A celebrity chef has banned vegans from his restaurant in Perth, Australia, sparking backlash from those who don't eat animals or their byproducts.
John Mountain, who gained notoriety after appearing on BBC’s “Great British Menu,” announced on social media earlier this week that vegans would no longer be welcome at Fyre, his restaurant operating in the capital of Western Australia.
“Sadly All Vegans are now banned from FYRE (for mental health reasons). We thank you for your understanding,” his post read. He followed up with a screenshot of the post, captioned “Yep. I’m done. #vegan #not #pleasegoelsewhere #veganfreezone #nomorevegans.”
Mountain told Australian news outlets that his decision came after an onslaught of negative reviews online sparked by one vegan customer complaining about her experience with his eatery. He alleged that the woman had contacted him weeks prior to coming to the restaurant to ask about accommodations for her vegan diet, and that he'd promised her that there would be a dish for her. On the day she showed up, however, Mountain admitted that he forgot about his promise due to his preoccupation with a “massive” private party.
“A young girl reached out to me and said she was coming to the restaurant… and asked if there were vegan options,” he said. “It was my only shortfall… I said I would accommodate her, I said we had gnocchi, vegetables… and that was that.”
The woman posted her complaints online and triggered a firestorm of angry vegans blasting Mountain's restaurant. The situation was enough to make the restauranteur boot non-meat-eating people from his establishment entirely.
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Since banning vegans at the restaurant, there has been an outpouring of backlash from vegans online, but Mountain told The Project that business is booming as other community members come out to support him.
“Things have worked out ridiculously well…Usually Wednesday night I do half a dozen people…I’ve got 35 booked for dinner, so we’re gonna get smashed. Thank you so much for you, vegans. I can go buy a new farm now and look after my animals beautifully,” he quipped on the show.
Notorious vegan activist Tash Peterson spoke out against Mountain, saying the ban was designed to “discriminate” against people.
“This chef is clearly upset by a valid complaint and then to discriminate an entire group of people, I don’t see it any different to banning Muslims or women from a restaurant,” Peterson told 7News.
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