7 Times People Met Real-Life Karens Who Think They Own the World

Meet the real-life “Karen”: the personification of entitlement and demand that can transform an ordinary day into a high-stress situation for everyone involved. If you’ve yet to encounter one, consider yourself lucky.

Some people took to Reddit to share their “Karen” moments, and their experiences prove that dealing with a Karen is more than just an inconvenience; it’s a stark reminder of the need for understanding and compassion in our interactions. Let’s find out what they had to say.

Comments have been edited for grammar and clarity.

u/goodytwotoes: One time, Karen put her hair on her half-eaten plate of food and then caused drama, demanding that her meal be compensated and that she wanted to speak to the manager.

I went into the back of the restaurant, pulled out the orange hair with 3 inches of regrowth, and asked the Mexican guys in the kitchen, “HEY, DID ANY OF YOU BRING A WIG TO WORK TODAY?” They told me to f*** off.

I returned and told Karen that nobody on our staff had red hair with blonde roots (while staring directly at her disastrous dye job), but the manager said we would be HAPPY to buy dessert for the whole table to make up for this strange phenomenon.

The four other people at the table were mortified and declined dessert. She ordered cheesecake, and they all sat there and glared at her while she devoured it.

u/laminte: I used to work retail, so I have come across my fair share of Karens. There is a huge reason why I went back to school and no longer worked as a cashier. Anyway, one day, while manning the registers with a few other coworkers, I had a massive nosebleed right as I was finishing a transaction.

I grabbed a tissue and quickly excused myself to run to the restroom to get it to stop bleeding; this meant that I couldn’t say goodbye to Karen and give the little spiel about how I was so grateful for her shopping with us.

Anyway, after about ten minutes, I finally got my nose under control and returned to the registers. I saw her waiting to the side with a scowl on her face, arms crossed over her chest, the whole nine yards.

She proceeded to scold me about how rude I was for not saying goodbye. After apologizing and explaining that I had an unexpected nosebleed, she told me I should have tried holding it in and that the customer would come first. I was so shocked at how insensitive that woman was.

u/Telcontar86: A little late, but here it goes. Years ago, I worked as a back driver at a fast food joint, and older Karen came driving in to give her order.

This location doesn’t have a speaker due to neighborhood ordnance, so all the orders in the drive-through are taken face to face. She ordered a double cheeseburger without onions, and I rang it in, completed her order, and sent her on her way.

About five minutes after picking up her food, she returns through the drive-through and says, “They put onions on my burger.” I apologize, then print her a duplicate receipt to confirm to her and myself that I rang it in without onions.

I then tell her that if she goes up to the front window and tells the manager who’s working up front, they’ll replace the burger for free if it is made correctly, but that I can’t do anything about it back here.

She does so, and they give her a brand-new burger and an apology. I thought that was the end of the situation, but boy was I wrong. Karen called the state government on me by name, demanding I be fired.

If I recall correctly, I was told she called the food safety department, the Chamber of Commerce, and the governor’s office. The franchise owner called to say that it turned out that Karen is allergic to onions.

She straight up accused me of deliberately ringing her sandwich in the wrong and trying to poison her, then printing up a false, duplicate receipt of her order to make her look like a liar (keep in mind that I read the receipt back to her and she confirmed it was her order).

I didn’t get along with the manager who was working at the time, but even he was like, “That’s complete bullsh**; it wasn’t even his mistake; it was the kitchen’s, and we fixed it for her.”

The franchise owner was told by whichever branch of the state government called them that Karen had demanded that I be fired. I wasn’t. I wasn’t even written up, but I did stop wearing my name tag at work when I could get away with it.

u/gotteemboi: I worked at a grocery store, and a coworker put a 99¢ sticker on my shirt. We were two of five employees, so we were all good friends. Everything is funny when you gotta pass the time on a shift, so I just left it there.

Some woman came through my line and asked me why I had a sticker on my shirt, and I just kinda laughed it off. She asked if I thought it was funny, and I said, “Not really, but sorta.” She asked if my coworker put it there, to which I responded yes.

She told me she would speak to the store owner because it was “disrespectful” to behave that way at work. She told me to call my manager, and I did, but he was a super cool guy and knew this lady was an idiot.

