A TikToker said she walked out on a date who was too cheap to spend $3 on cheese for his burger. That wasn't the whole story.

• A TikToker's video about a failed first date went hugely viral and divided opinion.
• She later said her story about walking out on the date was fake in an interview with NBC News.

A TikToker divided viewers after sharing a story about a date gone wrong that went hugely viral before eventually backtracking and saying she made the whole polarizing scenario up.

On March 10, New-York-based Dafna Diamant posted a TikTok saying she had just walked out on a dinner date after he ordered a burger but declined to add cheese after being told it would cost an additional $3.

She said her date made a point about how "you have to pay extra for everything these days," to which she responded, "Yeah, it's New York City." After she finished her meal, the TikToker said she told her date she was going to the restroom, but found the waitress instead.

"I just paid the bill and walked out of the restaurant," she said, adding she texted her date to let him know he should have gotten the cheese, and blocked him.

Diamant, who has 6,158 followers and whose videos usually focus on her outfits and experience as a fashion intern living in New York City, went hugely viral with her dating story. The upload received over 8.4 million views and 63,500 comments — and divided those following along.

Viewers initially criticized Diamant's take

The vast majority of comments appeared to side with the "Cheese Man," as he was dubbed by one popular comment. "$3 for a slice of cheese is criminal!!" read one comment which received 50,000 likes. "Is this why I'm single? Bc I ain't paying $3 for cheese either," read another.

Others took issue with the way the TikToker handled the situation and said the date was better off without her. "That's an awful way to treat someone," a viewer wrote. "Phew. The guy lucked out! That was close," read another comment.

In a video posted on March 12, which received over 900,000 views, Diamant addressed some of the criticism she'd received.

She told viewers they "really need to take it easy" as she said some people were going through all of her videos commenting that she was ugly, doesn't deserve love, and that she should kill herself, and asked why they were "taking this stupid video so seriously." She also said both she and the man in question were "having a laugh about it."

Several men have come forward claiming to be the "Cheese Man," including one who received over 12 million views on his original video suggesting he was the person who declined the $3 cheese.

But Diamant has said that none of them are actually her suitor.

"Whoever you see posting saying he's the guy, he got a free burger, cheese, whatever, he's lying," she said. The real "Cheese Man" isn't actually on social media, she said.

However, some comments pointed out a contradiction in the video when she said the man she went on the date with "doesn't even know about this stupid story." One commenter wrote, "What happened to talking to him about it and him laughing about it?"

When pressed, Diamant backtracked, saying the story was mostly fake

The whole saga took a further twist that same day, when NBC News published an article that featured an interview with Diamant. She once again said the date really happened, but changed her story somewhat, saying she didn't walk out or block him.

She said she and her date had overheard a man at a different table decline extra cheese for $3, and it became a topic of conversation — they both agreed the reaction to the extra charge would be upsetting on a first date, and that Diamant would make a TikTok about it.

"It's not about the cheese. It's about going to a restaurant and enjoying a good time with your date," Diamant told the outlet.

Viewers still aren't sure what to believe

On March 15, Diamant posted a video of the NBC News article, while a popular TikTok sound could be heard in the background saying, "You know what it never was, that serious. It was never that serious. Quite frankly, will never be that serious."

Commenters were swift to respond. Many suggested Diamant was backtracking.

"Oh yeah, the classic 'I was just kidding'" read one comment, while another wrote the "story has got more holes than Swiss cheese."

The same day, Diamant posted a follow-up TikTok with an on-screen caption that read, "Day in my life as being hated online," in which she could be seen looking at her phone alongside a further on-screen caption that read, "Reading some hateful comments."

"If I wasn't a person with enough self-assurance, some of these comments can really drive someone to do crazy things. So I hope people will find something better to do than comment bad things on somebody's videos and pictures," Diamant told NBC News.

The video, which received 182,000 views, cut to Diamant who appeared to take the subway alongside the caption, "no one hates me here?" before it ended with a final caption that read, "nobody cares LOL the internet is amazing."

Diamant did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.

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