Hot words at Lucha Libre on Washington

A recent verbal altercation at a local Lucha Libre-inspired restaurant in Mission Hills was actual and not a professional wrestling skit, as many onlookers thought.

"Ma'am, give me my receipt, you fu--ing bit-h .... "You fu--ing cu-t." yelled a woman customer as seen in a viral TikTok video posted by brendapena783 (Brenda) on May 7 from the Lucha Libre Taco Shop just across I-5 from the airport.

According to Brenda, the cashier in the video, the irate customer allegedly ordered six Mexican food dishes online, ate half the order, returned to the taco shop with the food, and demanded a $73 refund.

It's unclear if Brenda's co-worker, who filmed the footage from behind the agua fresca drink dispenser from the get-go of the altercation got the whole spat or edited some parts out.

"I want my receipt," yelled the customer several times. Brenda and the co-worker told her to please leave the restaurant.

"That's not even her receipt, that's the ticket order we received in our printer, and we tape it on top of the order," explained Brenda in part on a follow-up TikTok post. "This was an online order she placed on our website that only gives you text/email receipts, so she already had it."

Brenda asked her to leave again, and the customer said, "Not until I get my receipt."

Brenda looked at the receipt in question; the customer reached over the counter, attempting to grab it from Brenda's hand. Then, from the camera's vantage point, it's difficult to see if the customer touched Brenda. Although, as the customer's hands moved towards Brenda's chest area, Brenda smacked the customer's hands away and then yelled, "Don't do that f-cking shit to me b-tch ... get out ... don't touch me."

A few more heated words were exchanged, and the customer left the West Washington Street taco shop.

While the alleged name of the customer was posted online, finding an active account to verify it was indeed her was challenging. Many people online say the customer deleted or pulled all her social media accounts. Brenda's accounts are still active, but she pulled down the viral posts.

The restaurant commented in part, "No employee should ever have to face an attack or any form of disrespect, particularly when they are dedicated to providing excellent service. Please be assured that we are taking this matter seriously while maintaining the spirit of our beloved taco shop."

The feud carried over to the comment sections of Instagram and TikTok. While most viewers sided with Brenda, the customer also had a few backers, many asking, "Why didn't Brenda just hand over a receipt?"

Under the Sales and Use Tax Regulations section of the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration, the site states in part that "Each retailer required to collect use tax from purchasers must give a receipt to each purchaser for the amount of the tax collected. The receipt need not be in any particular form but must show the following: The name and place of business of the retailer .... the serial number of the retailer's permit to engage in business as a seller, or the retailer's Certificate of Registration—Use Tax... The amount of tax collected from the purchaser."

So if Brenda's post that the restaurant sends a digital receipt is valid, that should suffice.

Lovegoodsxv on TikTok wondered, "Why don’t old people ever want to look at online receipts? Many places email them or sen[d] them through text; they don’t even have print machines."

Bill S., another longtime customer of the taco shop adorned with Mexican-style wrestling memorabilia and masks, said that he's never had an issue with the food or staff. "But parking in this area is bad," he continued. "It's a busy area, so maybe if that upset lady parked illegally, she could've been in a hurry to get a receipt for tax purposes or reimbursement from her job. In some places of employment, we can't get credited back for an expense using a bank statement; we need to show a printed receipt."

On Instagram, a Christoper said, "The husband’s side that the restaurant clearly isn’t telling: 'One of their workers overcharged my wife and used her credit card to make purchases. When she asked for the receipt, the worker refused and started taunting her. They filmed her when she became enraged and posted it on social media to make her look bad. She lost her cool, but it was only because she was provoked and treated...'”