DC food workers pledge to make Trump officials unwelcome, echoing confrontations in first term
As the Trump team prepares to settle into Washington, D.C. for a second term, the city’s restaurants are once again becoming a battleground for politics. Food workers inside the Beltway are gearing up to refuse service and cause inconveniences for members of the incoming administration. This is not the first time that the Trump administration and its allies have faced harassment while dining out in the nation’s capital.
In September 2018, Senator Ted Cruz and his wife were harassed at Fiola, an upscale Italian restaurant in D.C. Protesters confronted them over Cruz’s support for then-Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh during his contentious confirmation hearings. Videos of the incident showed demonstrators shouting at the couple and chanting, “We believe survivors.” Cruz and his wife eventually left the restaurant due to the altercation.
This incident was just one in a series of confrontations involving Trump administration officials and allies during the summer of 2018. Secretary of Homeland Security at the time, Kirstjen Nielsen, was also confronted by protesters at MXDC Cocina Mexicana over the administration’s family separation policy at the U.S.-Mexico border. Protesters chanted “Shame!” and called her a “villain,” forcing her to leave the restaurant.
Senior Trump adviser Stephen Miller recounted an incident where he was heckled while picking up a sushi order from a restaurant near his apartment. The bartender followed him outside, gave him a double middle finger, and Miller threw away the sushi out of fear that it had been tampered with.
The Red Hen restaurant in Lexington, Virginia made headlines in June 2018 when the owner asked then-White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders to leave, citing opposition to the administration’s immigration policies.
Industry veterans, bartenders, and servers in D.C. are expressing their resistance to Republican figures in the city as a matter of conscience. Some believe that it is inevitable given the progressive nature of the city.
While some hospitality workers plan to protest the incoming administration while on the job, not everyone shares the same sentiment. A bartender named Joseph mentioned that he was disappointed by the election results but was looking forward to higher tips with more Republicans in Washington.
As the political landscape continues to evolve in Washington, D.C., it is clear that restaurants in the area will not be free from political tensions anytime soon. The city’s food workers are prepared to make their voices heard and stand up for their beliefs, even if it means causing disruptions for members of the incoming administration.
