Waffle House Waitress Goes Viral After A Candid Photo Exposed What She’d Done On Shift

That waitress? She was called Evoni Williams, and she lived in Galveston, Texas. She was a high school graduate saving up for college, and she had started working at the Waffle House a month after turning her tassel. And the folks who knew her described her as cheerful and always with a smile on her face — despite everything the job threw at her.

Then, one day, Evoni was serving an elderly man in her section. Nothing unusual about that on the surface — plenty of seniors piled into Waffle House every day. This guy had an oxygen tank, however, and he had only recently been released from the hospital. And he made small talk with his waitress as customers shuttled about and the grills sizzled up made-to-order breakfasts.

That man was Adrien, who had a seat at the bar on that busy Saturday morning at the La Marque Waffle House. The 78-year-old counted himself as one of the regulars at the restaurant. And it wasn’t just the wait staff who knew him well. Adrien had a reputation with the people in the town, too.

Waffle House employees knew Adrien as “Mr. Karaoke” as he regularly hit the stage at the local senior center to sing tunes. But, unfortunately, he hadn’t been able to belt out his songs for a while. As Adrien told CNN in 2018, he had been sick for a few weeks before returning to his usual breakfast spot.

“I have been in and out of the hospital for the past five weeks,” Adrien said. “It started with pneumonia.” And he continued to rely on oxygen when he came into the Waffle House that day. But he was glad to be back at his breakfast counter of choice — especially when he got to chatting with Evoni.

When his food came out, however, Adrien started feeling a little bit shy. He had to ask a favor of Evoni. The senior citizen later explained with a chuckle, “I can hold a fork fine and dandy. But to cut, it looks like I’m going to stab somebody.” Basically, mealtimes were no picnic for Adrien.

It wasn’t just that Adrien struggled to use a knife and fork; he couldn’t do much at all with his hands now. “I had no coordination, no feeling [and no] strength in my hands,” he later explained to ABC 13 News. Making matters worse, Adrien had ordered ham, which he’d need to slice before eating.

That’s why the senior had to ask for help, and why he turned to his friendly waitress. But the restaurant around the two of them was super-busy — meaning Adrien may have to wait a long time for assistance. Evoni later recalled that the cook had called her over to pick up some more orders just as Adrien had made his request.

Speaking about Adrien, Evoni told KHOU-TV, “He was like, ‘My hands are not functioning too well.’ He needed me to cut his food.” But in spite of the hectic restaurant and the demands of her team members, the waitress didn’t hesitate. She told CNN, “I was just like, ‘Sure! If you need help, that’s what I am here for.’”

Obviously, the kind gesture touched Adrien — but he wasn’t the only one to see what Evoni had done. Laura Wolf also happened to spot the waitress cutting her customer’s food at the bar, and she was impressed. “It was so busy in there, and she actually took the time to stop and hear what he had to say instead of walking past him. That just meant something to me,” she told KHOU-TV.

Laura quickly snapped a photo of Evoni slicing up Adrien’s breakfast. Then she uploaded it to Facebook. “I don’t know her name, but I heard this elderly man tell her his hands don’t work too good,” Laura wrote alongside the snap. She added that everyone should “be like this waitress and take time to offer a helping hand.”

People across La Marque saw and positively reacted to the picture on Facebook. Then folks beyond the town’s borders started noticing it. And within just a few days, the image earned more than 100,000 likes and 7,000 shares. Evoni and her kind gesture had gone viral — although she hadn’t done it for fame.

Closer to home, La Marque mayor Bobby Hocking was directed toward the photo of Evoni helping Adrien, and he was touched by what he saw on his screen. Speaking to CNN, he said, “Somebody tagged me and it immediately... it just touched my heart. It’s so wonderful that the younger generation cares about the older generation.”

But little did Evoni know that she was about to get more than just internet recognition for her good deed. Mayor Hocking felt that simply reacting to the photo via Facebook was not enough to honor the kind-hearted teen. Instead, he decided to make an example out of her — the good kind, of course!

Firstly, Mayor Hocking deemed March 8 to be Evoni “Nini” Williams Day in her honor. He hoped that naming the day after a good samaritan would spur on even more selfless acts in the city. “There is a lot of love in La Marque, Texas, and we intend to perpetuate that,” he said to CNN.

