Photo: Keith Lee's TikTok
A Texas food truck owner who received a $4,000 tip from TikTok star Keith Lee has apologized after she failed to follow his instructions on distributing the money.
Kim Viverette, who runs Sweetly Seasoned in the Dallas area, is facing sharp online backlash after she initially refused to divvy up the money to a barber and a braider operating near her business, as requested by Lee. The viral content creator and his family visited the food truck during his food tour in the city, giving favorable reviews of the menu items. He then surprised both Viverette and the nearby hair stylists with a generous tip.
“We wanted to leave $1,000 to the barber so he can cut everybody's hair for free. We wanted to leave you $1,000 for doing braids, and we want to tip you [Viverette] $2,000. So please charge my card for $4,000 and y’all give it to each other however y’all feel necessary,” Lee can be heard saying in his video, which has nearly 8 million views as of Monday (February 5).
The good vibes didn't last long as Sherell Hodge, the sister of the barber, went off on Viverette and her son for denying her brother his part of the money. In a TikTok posted last week, Hodge accused the food truck owner of withholding not only the barber's portion of the $4,000 but also charging customers after Lee left behind an additional $866 so they could eat for free that day.
"If this man left you almost $1,000, why the f**k did you stop handing free food out after the third person?” Hodge states.
On Friday (February 2), Viverette posted a Facebook Reels video claiming Hodge was refusing to come pick up the money.
"I’m asking my followers to please tag her and tell her Sweetly Seasoned is asking her to please come and pick up their money," she said.
Hodge's comments and Viverette's reaction sparked a barrage of criticism against the food truck owner on social media. Sweetly Seasoned was getting flooded with one-star reviews across several platforms, as well. The business then posted an apology on its Facebook page on Saturday (February 3), vowing to release the money.
"Sweetly Seasoned will like to apologize! We thought and believed we were right but unfortunately we were wrong!" the post reads. "This has been a huge miscommunication on our part and all funds are being released!"
Keith Lee also chimed in on the controversy, shutting down claims that he specifically told Viverette how to distribute the money.
"It’s being intentionally misconstrued that I said that the mom [Viverette] and the son get to say who get the money and who don’t get the money,” the TikToker said. I never said that... For the mom to go in the back and disregard where my heart was at … is 100% wrong in my opinion.”
He also stressed he's "not in the business of shutting businesses down" and hopes Sweetly Seasoned "figure it out."
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