Dining Out

I just read seen an article on Yahoo about a family locked in restaurant for not paying tip. This reminds why I love to cook and don't dine out too much and really don't miss it much either. About ten years ago I was staying in a hotel and there happen to be a Japanese restaurant next to it and a hospital next to the restaurant ...,maybe the hospital was a sign. Well my friend invited my son and me to dinner there and we ordered Sushi and Tempura . Also my friend ordered soup and my son inclined to his choice had the same ,I however didn't feel like it. The waiter however thought I might and offered complimentary soup for me. Well they brought out the soup and it looked like a mushroom soup with clear broth. Upon tasting it however something was off just slightly ...,I ignored (I am up there with Zimmern in strange food choices so.)it and ate my dinner.Halfway through the floor fell out from under me I got ill in the bathroom and told my friend we had to go. By the time I was in the car I was debating whether he should drive me over to the E.R. as I was violently ill.Well my friend knew I was sick and did not leave a tip as it looked like food poisoning. As he came to car with my son half the crew of the restaurant was chasing him out the door including the chef for the tip!I am sitting in the car hacking my guts out and here are these Japanese people screaming at him in half-Japanese half-English tip tip TIP! Suffice to say we did not pay the damn tip. And after thirteen hours praying on my knees in front of the porcelain god all was better. Now I am not scarred for life or anything I have gone out many many times since but always with just a tad of apprehension about paying the tip.