrance exam and she excitedly tilts her laptop screen toward me with the addition of every new item to her wishlist. 

Wall decor makes up a not insignificant amount of that list. A poster affirming the power of “Progress over perfection” in neat, overly saturated letters. Framed art of potted cacti claiming “Let’s root for each other.” (My girlfriend loves a good pun.) Hanging tapestries assuring 20 incoming fourth graders that they are strong, and loved, and most importantly, themselves. 

I’m not embarrassed to admit how she categorically rejected all my design ideas, 98% of which were completely unserious. However, the first to go was my entirely serious suggestion that she take our shared Pride flag and hang it up in her classroom. She didn’t turn it down with the usual huff of laughter and playful swat to whatever limb of mine lay closest, either. She said “no” quickly and quietly and I never brought it up after that. 

But I did think about it.

I thought about the photograph I have of us, arm-in-arm outside the restaurant after my graduation dinner, tacked up on my cubicle wall where anyone passing by can see it. I thought about running around the office in my favorite pair of shoes, the ratty Blowfish Malibus with the tiny rubber Pride flags stitched on the heels. I thought about break room and elevator and parking lot conversations with my co-workers where it didn’t occur to me to censor “girlfriend” with something more gender neutral.

She has a different experience. She calls me her best friend around her students. “I told him my best friend loves Tom Petty,” she admitted once while recalling a conversation with a student who demanded to know who showed her classic rock.

She lays awake at night wondering, should she choose to include a picture of us in the “Meet your teacher” slide of her orientation PowerPoint? How many class parents might decide they want a meeting? Leaving the haven of a student teaching classroom with a closeted but sympathetic mentor teacher and a kid with two moms totally daunts her. The obvious solution in her new school? Don’t ask, and definitely don’t tell.

Impossible for someone voted “Most likely to talk about their boyfriend/girlfriend” during their college newspaper’s superlative awards. But for her, a necessary method of ensuring no messages from irate parents accusing her of exposing their kids prematurely to what I like to think of as the real world.

You could argue that I don’t get it simply because my job doesn’t demand responsibility for the lives and learning of young children, and you’d be right. I would even point out to you that this fact has been used against me in discussions on this topic more than once by my girlfriend. 

Yet the fact remains that there’s nothing legal about employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation in the U.S. So why do many queer educators like my girlfriend feel the pressure—to begrudgingly borrow a phrase from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R)—to not say gay?

A profession in the dark. Except on TikTok

I’d hazard a pretty good guess that legislation like DeSantis’ “Don’t Say Gay” bill, which our home state tried but failed to emulate, keeps them closeted. The idea behind measures like this is that parents get a choice in the time and place their kids begin to take part in discussions on gender and sexuality, and 54% of Americans support that ability to choose, according to the Pew Research Center.

If you ask me, school seems as good a place as any to have conversations about sexuality and gender identity. School is the first real place where kids meet people, classmates and teachers alike, who have the potential to be different. It sets them up for college and the workplace, where these differences are magnified a hundredfold because they’re often expressed by mature adult minds, ready for debate.

(Nobody ever asks me.)

But about 83% of the world's LGBTQIA+ population is in the closet from "most of the people in their lives," per the Yale School of Public Health. Per Pink News, about a third of LGBTQIA+ teachers stay in the closet, too.

A December 2017 research study published in the University of South Florida’s Journal of Global Education and Research documented the experiences of 11 long-time queer educators ranging from teachers to administrators and counselors, in both public and private school environments. Some gave their reasons for choosing to conceal their identities from their students as strictly professional, despite feeling a deeply diminished sense of accomplishment as a result. 

“A challenge is that I’m not able to fully connect with some of the students,” one teacher explained. “There are some students who are gay, and I have to draw a line of professionalism about how to confide in them.”

Though closeted from her students, another teacher said she believed “those students who need to know, who need a role model, realize” her queer identity. However, her school’s administration “prefers my discretion,” she added. 

“I never brought my partner to any school functions,” an administrator revealed in his interview. “I never felt comfortable doing that.”

