Writer David Brooks shared a photo of his meal Wednesday night with a complaint: He spent $78 at Newark Airport.

The photo shows a burger, crinkle-cut fries, tomato, lettuce, ketchup packets and a beverage in a glass.

“This meal just cost me $78 at Newark Airport,” Brooks, 62, shared with his 251,000 followers on the social network formerly known as Twitter. “This is why Americans think the economy is terrible.”

Brooks, a conservative columnist at The New York Times, did not say where he purchased the food at Newark Liberty International Airport, home to restaurants like BurgerFi, Bar Left, Bar Right, Belgian Beer Café, Caps Beer Garden, Budweiser Brewhouse and more.

He also did not specify his order or the nature of the beverage in the glass.

But his dispatch caught fire shortly after he posted it, becoming something of a meme.

People immediately speculated about the drink, since it looked like it could well be liquor, which would of course run up a bigger bill than a soda.

Many assumed outright that Brooks had been drinking alcohol like whisky or whiskey, which is a pricy choice for airport refreshment, especially if it’s not just one drink. In that case, a huge chunk of the meal cost would of course be consumed by the … liquid … portion.

There’s also the matter of the type of burger it was — run-of-the-mill or one made from the much more expensive wagyu beef?

Later, on Thursday afternoon, 1911 Smoke House Barbeque, a Trenton, N.J. restaurant with an outpost at Terminal A in Newark Airport — Smokehouse BBQ — shared the mention of Brooks’ viral meal on Facebook.

“Looks like someone was knocking back some serious drinks,” the restaurant commented. “Bar tab was almost 80% and he’s complaining about the cost of his meal keep drinking buddy – we get paid off everything.”

The comment seemed to confirm chatter about Brooks’ post that had been appended to the original photo and message as “context” on X, where it became a meme.

“Based on the similar table, glass, chair, sheet and cut of fries, this is the Smokehouse Restaurant in Newark Airport Terminal A,” the note said, duplicating the wording of a post from Rebekah Jones, adding links she provided with reference photos to support the claim. “The burger and fries cost $17.”

The restaurant even started a special inspired by Brooks’ complaint. Its “D Brooks” special, which costs $17.78, includes a “super delicious burger with fries and a double shot of whiskey,” as advertised in a post on its Facebook page.

“Just added to the menu,” the announcement said. “We’re the topic of America right now!”

Some on social media noted that airport prices generally aren’t exactly known to be reasonable — this wasn’t Brooks’ supermarket cart.

Some started pairing the text of his lament with other photos.

Comedian Brent Terhune was among those who used a picture of the famously sad Fyre Fest meal offered to stranded attendees of the event in Styrofoam containers (loose cheese, bread, tomato and lettuce).

There were photos of gold-covered steaks from Salt Bae, bottles of Dom Pérignon, Lunchables and more in the mix.

Some posts featured assortments of liquor with the same sentiment.

Or, dinners that were not had at airports, and were consequently much less expensive.