Florida man goes to popular ‘SpongeBob’ restaurant. Then he realizes he’s been charged for pickles, ice, and a straw

A man claimed to go to the “Krusty Krab” for a Krabby Patty, Krusty Krab pizza, and a Diet Kelp. Then he showed how much he paid afterward. 

Captain.t.roll (@captain.t.roll), a largely satirical content creator on TikTok, posted a video that received more than 10.4 million views. In it, he described an experience he allegedly had at a nostalgic, familiar restaurant for some–the Krusty Krab.

The content creator claimed to visit a “Krusty Krab” location, wherein he was charged a number of fees. The man described being charged for a straw and ice. Additionally, there was a “tray usage” fee, a “booth fee,” and a “table cleaning” fee on his receipt. 

Is there really a Krusty Krab restaurant?

There was a Krusty Krab pop-up called the “Rusty Krab,” that opened in 2021 in Houston, Texas. The restaurant was fully functional. It had a menu with drinks such as “Pineapple Under The Sea,” and “Ms. Puff’s Pink Drink.” 

The pop-up permanently closed after Paramount Global, then known as ViacomCBS, filed a legal claim against Pop-Ups by PIXI, who owned the parody restaurant. According to Houston Public Media, Pop-Ups by PIXI was ordered to pay Paramount $6 million in damages. A judge also ordered Pop-Ups by PIXI to transfer The Rusty Krab’s domains to Paramount. 

Before the Rusty Krab closed, it had mixed reviews. While some reviewers thought the parody restaurant was “fun and cute,” others referred to the pop-up as overpriced. 

“They charged a $20+ service fee on my tab, and I went with a friend and my 6-year-old. I expect this sort of thing with maybe groups, but I feel bad because I was well aware that I would spend $$$ for the food and experience for my kid. But there was nothing on the menu informing me of a surcharge so high,” one reviewer said. 

Another reviewer added, “Food was lukewarm – our entire family spent Friday night puking – the crab cakes gave us food poisoning.”

@captain.t.roll I received a lot of recommendations to try out this restaurant, and even though the food was good, the way they price their menu items are insane. #receipt #tipping ♬ original sound – captain.t.roll

Is there a Krusty Krab in Florida then?

Unfortunately, there doesn’t appear to be any other Krusty Krab establishments, either in Texas or in “Bikini Bottom, Florida.” The post appears to be satirical. Famously, the owner of the Krusty Krab in “Spongebob Squarepants” is a notorious penny pincher.

“Yall must not watch SpongeBob. This is exactly how Mr.Krabs runs his restaurant. Yall wanted to go for the aesthetics and got the real deal,” one commenter said on the content creator’s post.

Many content creators on TikTok have posted similar videos about real-world restaurants and locations, which could almost make the post seem real without further scrutiny. 

A review of the Oasis, an Austin-based establishment, for instance, featured the voice of many previous customers who had terrible experiences at the restaurant. In another circumstance, a former server wrote a Google review that warned patrons against a restaurant she worked at for a day, which she read aloud to her TikTok audience. Then, in another review, a woman shared her experience at another Austin restaurant, Ember Kitchen. She told her audience to avoid the business after her disappointing experience. 

Generally, both positive and negative reviews of restaurants are popular on TikTok, but there’s been a flurry of posts about “overrated” establishments. Online reviews of spots such as Community Goods constantly debate whether certain spots are “worth the hype.” In addition, customers are scrutinizing their bills for surcharges and additions they didn’t consent to. All in all, customers are generally scrupulous. For many restaurants, that means a bad experience could lead to a bad review—or even a negative post. 

The Mary Sue reached out to Captain.t.roll for comment.

Have a tip we should know? [email protected]