These kinds of stories from experienced teachers discourage my girlfriend. So, as people our age are wont to do, she turns to TikTok to find hope that she can be open with her class about her lesbian identity. 

She realizes her own dreams in the skits shared by Atlanta-based elementary school teacher Ms. Chang (@MsChangGifted on TikTok.) Her and her wife raise two boys who attend the same school that she works in. My girlfriend clings to the hope Mrs. Chang gives her that she will no longer suffer the usual rush of uncertainty when her colleagues in the teachers’ lounge politely inquire about her living situation in such an expensive city. (And later, the overwhelming feeling of defeat at failing to tell the truth.)

@mschanggifted Supportive Parents #lgbtqteacher #mschanggifted #elementaryteacher #representationmatters ♬ Cooking - Oleg Kirilkov

My girlfriend—here I go again—takes fashion advice from New York City TikToker Tori (@heyitstoriiiiii), who sometimes models school-appropriate outfits for queer teachers. A struggle to find balance between comfort and straight presentation ensued throughout her student teaching semesters. Though compromises could be found in pastel button downs and high tops printed with smiley faces, she still searches for true self-expression in her professional wardrobe.

(Sometimes, it’s easier to let the kids see you in a dress and sandals and avoid the blunt questions that a button down exposing your sternum tattoo would invite.)

She delights in the humorous stories narrated by gay music teacher Jay Long (@jaylongofficial), whose students consider his smoking habit his big secret, not his identity. She observes the ways Teacher Robi (@teacherrobi) addresses their use of they/them pronouns with their young art students. Music and art are hardly the classes to discourage self-identity, after all, and my girlfriend marvels at the lack of concern their classes seem to have about their open queerness. She applauds it. In spite of fear, she strives for it.

And that’s just one of the reasons I’m certain she’ll be a good teacher. This particular feeling of guilt always accompanied her decision not to reveal her sexuality beyond stilted conversations with her mentor teacher while the kids attended lunch. Not guilt about lying, but about keeping that part of her identity a secret when one of her own students could be struggling to navigate something similar. It kills her to think of someone already at such a tender age—ages that we ourselves began grappling with our queer identities—imagining they’re alone.

But a new year is coming. Only 70 days remain until she greets a room full of fourth grade students for the first time. As their familiarity grows, they will undoubtedly do what all of her past students have done: Beg to see the tattoos covering her arms, crack themselves up comparing her to Ken instead of Barbie, and bashfully wonder aloud if she has a boyfriend. 

And when they do, I hope she’ll catch sight of those tapestries I’m sure I’ll be helping her hang come August. The ones that tell her she is strong. That she is loved. That she is, most importantly, herself. 

As Mrs. Chang so plainly stated in a video, “I’m just a person who happens to be both gay and a teacher.” My girlfriend hangs onto those words as tightly as she can, and I hang onto the feeling our Pride flag might wind up finding a home in her classroom some day. When it does, I’ll be adding “interior design” to my resume.

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Popularized by their ability to surpass ordinary Keurigs and brew delicious lattes and other espresso-based drinks right in your kitchen, Nespresso machines have been a TikTok favorite for years. But a recent viral video posted to the site begs an important question: What is the “right” way to use it?

A method shared by beauty and lifestyle TikToker Ana Gaby suggests holding a metal spoon directly beneath the espresso stream as it pours into your cup. 

“The metal absorbs the heat and doesn’t water down the ice,” Gaby explained in the text overlay of the video, which has been viewed 1.8 million times since it was first posted on May 22. 

Nespresso machines ranging from $150 to upwards of $200 can be purchased from Amazon or the company’s website. Coffee pods and other Nespresso accessories like milk frothers can also be found on either site. 

@anagabyygarza Coffee hack #coffee #coffeetiktok #coffeeaddict #coffeetok #coffeetime #coffeelover #nespresso @Nespresso ♬ original sound - ana gaby

What is the 'right' way to brew Nespresso?

The TikTok’s comments section was flooded with other suggestions for the perfect Nespresso coffee, from pouring milk over ice and letting it chill before brewing to cooling the espresso with milk before stirring in ice. Many viewers were shocked to watch Gaby brew over ice at all, however.

