Mystery Woman Pays Bill for Whole Restaurant and Leaves Hefty Tip for Servers

An unidentified woman surprised 180 diners in a Florida restaurant Sunday by paying for all their meals.

The Tampa Bay Times reported some saying the woman looked like the 84-year-old Gloria C. MacKenzie who recently won the $590 million Powerball jackpot, but the mystery woman claimed she wasn't a lottery winner.

Buddy Freddy's (Image: Google Maps)

Stephanie Reaves, the manager of the BuddyFreddy's in Plant City, gave the Tampa Bay Times more details about the generous gesture:

Reaves said she was accompanied by another woman and a younger man. They ate, left around 4 p.m. and then the woman returned, offering to buy meals for 180 diners.

The tab: close to $2,600. She even gave $50 to each of the five servers.

"Everybody got up and applauded and started hugging her," Reaves said. "In my 35 years in the restaurant industry, I've never seen anything like it."

Even though the woman denied being MacKenzie, Reaves said she "sure looked like her."

Powerball winner Gloria C. Mackenzie, 84, left, leaves the lottery office escorted by her son, Scott Mackenzie, after claiming a single lump-sum payment of about $370.9 million before taxes on Wednesday, June 5, 2013, in Tallahassee, Fla. Officials say she is the largest sole lottery winner in U.S. history. She did not speak to reporters outside lottery headquarters, leaving in a silver Ford Focus with family members. (Photo: AP/Steve Cannon) 

The restaurant is around 15 miles from Zephyrhills, Florida, where the lottery winning woman is from. Taking her winnings in a lump sum, officials said MacKenzie received $278 million.

(H/T: WTSP)

Featured image via Shutterstock.com.

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