Texas restaurant employee suspended after calling customer ‘fat gay’ on receipt

A restaurant employee in Houston, Texas has been suspended after a customer was branded a ‘fat gay’ on their receipt.

The customer, who does not wish to be named, spoke to local news outlet KTRK on Tuesday (June 25) after reading the words ‘to go dude with dreads fat gay’ on his receipt from Plush Daiquiri Bar & Grill.

The man said the “hurtful” comments left him “confused, then angry.”

Speaking of the server who wrote the description, he said: “I don’t even know her, she don’t know me. That’s like stereotyping, for her to not even know and say fat, gay and this and that.”

The restaurant apologised to the customer but said the comments do not reflect their business. They explained that the server just was trying to identify the customer who placed the order, and did not know the customer would be able to see it.

“It was just her way of describing him. It wasn’t nothing against him or nothing personal. It was just her way of referencing back who to deliver the food to,” said one of the owners, Marcus Barlow, who spoke to the angry customer to offer an apology.

Co-owner Leighton Dickson added: “We do no discrimination at Plush.” He said the server was very remorseful and had been “disciplined” with a three-day suspension.

The restaurant had only been open for a few months before the incident. The customer says he will not be returning.

“If anybody asked about it I would tell them, it’s a good restaurant. I have nothing bad to say about the restaurant. I just won’t go back, ” he said.

Last year another Texas restaurant fired an employee for using a homophobic slur to insult a gay couple. Earlier this month a Missouri restaurant made news after cancelling a lesbian couple’s reservation, while in Chicago a gay couple were kicked out of a restaurant just for hugging.

• TV
• May 11

All 13 seasons of Doctor Who ranked from worst to best