The world is what it is because of our little acts of kindness and the way we treat each other. Our destinies are influenced by our outlook towards other people we meet, whether for a lifetime bond or just in passing. Our one act of kindness or intolerance can switch our fate completely. Karen Vinacour learned this valuable lesson on a fine day in NYC when she stopped at a pizzeria for a bite. She met Armando Markaj here and did something that day that changed their destiny in the most unexpected way.
Life Of An Ordinary Student
All the students who are living in New York City and are barely making it past their rent dates would know what it feels to be working and studying at the same time. Armando Markaj, a 27-year-old medical student was among that same group of struggling students. Armando needed a job to put himself through medical school because affording the high tuition fees and unreasonably high rents in the city is no joke. But finding the right job to pay for the expenses was also a task.
Waiting Tables To Survive
Armando knew he had to work if he wanted to pay his tuition fee. He took up a job at Patsy’s Pizzeria, one of the most famous places in the city. Although most people there are interested in the culinary field, a medical student found his way to this place. Markaj had to ensure that he had enough in his account to be financially stable. Since the place was a celebrity hotspot, he knew that he wouldn’t have trouble bagging some sizeable tips from A-list diners!
A Pizza Haven
The New Yorkers would agree that Patsy’s Pizzeria offers one of the most scrumptious pizza meals since 1933. It is one of the oldest pizza places and it has witnessed the busiest hours of all time. It gained a lot of popularity over the years and people were ready to wait in a queue to relish the delicious pizza served at this spot. Locals and tourists flock towards this place on the regular but what is more notable is that plenty of famous faces walk through its doors every day.
Celebrating The Crust
This amazing place was named after its founder, Pasquale "Patsy" Lancieri, who started with the traditional New York-style thin-crust pizza and that’s what attracted people. But what most people don’t know is that Lancieri learned the tricks of the trade at Lombardi’s, another famous pizzeria of New York. It wasn’t long after that when he was serving brick-oven pizzas to local Italians. It was at this iconic place that an encounter between a woman and a waiter made headlines.
Another Day At Patsy’s
The pizzeria attracted such a huge crowd during the weekends that there would be a queue outside. One such busy Saturday, Markaj was running from one table to another to give his customers a great experience. He was used to seeing the place thronging with customers and had encountered all kinds of people coming in to savor one of the most delicious pizzas of the city. But while this day seemed like any other work day, it was nothing like it!
An Encounter With Fate
The busy Saturday at the pizzeria had Markaj on his toes. With the aroma of pizza inside and the customers waiting for their order in the blink of an eye, the servers have many expectations to fulfill. That’s when Karen Vinacour entered the pizzeria with her daughter. Markaj greeted them with a smile and took their food order. It would have been a normal interaction between a customer and wait staff but it led to a strange sequence of events that change their lives unexpectedly.
A Milestone To Celebrate
Vinacour and her daughter weren’t at the pizzeria for a regular weekend pizza treat. They were going out to eat for a very special occasion. The two had just visited the house Vinacour was planning to buy. This was supposed to be a celebratory pizza and a toast to their new home. While sitting at the table, the mother daughter duo was discussing the logistics of their down payment and the final move. But they had no idea that Markaj was about to change all their plans.
The Beginning Of Chaos
While Markaj was preparing to make the meal special for his customers, nobody could have predicted what happened when he first met Vinacour. It was a chaotic day with customers flooding the pizzeria and Markaj made one small comment while having a “friendly” conversation with this woman. He hadn’t expected that this one thing would take away any bonus points that he would have expected. However, these two managed to make it to more than just one meeting. What did Markaj say that made him the ‘villain’?
A Legacy Worth Respecting
The pizzeria where this shocking encounter was about to take place, had already seen its fair share of ups and downs. The original owner, Patsy, was well-known in the neighborhood for providing authentic food to the Italian community of the area. After his demise, his widow sold it to Frank Brija, who expanded into a franchise by opening branches all around NYC. This humble pizzeria was turning into an empire that even Patsy couldn’t have imagined.
Where Stars Dined
When a place is so famous for its appetizing meals, the celebrities catch a whiff and they can’t resist the urge to add it to their list of experiences. That’s what happened with Patsy’s Pizza when it grew and its amazing reviews traveled far. The pizzeria became a spot for A-list customers relishing the famous pizzas. The celebs that have taken a seat at this restaurant include Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Tony Bennett. Even the Yankees Phil Rizzutto, Joe Dimaggio, and more could be seen hanging out at Patsy’s.
The Wall Of Fame To Blame
This story of Armando Markaj and Karen Vinacour started with the wall of fame at the pizzeria. There were frames all over it that carried the pictures of the famous faces who visited Patsy's Pizzeria since its launch almost a century ago. Patsy’s Pizzeria has carried on this tradition of capturing moments with celebrities whenever they visit this place for a meal. So, those walls attract everyone’s attention and in this case, they turned out to be the reason for Markaj’s interaction with Vinacour.
