She ordered a $220 entrée, ate three bites, and pushed it away. His move to pack the leftovers sparked a bizarre ultimatum
'She looks at me... like I just killed somebody,' Birch said. Moreover, the woman said she wouldn't go home with him if he took the leftovers
A classic piece of modern dating advice that almost every man gets is to book a table at a high-end restaurant for the first date. It shows not only effort and success but also a person's willingness to treat their partner to the finer things in life. But for Max Birch, a.k.a. Squash (@squashwinz), this exact play backfired spectacularly. What was supposed to be a smooth weekend quickly turned sour when his date ordered a ridiculously expensive entrée for $220. But the last straw came after dinner, when the girl judged Birch for wanting to take the leftovers home. His video, shared on April 3, 2026, has received over 15 million views on TikTok.
A costly first date
Well, the ordeal started when Birch went on a date with a woman. Naturally, he wanted to impress her, so he went all in. Moreover, he had just made some extra money and wanted to celebrate his success with a beautiful companion, so he didn't think much before booking a reservation at an expensive restaurant. Nothing wrong with showing efforts, right? Perhaps not always. That's because, despite ordering a lovely bottle of wine and a Bolognese pasta entrée, his date overlooked it and went on to order a separate entrée for $220 — more expensive than the entire dinner. Nonetheless, Birch was okay with it until she said she was full only after a few bites.
Conflict over the leftovers
Regardless, the date continued just okay until the waiter came to clear the table. Seeing the waiter take out what some would consider an untouched entree, Birch couldn't help but ask to pack the leftovers. This made absolute sense, as why would you let perfectly fine food go to waste? However, that's not how the woman saw it. "She looks at me... like I just killed somebody. She goes, 'You are going to take these to go? You want to eat leftovers?'" Birch said, recalling his date's horrified reaction. Moreover, the woman warned him that she wouldn't go home with him if he took the leftovers.
Despite the warning, Birch stood his ground and refused to back down. Not only did he take the leftovers, but he also ended the date. Nonetheless, he still offered her a ride home out of chivalry. However, the woman refused to get in his car and ordered an Uber for herself. On the other hand, Birch wasn't bothered, as he stated that he's relieved he dodged a bullet.
First impressions matter
Even though the incident does seem bizarre, conflicts on a first date aren't rare. In fact, there are certain traits that, if displayed by their date, are proven deal breakers. The top factor is being rude to the waitstaff, with about 89.2% of people not willing to go on a second date with such a person. Meanwhile, being on the phone a lot or talking about your past relationship could also cost you a second date, with 86.5% and 78.3% of people believing it is enough of a reason to refuse another date, according to a Shane Co. survey of 1,617 Americans.
'You dodged a bullet'
This explains why the people in the comments resided with this man. For instance, @thirtythirtythirtythirty wrote, "I don’t care how rich you are; wasting food while humans starve is icky." At the same time, @God'sloveofcooking commented, "1. You are not wrong, and 2. You are so lucky to dodge that — I hope the leftovers were good." Lastly, @paulaforesman noted, "I’m not leaving steak and lobster behind. She’s crazy. Also, ordering a $220 entree is rude as hell."
You can follow Max Birch a.k.a Squash (@squashwinz) on TikTok for more lifestyle content.
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