She talked to the store owner and my manager about firing me, to no avail. She accomplished nothing and looked like a fool in the long run.

u/Wafflesattiffanies: The mother of a girl I went to school with comes into the shop where I work at 5.58 p.m. (we close at six). The lights are half off, the front door is closed, and the roller door is half down.

She goes, “Hi *my name*! I’m just running in to grab a few things!” Before I tell her not to, she has already gone into the aisles. When my manager notices this, he says, “What are you doing? We have to be done by six!”

He then goes to find her; she’s already got a basket full of things going. “Where are the capsicums? Can I just grab…?” she asks. Remember, this is a fruit shop – half the items come off the shelves and into the cool room.

My manager is the nicest guy ever and agrees to ring up her items as long as she pays the card as the cash is all packed into the safe. “No, that’s ridiculous. I only have cash! Hun, can you tell him I only have cash?” she says.

So I told her the same thing, that we can’t access the cash once the safe is closed for the day. “Oh, well, can you just pay for it on your card, and I’ll get my daughter to pay you back?”

I tell her that I can’t do that, and she starts shouting about how unprofessional we are, that the shop is awful because half the items are gone (WE WERE CLOSED), and that she’s “never coming back!” (thank God).

She avoids me at school events now, and I honestly feel sorry for her daughter; the stories I hear about this woman are shocking. The icing on the cake? Her name is actually Karen.

u/Lovebuttonmyface: I was working retail one afternoon, and here comes Karen with a return. At first glance, it’s no big deal; she was just coming in to return a shirt. She walked up to the register, handed me the receipt to start processing, and we exchanged pleasant greetings.

I take the shirt out of the bag to examine it, and it is beyond disgusting. There were brown sweat stains from the pits to the stomach to the shoulder. It looked like whoever wore it rolled in mud or some nonsense.

I told Karen that I could not return the product because it had been used and that only unused and resellable items could be returned. Karen, through a fit, started screaming at me and accusing me of calling her a liar and whatnot. I hold up the shirt, point to the brown pit stains, and say, “Karen, can’t you see this stain?”

Oh man, did that make it worse? She continues making a huge scene and demands to see the manager. News flash, Karen. I am the manager and am not budging. After 20 minutes of complaining, she finally left, saying she would be complaining to corporate and getting me fired.

Fast forward a few days later, a guy walks into the store, finds the first store associate he can, and immediately asks for me by name. Uh-oh, here we go again. Anyway, my associate brought the guy over to where I was standing, and I politely greeted him.

The guy spent the next ten minutes apologizing for his crazy wife Karen verbally abusing my staff and me a few days prior. Apparently, the guy went to the beach and did some CrossFit / HIT training class IN THE SAND. Karen knows all of this; she was in the class with him!

The guy did not like the shirt for some reason, and Karen thought she could pull a fast one on us by making a scene. Think again, Karen.

u/[deleted]: So there I was at McDonald’s with my kiddo, queuing up for some fries, when this scene unfolded.

This woman, a total Karen, storms in, cutting in line and announcing, “I have more important things to do than wait with you idiots.” We’re all taken aback, but before anyone can respond, this elderly security guard steps up.

He says, in the kindest tone, “Ma’am, there’s no need to be rude. Please wait your turn, or you might have to leave.”

But Karen, oh she loses it, yelling, “SHUT YOUR MOUTH, OLD TRASH! MOVE!” and even spits at him.

We’re all shocked, but the guard just wipes his face and says, “I really didn’t want to escalate this, but you leave me no choice.”

Next thing, he’s guiding Karen to a corner. We’re all whispering, wondering what he’s about to do. But instead of what you’d expect, he starts talking to her calmly. And get this, ten minutes later, Karen is crying and apologizing to him!

Turns out, this guard wasn’t just any guard. He used to be a therapist specializing in anger management.

He managed to break through to her right there, with everyone watching. He said something like, “We all have our bad days, but it’s how we handle them that defines us.”

Karen ended up leaving quietly, and the guard got a round of applause. Never thought I’d see something like that in a McDonald’s!

After reading about these seven encounters with real-life Karens, it’s clear that a little patience and kindness can go a long way. Remember, the next time you meet a Karen, a calm and understanding approach might just turn a tense situation into a peaceful one.

Have you ever encountered a Karen? We’d love to hear your experiences!