A Displeasing Observation
When Vinacour and her daughter entered this famous pizza place expecting a great lunch on that Saturday afternoon, their eyes could spot many celebrities in the pictures hung on the walls. However, when they had inspected them for a few minutes, they noticed something strange. While many stars had been there over the past nine decades, Vinacour found it weird that most of the pictures were those of male celebs. She was sort of irked and decided to ask the waiter who was attending their table.
Posing A Burning Question
The woman waited for their order and when Markaj showed up with their meal, Vinacour decided to initiate the conversation. “We were talking and chatting away, and then there was this little exchange with the waiter about no women on the wall,” Vinacour shared. "There's a bunch of women, and she goes 'not as much as there should be.' Well, summer is coming, probably women don't like to eat pizza as much. You know, sense of humor” Markaj recalled. What he thought was a harmless joke, rubbed Vinacour the wrong way.
Not Taken Lightheartedly
Markaj’s remark didn’t play too well for him. Vinacour who was a retired social worker was not amused by his joke and nor was her daughter. They felt that their concern about the lack of women on the walls of the pizzeria was ignored by a small joke. Vinacour had spent her days working with charities in Laos that lend a helping hand to the women and children in need. She had received the honor of working with some inspiring women. She couldn’t take this joke lightly.
Not A Day To Tip
Vinacour and her daughter were not impressed by Markaj’s remark and it overshadowed everything he had done for serving them. So, they made the bold choice to pay the bill amount and leave no tip for him. Tipping servers is expected but that woman was adamant. She shared, “The consensus of opinion was not to give him a tip, and we wrote on the note 'Women eat pizza, and by the way, have you heard that women don't leave tips?’”
Tip Top Servers
The decision of not leaving a tip for her server was strange as per the tipping culture in America. The ones working at the restaurants depend on these tips left by their customers as their salaries are never enough to pay all the house bills. Customers usually tip about 15-20% of the total food bill. Sometimes when the server is highly courteous, the customers might leave a more generous tip. Knowing full well that not tipping is frowned upon, Vinacour stepped out of the pizzeria without leaving a dime for Markaj.
Working Hard
Markaj was a medical student and he had been working many shifts at this famous pizzeria to make sure he has enough money to pay for his tuition and rent. Finding a job that pays well is not a cakewalk in NYC. Markaj was fortunate to have entered the right spot at the right time. This guy had his goals set and was tirelessly working to reach them. This one incident was something that felt bizarre but he decided to look past it until he stumbled upon another thing.
Brushing It Off
Working at a restaurant requires patience to deal with the weirdest attitude that’s thrown at you. The servers at any restaurant, café, or bar have to put on a smile, be as polite as they can, and attend their customers courteously. They expect a good tip when their customers leave with a smile on their faces. Markaj had been in this field long enough to know that in a fast-paced environment like this, there was no time to dwell on the reactions of one woman.
Clearing Off The Table
The place was bursting at the seams with customers so Markaj had no time to dive into self loathing for a missed tip. He had to seat other customers at Vinacour’s table so he went ahead to clean it up. As he cleared away the plates and cutlery, Markaj noticed a strange envelope sitting on the table. When he looked inside he realized he had made the discovery of a lifetime. He stood there in shock forgetting about the hordes of people waiting for their table.
A Chance To Change Priorities
Markaj was extremely busy and hastily gathered the stuff from that table when he saw the envelope. He knew no matter how occupied he was, this envelope had to be his priority. “I was very close to taking everything left on the table and throwing it out when I saw an envelope. I just pulled up the flap and I saw ‘Citibank’ and thought it was important, so I ran out to the street to look for her, but she was gone,” he recalled.
A Check To Cash
When he realized Vanacour had already left, he decided to check the paper inside the envelope to see if it was as valuable as he had guessed. He was taken aback by the “document” he found inside. It was a check worth $424,000! Markaj had to look again to believe that it was real. The woman just left this big check on the table at a pizzeria in East Harlem. That was insane and hard to absorb for Markaj!
Half A Million Dollars At Risk
Vinacour was nowhere to be seen around the pizza place and Markaj was nervous to hold such a huge amount in his hand. “Normally we just put things left behind in the lost and found box in the back. But I wasn’t going to do that with almost half a million dollars,” he clarified. He ran to Frank Brija, the owner of the place to figure out a way to deal with this situation, after all it a lot of money. It was clear they had to track down the owner without wasting another second.
A Terrible Realization
Meanwhile, Vinacour had no clue that she had misplaced a check worth $424,000. She found out about the missing envelope on Sunday night while she was rummaging through her purse. The next morning, she made her way towards Citibank but all she received was bad news. “They said they couldn’t immediately cancel it because it was a cashier’s check. I would have to wait at least three months before they could even start the process, and only if someone didn’t cash it in the meantime,” she revealed. “My world just collapsed.”
The Quest Begins
Vinacour was not resting until she is reunited with the check that held her life savings. That money was for her new condo that she had already waited long to get. That check was her key into her abode and now, she had lost it. She called her daughter and the broker hoping either of them had some answers but they knew nothing about the whereabouts of that valuable piece of paper. She even hunted through the trash but found nothing.