Responding to that honor, Williams told CNN, “It is awesome. I feel excited and happy.” But her rewards didn’t end with a date on a calendar. The city also announced that it would honor her with a ceremony at the local Waffle House! “La Marque is proud to have this thoughtful young woman working in our city,” spokeswoman Colleen Merritt said in a statement to the Houston Chronicle.

Evoni’s story also caught the attention of Austin A. Lane, president of Texas Southern University. The Houston-based college is close to La Marque, and that made the next gift for the Waffle House waitress all the more perfect. The university’s leadership used social media to gather donations and build a scholarship fund for Evoni. She had taken the Waffle House job to make money for college, after all.

College administrator Melinda Spaulding told CNN, “She has the character of the type of students we want at Texas Southern University.” The scholarship would also remind Williams and other students that it’s worth it to treat others well. “We wanted to reward [Williams’] act of kindness and let her know that good deeds do not go unnoticed,” the administrator added.

Evoni said that she plans to study business administration to start her own salon or restaurant. And when one of those dreams comes true, she will only be able to help more customers like Adrien. Sadly, though, Adrien himself will not be able to visit Evoni’s business. The senior passed away in November 2019 at the age of 80.

But Evoni will certainly not forget what happened to her while she worked that busy shift at the Waffle House and helped an elderly customer cut his meal. Then again, her manager Mundarius Wright said that her gesture fit right in with the Waffle House way. He told CNN, “We treat customers like family.”

Yep, it certainly was lucky for Evoni that Laura decided to take that picture! Even if customers aren’t watching the staff, though, cameras still pick up everything they do inside a fast-food restaurant. And the devices inside one Burger King recorded something shocking: a young dude being verbally and physically harassed at his table. But while the customers could see and hear what was happening, no one intervened — until they took a closer look at their food...

It all occurred at one of the chain’s restaurants in Los Angeles, California. And in the footage posted to YouTube, all initially appears to be well as a junior high school student takes a seat. Just like other customers, he starts to pick at the food on his tray. But as the recording shows, everything changes a few moments later.

Before he knows it, the young man is surrounded by three teenagers who have also walked into the restaurant. But while it seems as though the kids are familiar with one another, the encounter itself is far from a friendly one. In fact, it doesn’t take long until things appear to get very, very uncomfortable at that table.

To start with, one of the teens jabs his hand into the student’s body. “Please stop,” the boy cries. But the pleading falls on deaf ears. “Fine,” the aggressor mockingly responds, continuing the physical teasing. Then another member of the group seems to get involved in the action as well. It’s almost too difficult to keep on watching.

At this stage, the physical jabs are also coupled with vocal jibes. One of the group is heard asking, “Do you have any friends?” The youngster says that he does, only for a second kid to fire back, “What are you even doing here?” And following this exchange, the taunting shows no signs of stopping.

In the footage, a member of the group goes on to grab a french fry from the student’s tray before waving it in front of his face. And if that isn’t enough, one of the gang then shoves the boy, knocking him off his seat to the floor. This is the moment that the other customers begin to realize what is happening.

How do they respond to the scene of bullying occurring before them? Well, as the footage shows, many of the patrons watch on from their seats and don’t opt to intervene. There are some disbelieving glances but not much else in the way of help... It looks like the high school junior is very much on his own.

And things don’t get much better, either. After the student picks himself up off the floor, the kids shown tormenting him have seemingly got one more nasty surprise planned. The apparent leader of the pack grabs the boy’s drink from the tray. What does he do with it? He proceeds to tip it over the rest of the boy’s food.

But this isn’t all the hidden cameras captured that day. For the surrounding customers at that Burger King in Los Angeles, there was yet another thing to be worried about. That becomes clear in the footage when some of the diners unwrap their food orders. An unsuspecting woman is the first to notice that something’s a little wrong.

Instead of receiving a perfectly assembled Whopper Jr. from the counter, the woman has got a burger that has been squashed into a deformed mound of bread and meat. To say it looks unappetizing would be a massive understatement. And the lady isn’t the only person to receive their Whopper Jr. in such a state at the restaurant.

A guy sees that his order has been completely flattened, too. He shows it to his buddy, who agrees that it is just not right. But mistakes can happen in restaurants, can’t they? Perhaps these smashed patties slipped out of the kitchen by accident. Or maybe Burger King is experimenting with its food? Well, it doesn’t stop there.

