Heated Debate After Café Enforces “You Break It, You Pay For It” Policy On Mom With 3-Year-Old

A New Jersey mother claimed that she was held against her will at a café after her 3-year-old daughter accidentally broke a marble table worth nearly $1,600.

Kathy Denman said she felt “completely humiliated and embarrassed” after the incident and was told that she couldn’t leave unless she handed over her driver’s license and credit card information.

In a viral video, Kathy explained that her daughter, Allie, knocked over the table at the Hazelnut Café in Lavallette while waiting for her to pay for their coffee and ice cream.

She recalled hearing a “loud bang” at the register and turning to see the table broken into “a bunch of pieces.”

Woman with long blonde hair in a grey sweater sitting on a couch, related to 3YO breaking $1,600 table at café incident.

A New Jersey mother called out the owners and staff of a café for their reaction to her daughter breaking an expensive table

Image credits: beautihut

@beautihut Broken table: $1600 – shame, embarrassment, and mean girls robbing your dignity: priceless. I know I wasn’t put together and dolled up, but couldn’t you have been just a bit kind? #meangirls#badbusiness#embarrassing#kidsoftiktok#momsoftiktok#needadvice#venting#rant#momlife#fyp♬ original sound – Beautihut

No one was injured, but Kathy said her daughter was “frozen and scared and nervous,” adding that “everybody’s reaction definitely didn’t help.”

She accused the employees at Hazelnut Café of having “mean girl vibes” and showing no concern for her daughter’s well-being. Additionally, she claimed that she offered to pay for the damages.

Kathy Denman claimed she was told she couldn’t leave until she handed over her credit card information

Woman explains café policy after 3YO breaks $1,600 table, discussing payment and credit card dispute.

Image credits: beautihut

Woman in a hoodie expressing distress about a 3YO breaking $1,600 table at café and a credit card dispute.

Image credits: beautihut

“I talked to the people there and said, ‘Oh my god, I’m so so sorry. What could I do to make this right?”

She said she cried after the incident and alleged that she was held at the café for 20 minutes.

Kathy said her 3-year-old was left “frozen and scared” after the accident

Woman explaining experience of anxiety after 3YO breaks $1,600 café table while mom discusses credit card situation.

Image credits: beautihut

@beautihut Replying to @Hannah Ida ♬ Reflection on Peace – Adauto Assis

The mom said the owner kept repeating, “Our policy is: You break it, you pay for it.’”

She added that she was also asked to provide an email address and her and her husband’s phone numbers.

“I was so surprised because not one time on the phone did [the owner] ask if Allie was okay or if anybody else got hurt.

“All the owner kept repeating was, ‘We have everything on video.’”

Woman explains how 3YO broke $1,600 café table and mom claims they were held until credit card was handed over.

Image credits: beautihut

@beautihut Replying to @33N3R ♬ original sound – Beautihut

The Hazelnut Café is part of Hazel Boutique, a clothing and home decor brand with four locations in New Jersey, as per NJ Advance Media. It is owned by sisters Kimberly and Jenna Campfield.

In a statement to the outlet, the owners expressed that they were “extremely grateful” that everyone at the café was safe.

They said they have since called Kathy “to express our concern, offer our support, and share our direct contact information should she need anything.”

However, the sisters denied holding the mom against her will, as she claimed in her video.

The console table is listed on Anthropology’s website for $1,598

Broken $1,600 marble table at café with detached pieces on top and cushioned seating in the background

Image credits: beautihut

“We also want to be completely transparent: we would never hold anyone against their will. 

“The mother was not charged for the damaged table, even after asking how she could make it right, given that the table broke. We requested her contact information for insurance purposes.”

It’s not clear if Kathy actually handed over her credit card information.

Outdoor café seating under striped umbrellas at Saltys with a clear blue sky and Hazel Boutique sign above.

Image credits: thehazelnutcafe

On Thursday (August 14), the mother posteda written statement on TikTok explaining that the owners had contacted her to apologize “for how our family was treated.”

The Pompton Plains resident explained that her family had accepted the apology and wanted “to move forward peacefully.”

