In a now-viral video, a Toronto student alleges that a Tim Hortons employee asked to “collect” her saliva after she ordered a cup of coffee earlier this month.
The video, which was posted on TikTok by Anna (@yikesbanana), warns other Toronto residents and Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) students not to visit the Tim Hortons location at the corner of Dundas Street East and Victoria Street.
Since being posted, the video has amassed over 600,000 views and over 2,000 comments.
Prior to her rehearsal at the TMU campus, Anna says she went to the Tim Hortons location to pick up a cup of coffee.
“The guy gives me my drink, and then when nobody else is in the store, hands me my drink, and then slides me a small empty paper cup,” she explained in the video.
@yikesbanana @Tim Hortons wtf lol #toronto #timhortons #victoriastreet #tmu ♬ original sound – anna
Anna then alleges that the employee asked her if she was in a rush, to which she replied that she was, but asked him what was up. She alleges that the Tim Hortons employee then asked her, “I’m doing this experiment where I collect people’s saliva, can you spit in this cup for me?”
After recounting the story in the video, Anna covered her mouth in disbelief.
“I beg your finest pardon? I’m like super weirded out so I ended up throwing away my coffee because I don’t know what he could’ve put in it,” she said.
Following the incident, Anna says she contacted the store’s supervisor who said that he would review the security footage. Instead of apologizing, she alleges that the supervisor asked her to forgive the employee, noting that he’s only 16 years old and will have a difficult time finding another job.
“It’s not acceptable of course,” the supervisor is heard saying in a clip of the phone call.
In an update this week, Anna says she reached out to the Tim Hortons head office and was subsequently contacted by an investigator, who asked her to tell her story.
@yikesbanana Replying to @♡（╹◡╹）♡ sooo here’s an update for u LOL #timhortons #toronto #victoriastreet #tmu @Tim Hortons ♬ original sound – anna
While the investigator allegedly did acknowledge that there was a record of the supervisor having a conversation with the employee after Anna’s initial report, they said that the staff member’s story did not line up with hers.
According to the video, the employee told the supervisor that Anna personally asked for a plastic cup and made a “bunch of derogatory comments” towards him — a claim Anna firmly denies.
The student continued to urge others who have had similar experiences at the same location to contact the Tim Hortons head office.
blogTO has reached out to Tim Hortons for an update on the status of the investigation.