The edited YouTube footage shows that more and more customers are greeted by smashed burgers as time goes on. And unsurprisingly, many of these people aren’t too pleased with what they’ve been given. They approach the counter to complain. One of them even asks to see a manager. But here’s where things start to get strange.

As the recording shows, one man shows his destroyed order to a member of staff. And the employee responds with an odd question. “Did you order it bullied or un-bullied?” he asks. The customer’s face says it all. “Bullied or un-bullied?” the guy repeats with a baffled expression. It’s not something you expect to hear at a Burger King counter.

A different customer is equally confused by the state of his mangled Whopper Jr., claiming it “doesn’t make any sense.” But when he gets to speak to the restaurant’s manager, it leads to an even weirder exchange. The guy in charge demands of his colleague, “Did you bully this burger?” In response, he simply notes, “Well, yeah.”

What is going on at this Burger King? The same worker behind the counter also delivers another bizarre statement to a customer looking for answers. He says, “This is a defenseless Whopper Jr. It can’t defend itself.” The manager chirps up, too, adding, “We don’t mean anything by it, so just relax.” They seem to be speaking in riddles.

The patron doesn’t take too kindly to this particular exchange, though, as he barks, “Just give me my burger, man.” His frustration is very clear to see! Then, after another customer comes to the counter with their squashed food, the worker smashes his fist into the mess to make it even worse. Could a fight be brewing?

Just like his fellow customers, this diner has no idea what to make of the scene. But his response suggests he isn’t best pleased with what he’s watched. “What?” he says in pure confusion. “Is there something wrong with you?” It’s a fair question to ask. And the fraught exchange between the pair doesn’t end there.

The man behind the counter asks the irritated customer, “Had you seen me bullying this burger, would you have stood up and said something?” He responds with a nod. “That’s good to know,” the guy says. Each customer who complains about their mashed-up burger is equally baffled by these events. But then they didn’t know what we know.

As it turned out, this whole thing was set up by Burger King. The man behind the counter was an actor, as were the teens and the high school student. It was a social experiment that coincided with National Bullying Prevention Month, which falls in October each year. But while the aim of the test was quite simple, the reactions it elicited were way more than anyone bargained for.

Not everyone in the restaurant that day turns a blind eye to the abuse. Yes, two people decide to step in and help the “bullied” student in their own way. The first is a female customer, who sits at a table just to the side of the commotion. “Are you okay?” she asks the apparent victim.

After the kid reassures her that he’s fine, the woman takes her tray over to his table. She sits with him and asks the apparent main bully for his name — and that prompts the group to leave. “See you later,” she responds. “See, this feels better to me.” And an intriguing conversation happens between the pair.

“Have you ever been, like, messed with before?” the student asks. The lady then replies, “Oh my God. Like, the ideal world is where if somebody else sees something weird happening, they’ll come over and [say], ‘Hey! This is not okay!’” As for the second Good Samaritan? Well, he takes a different approach.

That Burger King customer engages the bullies, taking exception to their claim that everything is fine. He asks the seemingly distressed youngster, “Are you having fun? He’s not having fun. So therefore I think you guys should just leave him alone.” Nicely played, sir! Simple but effective.

In the YouTube footage, a camera crew catches up with this guy after he leaves the restaurant. Explaining why he stepped in to help, he says, “To feel defenseless, that’s one of the worst things in the world. I’ve been that kid, so if I see it, I’m going to do something about it. And I hope there are more people out there like that.”

Once the experiment came to an end, a man named Nicholas Carlisle praised the Burger King campaign during an interview with WGN-TV. Carlisle had started a program called “No Bully” back in 2003 after going through similar experiences himself. The fast-food chain had even worked with this group in the past.

Carlisle said, “We know that bullying takes on many forms — physical, verbal, relational, and online. But the first step to putting an end to bullying is to take a stand against it. Our partnership with the Burger King brand is an example of how brands can bring positive awareness to important issues. You have to start somewhere, and they chose to start within.”

According to Burger King, 95 percent of those who received a “bullied” Whopper Jr. that day flagged it up to the staff. On the flip side, though, only 12 percent went to the aid of the “harassed” student. And while this kind of experiment is far from being scientific, that disparity in numbers is startling. It goes to show, too, that you never know when cameras are watching — especially inside fast-food restaurants.