“We have accepted their apology and are satisfied,” she wrote.

In a statement, Hazelnut Café denied holding the mother against her will

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by The Hazelnut Café (@thehazelnutcafe)

After her initial video went viral, amassing 10 million views, internet sleuths found the table listed on Anthropology’s website for $1,598.

The listing describes it as being made of pure marble and weighing 109.25 lbs (approx. 50 kg).

The Campfield sisters stated that they have decided to remove “all tables from our locations to eliminate any risk of a similar incident.”

In other news about children breaking expensive items, a 5-year-old Kansas boy knocked over an art sculpture on display at a local community center in 2018.

The glass mosaic sculpture, called Aphrodite di Kansas City, was valued at $132,000.

Kathy wrote that her family has accepted the café’s apology and wishes to “move forward peacefully”

Statement explaining a 3-year-old broke a $1,600 table at a café and the mom’s experience with payment demands.

Image credits: beautihut

“No one would ever to expect that to come into a place that kids are invited and have to worry about a $132,000 dollar piece of art falling on their child,” said the boy’s mom, Sarah Goodman, who speculated that her son had tried to “hug” the art piece.

security camera footage from the hazelnut cafe and boutique incident #hazenutcafe#hazelnutboutique#table#newjersey#foryoupic.twitter.com/6NMw9sOAFd

— IvanGtv (@ivangtv_) August 15, 2025

The city received a check for $107,000 from the insurance company of the boy’s family, the Kansas City Star reported. That check reimbursed the city for all but the $25,000 deductible in the city’s insurance policy.

Social media users debated who was responsible for the incident

User comment about a 3-year-old breaking a $1,600 table at a café and the mother’s responsibility to pay for it.

Facebook comment from a top fan Sharon Giunta questioning a three-year-old breaking a marble table and payment responsibility.

Facebook comment about a child breaking a $1,600 café table and discussion on credit card payment dispute.

Facebook comment saying I mean....watch your kids, related to 3YO breaking $1,600 table at café incident.

Screenshot of a social media comment saying You break it, you buy it about a 3YO breaking $1,600 table at café.

Screenshot of a social media comment about a 3-year-old breaking a $1,600 café table with her foot.

Comment by Brook Graves questioning how a 3-year-old girl could topple a $1,600 marble table with one kick.

Facebook comment by Linda Savory questioning insurance coverage for a broken $1,600 table incident at a café.

Screenshot of a social media comment questioning the use of a console table in a café after a $1,600 table incident.

Comment about a child breaking a $1,600 table at a café, with concern over kids and accidents in a family setting.

Comment questioning how a 3-year-old could break a heavy marble table, highlighting the $1,600 table incident at café.

Comment discussing disbelief over how a 3-year-old could break a $1,600 café table by kicking it.

Comment about insurance issue and kidnapping, posted by Lando Deltoro with 73 likes, laughing and shocked reactions.

Comment by Christopher Dunn discussing skill needed to install marble counters and a child's ability to snap it by crawling on it.

Facebook comment discussing responsibility for breaking a table at a café involving a 3YO and credit card claim.

Facebook comment by Matthew Allen stating he will call the cops and see them in court after $1,600 café table break.

Comment on unstable café table prone to being knocked over, raising concerns about child safety and responsibility for damage.

Comment text from Grace Coppa Macchioni discussing a broken $1,600 café table and the café owner’s fault.

Comment about 3YO breaking $1,600 café table and mom handing over credit card amid safety concerns.

Comment from Shanelle Shizuko discussing a 3-year-old breaking a $1,600 table at a café and potential legal risks.

Poll Question

Total votes ·

Thanks! Check out the results:

Total votes ·

Newsletter

Subscribe to Access
Exclusive Polls

Subscribe

By entering your email and clicking Subscribe, you're agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. You are also agreeing to our Privacy Policy.

Thank you! You've successfully subscribed to newsletters!

Anyone can write on Bored Panda. Start writing!

Follow Bored Panda on Google News!

Follow us on Flipboard.com/@boredpanda!