Everything At Stake
Vinacour was searching for her missing check in the trash but in her heart, this was the opposite of a throwaway item. She was toiling to make ends meet. She never had one place of her own to sleep at night and that check was her hope to buy one. Vinacour had a lot of financial burdens including her daughter’s student loan and one heavy down payment for the condo. She needed financing from the bank and so, that check meant everything to her at that point.
On The Flip Side
When Frank Brija found the check of $424,000, he was sure that the person carrying it definitely had deep pockets. Brija shared, “We thought for sure it was a billionaire or something who came in here, because who walks around with a check like that?” On the other hand, Markaj wondered about the purpose of the check. These kinds of checks are mostly used for real estate transactions and Markaj assumed that it could be an urgent one for Vinacour.
Retracing Her Footsteps
Vinacour calmed herself down for a moment and ran the events of Saturday in her mind. She knew it was time to follow her footsteps and she headed back to all the places she visited that day. Her first stop was a café in East Harlem where she had taken a coffee break before visiting the famous Patsy’s Pizza for a meal. “They said they didn’t have it,” she revealed. “She was on her way to Patsy’s when her real estate broker called her back.” She wanted this call to carry some news in her favor.
More Bad Luck Awaits
As fate would have it, her broker was about to give her another bad news. “She said she had called Patsy’s and nobody knew anything about a check,” Vinacour shared. It added to her anguish and she turned back from that place and returned home. Strangely, her broker told her this even when Markaj had found the check. Had he changed his mind about returning it? After all, getting half a million from a woman who had refused to tip him would be a great prize!
Waiting In Agony
The broker got this response because she had called another Patsy’s place to inquire about the check. Vinacour never considered this possibility and later revealed, “I didn’t stop to think that maybe she called the wrong one”. It felt like she had lost everything in a moment as she didn’t know where else to go look for. Her check worth of half a million dollars was at a safe place and Frank Brija was quite sure that someone would come knocking at their door to ask for it.
Relying On The Internet
Unfortunately, no one came to take it back even after a few days. Vinacour was in complete distress while her check was waiting for her at the same pizza place. “I thought for sure it won’t be long. Even a billionaire would miss that much money,” Brija expressed. But when days went by without anyone coming for the check, he had to ask his son, Adem Brija, for help. He looked for Karen Vinacour on the internet and see if they can find an address or some location where they should be looking for her.
Finally A Good News
Owning one of the most popular pizza places has some great advantages and Brija decided to use that for helping Vinacour. He contacted NY Daily News and narrated them the story wishing they would come to his rescue and find that woman. The reporter was able to find her and called her asking if she had recently forgotten something heavy in terms of monetary value. “I can’t believe it, I’m so relieved. You have no idea. I’m jumping in a cab, I’ll be there right away,” she almost screamed with excitement.
Much Awaited Reunion
As soon as Vinacour entered Patsy’s pizzeria this time, she expressed her sincere apology to Markaj for behaving rudely that day and leaving no tip for him after that little conversation. “Well, my daughter’s kind of feisty and she didn’t like that. So we didn’t tip him,” she said. Everyone was happy to see Vinacour reunited with her big check. “I'm glad we had it here for you. It would have been dramatic for a lot of people. She was in tears. She was super excited that someone had found it and kept it,” Markaj shared.
Serving Some Humble Pie
The reunion was extremely special as Vinacour was surprised by this man’s gesture who did not let the “no tipping” factor come in between his thought about returning the check worth $424,000 to her. “I'm so grateful that the insult that we gave him did not prevent him from doing the right thing,” she admitted. She was ashamed of her decision to not tip an honest waiter over a small disagreement. Markaj’s dignified choice of returning the check really humbled her.
Circling Back
Once Vinacour was reunited to her lost check, all of them interacted for a while. After a while Frank Brija decided to broach the subject of the lack of women on their famous wall. It was this simple observation of Vinacour that made her leave without tipping her server. Frank pointed out that there are plenty of female stars on the wall. “We have Barbara Walters, Christine Quinn, we have the First Lady,” he revealed.
Smile And Click
As Brija told her about all the women who came and tasted Patsy’s famous pizza, Vinacour was stunned to realize that she had missed so many women previously. The wall indeed had many female celebrities and she was now ashamed of her actions. Frank further offered to capture this moment too. “And we’re going to take a picture here today with you, and I’m going to put that on the wall, too. So there will be one more,” he told Vinacour.
A Powerful Lesson
Vinacour was thankful for Markaj’s kindness and wanted to give him his tip that she missed that day but he refused it. “I guess I figured that it was just karma for them,” he shared. “Small details like this define us as humans - it's just a small gesture,” Markaj concluded. Despite being denied his rightful payment, Markaj went out of his way to return Vinacour’s check. He didn’t even think much of his act and was just happy to help a customer get back an item of great value to them.