Some viewers got creative with their suggestions, such as freezing the coffee cup before brewing and making ice cubes out of espresso to avoid a watered-down taste.

“We always did ⅔ ice, milk til it floats, then espresso on it,” a former barista weighed in. When asked why ice wasn’t added in last, they explained that starting with ice ensured that each cup of coffee contained the same amount.

Another former barista suggested adding ice last to avoid a “burnt” and “bitter” tasting espresso.

Gaby filmed herself trying a couple of suggestions from viewers, including preparing a coffee by first leaving milk on ice before adding the espresso. She stated in the video’s caption that “this has been my favorite” method. Brewing the espresso, adding milk, and then stirring ice through the mixture in another video yielded equally delicious results. 

@anagabyygarza Replying to @hellvacant espresso, milk, then ice does work better #coffee #coffeetiktok #coffeetok #coffeeaddict #coffeetime #coffeelover #coffeetalk #nespresso #nespressotalents #nespressovertuo #nespressopartner #espresso #espressomachine #icedlatte #icedcoffee @Nespresso @Oatly ♬ original sound - ana gaby

The videos prompted even more suggestions, like catching the espresso in a separate cup and adding it to milk before pouring over ice. 

The Daily Dot reached out to Gaby via email.

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A Costco shopper who attempted to use her mother's store membership card to purchase treats for a family event said she was made to do a "walk of shame" back to the bakery section after she was stopped from shopping by a store employee. 

"All we wanted were chocolate chip cookies," TikToker Gaby (@gabrielala_la) narrated as she and her sister Carmen headed through the store to the cookie shelf. In the video, Carmen can be seen putting back the box of cookies they tried to buy with an annoyed expression. "$10 chocolate chip cookies, and not even for ourselves!" Gaby added.

The cookies were intended for a family party, Gaby further revealed in the TikTok, which has been viewed over 396,800 times since it was first posted on May 25.

Still, the sisters were able to use their mother's membership card outside of the store to purchase a couple of hot dogs at the food court.

"I didn't know Costco hired FBI agents to check your ID," Carmen mused off-camera.

Gaby said the store worker spent a few minutes comparing them to the picture of their mother on the membership card before declining to let them buy the cookies.

If they're related to a member, why were they kicked out?

Regarding Costco memberships, the store's policy page states that "only Costco members may purchase items." Primary and Affiliate store members are granted a second membership card for a member of their household who lives at their address and is over 16 years old.

While some viewers criticized the sisters for not following Costco's rules and thought them lucky to have not had their mother's membership canceled, others felt that putting the cookies back where they belonged was a generous move and that they should have been allowed to make such a small purchase while carrying a valid member's card. 

@gabrielala_la We’re here to tell our story. #costco #hotdogs #storytime #kickedout #familyvalues @carmen ♬ original sound - gaby!

"I was turned down with a shopping cart full because I was using my husband's card. Never again!" a shopper who had forgotten her own membership card at home wrote. 

Some viewers were surprised by the level of scrutiny at the Fullerton, California location, claiming that their own locations never scanned IDs that closely. "They do not look that deep at our Costco. Most of the time the person at the door is talking to other people and wave us in," user @iammskaykay described.

The Daily Dot reached out to Gaby via Instagram direct message and to Costco via its website.

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TikTok has consistently been a repository for helpful restaurant hacks, with the latest one coming from a dedicated food reviewer who recently visited Longhorn Steakhouse. 

In a viral May 29 TikTok, user Divagetchecks (@divadabratt) filmed her and her boyfriend’s dinner, stating in the caption that they weren’t in the mood for the restaurant’s signature steak filets.

She ordered an appetizer plate of hot wings and a loaded baked potato while her boyfriend used the complimentary bread to make a chicken sandwich out of his order of spicy chicken bites. The trick is to “ask for fresh bread to come when the chicken comes out,” she noted in the video’s text overlay. 

