Tiktok Influencer Pays Six Figures For Trump's Memecoin Gala Dinner, Gets 'Trash' Food And Watches President's Marine One Depart Within Minutes

TikTok prankster Nicholas Pinto spent more than $360,000 worth of President Donald Trump's Official Trump TRUMP/USD memecoin for what promoters billed as an "unforgettable Gala DINNER." What he got instead, he says, was "Walmart steak," a seat far from the President and a lingering appetite for real food.

What Happened: Guests arrived at Trump National Golf Club last Thursday after plowing a collective $148 million into the joke cryptocurrency, a contest that guaranteed the top 220 wallet holders an invitation and promised the first 25 a VIP reception.

The gold-leaf menu promised a "Trump organic field-green salad" followed by an "entrée duet" of filet mignon and pan-seared halibut. But Pinto texted Fortune midway through the meal that the sliced beef was "trash" and that "everyone at my table was saying the food was some of the worst food that they ever had."

"The only good thing was bread and butter," he later told WIRED.

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Trump himself landed by Marine One, spoke for roughly 20 minutes, and left in a golf cart before most diners could approach him. "Pretty much like b******t," Pinto said of the speech.

Crypto-analysis firm Inca Digital says buyers pumped in $148 million after the dinner was announced, helping the token spike to an $8.8 billion market cap before sliding to about $2.8 billion. High-rolling attendees included Chinese-born billionaire Justin Sun, who shelled out roughly $18 million in tokens and walked away with a $100,000 Trump-branded tourbillon watch, according to Reuters.

Why It Matters: Pinto, who ranks No. 72 on the TRUMP leaderboard under the alias "rich," spray-painted his Mercedes G-Wagon with the token's ticker but opted to drive his 2023 Lamborghini to the dinner. "I really would love to meet Elon Musk," he said beforehand, only to leave hungry and Musk-less, hunting late-night snacks with his dad.

The gala comes as Trump's crypto ventures face growing scrutiny. Senators grilled SEC Chair Paul Atkins about Justin Sun's legal troubles the same week TRUMP jumped 12% ahead of the dinner. For Pinto, however, the ROI on his six-figure crypto gamble boiled down to a cold steak and a missed selfie.

Price Action: At the time of writing, TRUMP was exchanging hands at $12.78, up 1.51% in the last 24 hours, according to data from Benzinga Pro.