“Eating My Salary for Dinner”: SA Couple’s R22K Restaurant Bill Sends Mzansi Into a Frenzy

• A South African couple sat down for Valentine's Day dinner at The Pier restaurant and walked away with a bill that left Mzansi with a lot to say
• The couple had already paid an R8,590 deposit before their first course arrived, and the final bill still climbed to R22,405
• Fine-dining tasting menus at top South African restaurants rarely come close to this price point, making this couple's dinner a genuinely rare occasion
• Briefly News reached out to Siya for comment, and he had a lot to say about the bill, the experience, and what Mzansi really thought

A South African couple turned their Valentine’s Day dinner into the most talked-about meal of the year.

On 14 February, TikToker Tsonga Doll and her boyfriend sat down at The Pier restaurant at the V&A in Cape Town. They had booked a full fine-dining tasting experience to celebrate the day of love. The bill that followed was a jaw-dropping R22,405, and no, that is not a typo.

Read also

Video of South African woman seeing how far R200 gets her in Thailand leaves everyone amused with her accent

The couple had already paid an R8,590 deposit just to secure their reservation. Rose petals were scattered from the entrance stairs all the way to their table. Complimentary wines came with every single course throughout the entire meal. The menu stretched from Japanese-inspired broths to caviar and even edible shells.

A dinner that had it all

Tsonga Doll and her boyfriend started the evening with a bottle of Veuve Clicquot Yellow Label champagne. The wine pairings that came with every course meant they were tipsy well before dessert. Course after course kept arriving, each one more elaborate than the one before it.

Instagram user Siya, who goes by the handle @siya.the.creator, reacted to Tsonga Doll’s TikTok clip posted on 14 February. Siya shared the reaction with her own followers, and the responses came flooding in fast. Some people were genuinely shocked, while others were impressed by the whole experience. A few questioned out loud whether any dinner on earth was worth that kind of money.

Briefly News speaks to Siya

Siya told Briefly News that seeing the bill did not leave him baffled.

“What do you mean, 22,000 rand? For food?” he said.

“There’s no reason for two people to spend 22,000 on food.”

Read also

"A superfan?": Mama Joy under fire after she can't answer basic questions about games she attended

He joked that the only justification he could think of would be a menu featuring long-extinct animals. He added that he feels people are increasingly spending lavishly to make a point rather than for the experience itself.

See the reactions from Mzansi in the Instagram clip below:

Mzansi weighs in on the bill

Briefly News compiled some comments from the post below.

@im.wendysekano commented:

“A big shout-out to the restaurant. The waiter they ate.👏”

@ridu_mv1 said:

“I’d much rather get R360 no scoped in the dome by a cactus than have to pay R22,000. 😮”

@dj_thamlas_tbs highlighted:

“Then, after the date, she says she sees you as a friend.”

@lucasngubo99 said:

“Eating my salary for dinner is crazy work. 😢🫩”

nzalaanthony237 wrote:

“You can buy groceries for a family for two months with that money and still have extra money.”

More articles involving restaurants

• Briefly News previously reported that a group of fast-food employees sparked a massive debate on social media after a video of their tense confrontation with management went viral.
• A man posted a video about some of the challenges he faces as a person living with disability in South Africa.
• A Johannesburg content creator visited a Rosebank restaurant that sells only one item on its menu and shared his honest thoughts.

Source: Briefly News