Her boyfriend added salt, pepper, and butter to the bread, she added, and he usually adds some of her Caesar salad to the sandwich, though she didn’t order one in the TikTok.

According to Longhorn Steakhouse’s online menu, their meal total comes out to $25.27 before tax. With a Caesar salad, the total adds up to $29.76. 

“Don't say we didn't put y'all on,” she warned in the caption of the video, which has been viewed over 208,700 times as of Monday.

Viewers love meal hacks

Another viral video posted last July showed viewers how to enjoy a decent-sized meal for just $9: Order a kid’s meal to-go, which gives you a range of five different choices and comes with complimentary bread and a drink.

“Plenty of that for an adult,” user Kinsley (@shoplolajane.kins) noted in the July 13, 2023 TikTok.

Longhorn Steakhouse is already considered a pricier dining option due to its predominantly steak menu, so viewers have greatly appreciated Kinsley’s hack and the one posted by Divagetchecks.

“Smart. The way these prices are today!” @smokingrepeats praised. 

“Their portions are soooooo big,” another user commented.

A recent NerdWallet report found that the average cost of meals in sit-down restaurants like Longhorn Steakhouse, including table service, has been rising just over three percent each year, with take-out style meal prices rising five percent.

@divadabratt Not a filet typa night so we got chicken🔥Must try! Dont say we didnt put yall on🤭🤭 #foryou #foodhack #foodies #datenight @Longhorn Steakhouse ♬ original sound - Divagetchecks

The Daily Dot reached out to Divagetchecks via TikTok direct message.

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A viral video posted to TikTok is warning those wanting Gel-X nails to avoid getting them done at salons. 

Stitching a video from a nail salon customer who asked TikTok if she overpaid for a set of Gel-X nails with custom art, nail technician Aubrey Woodard (@aubreynails) ordered viewers to stop visiting walk-in salons.

"They're ripping you off, and you're letting them," she matter-of-factly told over 995,200 viewers in the May 21 video. 

She explained that Gel-X nail tips are already shaped and made to a specific length, meaning any fees charged by salons for shaping or lengthening the nails are bogus. The $70 charge paid by the woman in the original video was more than Woodard charges herself, but she acknowledged that it depends on the area you're in. 

"Your economic area dictates how much you can charge," she explained.

The $35 added fee for nail art, which she described as well-done but simplistic, was also more than she would charge. 

Her solution? "Find an independent nail tech. Stop giving your money to thieves."

Sharing her sister's frustrations at being unreasonably charged for almond-shaped nails, Woodard took a tough-love approach to the situation. 

"I did not give her any sympathy," she revealed. "I said, 'I can't keep telling you to stop going to these places.'" 

@aubreynails #stitch with @Pinky | Htx Content Creator educate yourself so you don’t get ripped off, and don’t be afraid to speak up!!!###nailtech##gelex##nails##nailsalons##naileducation ♬ original sound - Aubrey Woodard

Overcharging at nail salons is a common complaint on TikTok

Another customer recently shared that, after asking several times throughout her appointment what the final cost of her nails was going to be, she was forced to pay a shocking $270 for gel acrylic French tips on her fingers and toes. When she tried to dispute the charge, the salon's manager called the police. 

"It crushes me that people will go to a walk-in salon and pay ridiculous amount of money before they give me the opportunity to provide a service for half the cost," one independent nail technician shared in the comments section of Woodard's video.

Viewers were quick to point out that these technicians often were booked solid for months in advance with no openings outside of work hours and that some charged extra fees for services like shaping, lengthening, and removing nails.

"The nail industry is extremely undercharged, but we're expected to have more skill than the majority of cosmos," another technician stated. 

Acknowledging those extra fees, Woodard explained that independent nail technicians would charge them upfront instead of adding them in later. 

Other viewers suggested simply asking for the total cost of a nail appointment ahead of time and leaving if it was an outrageous amount—but a cancellation fee may apply.

The Daily Dot reached out to Woodard via TikTok direct message.

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The post ‘They charged her $35 extra’: Expert exposes how nail salons rip you off—and what to do to prevent it appeared first on The Daily Dot.