# Owner of Just Cookin in Dallas, N.C., announced on Facebook “What are we worth week?”

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/owner-of-just-cookin-in-dallas-n-c-announced-on-facebook-what-are-we-worth-week/700637>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [October 7, 2014, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/owner-of-just-cookin-in-dallas-n-c-announced-on-facebook-what-are-we-worth-week/700637 "2014-10-07T12:28:33Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\
**Post date:** [October 7, 2014, 12:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/owner-of-just-cookin-in-dallas-n-c-announced-on-facebook-what-are-we-worth-week/700637/1 "2014-10-07T12:28:33Z")

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I find this woman’s trust in her customers quite refreshing. I’m not surprised that some people have over paid. I’d tend to pay a little extra just to ensure that I didn’t under pay.

I do wonder about the sales tax. Usually its based on an estimate of sales. That’s going to vary in this case. But the register still knows the price charged for each meal and would do the right calculations. I guess even an under payment for a meal still gets charged sales tax. 😉 Hopefully that will satisfy the finance dept when she sends in her quarterly forms. I did them for several years. A major headache associated with a retail business.

> **[SEE IT: North Carolina diner hands over cash register to God, asks patrons to...](https://www.nydailynews.com/2014/10/07/see-it-north-carolina-diner-hands-over-cash-register-to-god-asks-patrons-to-pay-whatever-they-want/)**
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> A North Carolina diner owner put her faith in God when she set aside menu prices for one week and let patrons pay what they wanted. Dana Parris, the owner of Just Cookin in Dallas, N.C., announced …

> [@](#):
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> “People paying when they come to the register, we say, ‘What was it worth?’ Some people think we’re a little strange,” Parris told the Gazette. “There’s been a few people who got to eat that didn’t have the money and a lot of people have overpaid.”
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> Pennies from heaven? Hardly, Parris said. One patron was short on a drink and hot dog, but paid $20 for the next meal, she said.
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> “I think it’s great to see someone test their faith, putting everything on the line, showing a little bit of trust,” local Jerry Scruggs told the Gazette.

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**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\
**Post date:** [October 9, 2014, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/owner-of-just-cookin-in-dallas-n-c-announced-on-facebook-what-are-we-worth-week/700637/2 "2014-10-09T16:22:38Z")

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Neat story!!

Re sales tax, you’d think they’d just take the gross and subtract out the correct percentage for sales tax. If the local rate is 5%, divide the gross by 105, and multiply by 100 (to get the sales), or multiply by 5 (to get the tax). Doesn’t matter what the “rack rate” for that burger might be - if you normally charge 5 dollars but a loyal customer pays 10.50, your sale is 10 dollars and your tax is 50 cents.