Who is Brittany Anderson? Christian group says 'we won't be silenced' as TV chef's restaurant refuses to serve
RICHMOND, VIRGINIA: A former ‘Top Chef’ contestant, Brittanny Anderson, has come under fire after her Virginia restaurant allegedly canceled reservations made by The Family Foundation, a conservative Christian group, on November 30. The president of the Christian group, Victoria Cobb, has hit back at the cancelation and said, “Our witness will not be diminished, and we will not be silenced. We will speak out when we see this type of religious discrimination occurring in Virginia.”
On December 1, Cobb wrote on the group's official website via a blog post named 'We've Been Canceled! Again,' "Last night, our team and supporters got that firsthand experience when Metzger’s Bar and Butchery in Richmond, VA refused to service our pre-reserved event, leaving us scrambling just moments before. For weeks, we had planned a gathering of supporters and interested people in a private room to fellowship and receive an update on our work. About an hour and a half before the event was set to take place, one of the restaurant’s owners called our team to cancel the event. As our VP of Operations explained that guests were arriving at their restaurant shortly, she asked for an explanation. Sure enough, an employee looked up our organization, and their wait staff refused to serve us."
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"Welcome to the 21st century, where people who likely consider themselves as 'progressives' attempt to recreate an environment from the 1950s and early 60s," Cobb continued as she referenced moments from the Civil Rights movement.
Anderson's restaurant issued a statement on their Instagram in regard to the cancelation and said, "Metzger Bar and Butchery has always prided itself on being an inclusive environment for people to dine in. In eight years of service, we have rarely refused service to anyone who wished to dine with us. Recently we refused service to a group that had booked an event with us after the owners of the Metzger found out it was a group of donors to a political organization that seeks to deprive women and LGBTQ+ persons of their basic human rights in Virginia. We have always refused service to anyone for making our staff uncomfortable or unsafe, and this was the driving force behind our decision. Many of our staff are women and/or members of the LGBTQ+ community of it. All of our staff are people with rights who deserve dignity and a safe work environment. We respect our staff’s established rights as humans and strive to create a work environment where they can do their jobs with dignity, comfort and safety.”
Who is Brittany Anderson?
Known for her shows, 'Top Chef' and 'Chopped', Anderson lives with her husband, Kjell and their dog and two cats. She attended the French Culinary Institute in New York City and in 2014, she opened Metzger which serves German-influenced dishes with seasonal and sustainable ingredients. She is a two-time James Beard Award semifinalist for the Best Chef Mid-Atlantic, states BravoTV.