San Mateo Restaurant Owner Apologizes For 'MAGA' Hat Ban
SAN MATEO (CBS SF) – A restaurant owner in San Mateo has apologized after saying he would ban patrons who wear "Make America Great Again" hats to his establishment.
Kenji Lopez-Alt, chef and partner at Wursthall Restaurant and Bierhaus, said in a statement posted Friday, "Making a public statement without taking my team's thoughts into consideration was disrespectful and reckless. My goal at Wursthall was for it to be a restaurant where all employees and staff are treated with respect and trust, and by making that public statement without your consent, I failed at that goal."
"Wursthall will continue, as it always has, to serve all customer (sic) regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual preference, gender orientation, disability, or political opinion — so long as they leave hate, anger, and violence outside of the doors of our restaurant," the chef went on to say.
On Sunday, Lopez-Alt sent out a tweet declaring that he would not serve anyone who comes into his place wearing the caps popularized by President Donald Trump.
"It hasn't happened yet, but if you come to my restaurant wearing a MAGA cap, you aren't getting served. Same as if you come in wearing a swastika, white hood, or any other symbol of intolerance and hate," Lopez-Alt said in the tweet.
Lopez-Alt's tweet was later deleted, but not before causing a backlash online. The restaurant's Facebook and Yelp pages were bombarded with negative comments, which caused the social media sites to shut down its comments section.
The chef was not at the restaurant Thursday, and none of the workers on duty wanted to comment on the story.