'AITA for refusing to switch tables at a restaurant so a family could sit together?'

The internet is backing a man who refused to give up his window seat for a worse table to accommodate a larger family.

The debate began on Reddit’s ‘Am I The A*****e’ forum, where the original poster (OP), shared his experience and asked if he was wrong for not switching tables.

In the Reddit post titled “AITAH for refusing to switch tables at a restaurant because a family wanted to sit together?”, OP, a 30-year-old man, shares that he went out for a solo dinner at a popular, busy restaurant.

He explains, "I (30M) went out to dinner alone at a popular restaurant. Since it was busy, I was seated at a small two-person table near the window. I ordered my food, was just scrolling on my phone, and enjoying my night."

He was savoring his meal, casually scrolling on his phone, and keeping to himself when a server approached with a request. "A few minutes later, a server approached me and asked if I’d be willing to move to a different table, one near the kitchen so they could push my table together with another to accommodate a larger family. I looked over and saw a group of six, including two kids, waiting nearby."

OP looked over and saw the family waiting nearby. However, he had already settled in and didn’t want to give up his nice spot for a cramped table near the kitchen. He politely declined. "I had already settled in, and honestly, I didn’t want to move from my nice window spot to a cramped one by the kitchen. The server looked a little annoyed but said okay. However, the family was clearly upset. I overheard the mom say, wow, some people have no consideration."

OP ignored the request and continued his meal. Later, when he shared the situation with his friend, she sided with the family, arguing that since he was alone, moving would have been a small inconvenience for him but a significant help for them.

"I should’ve just moved since I was alone and it would’ve been a small inconvenience to me but a big help to them. Now I’m wondering if I was being stubborn for no reason. AITAH?" he concluded.

Internet defends man who refused to switch restaurant tables for a family

One top comment read, "Nope. NTA. My daughter has been a waitress for 18 years, in bars to family restaurants to "fine" dining establishments, says the #1 rule as a server is that once a customer is seated, you never ask them to move. They can ask but the server does not. This server was wrong to even suggest it."

Another user added, "NTA they should have booked a table. If they did then it's the restaurant's fault."

A third commenter wrote, "NTA "Some people have no consideration" "Yeah, imagine asking someone else to move cos you couldn't be arsed to book ahead. So inconsiderate."

"NTA. I overheard the mom say, “Wow, some people have no consideration.” Loudly, "Yeah, most people make reservations when they have a lot of people," a user said.

Another commented, "NTA. The family should have made a reservation so that the restaurant doesn't have to move others around. I experienced such a situation when I went to the cinema to watch Coco with a friend. An employee made an offer to switch places so that a family could sit together. He offered us a free drink if we did it. We took the offer and moved to a different spot and got the free drink. But the situation in this post is a different situation because there was no incentive and OP had to give up his good place to sit somewhere less nicely."

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