MEAWW.COM / NEWS / HUMAN INTEREST

San Fransisco restaurant REFUSES to serve 3 on-duty cops, flooded with 1-star reviews

A San Fransisco restaurant received negative reviews on Yelp and Google after it asked three armed officers to leave the premises

A restaurant in San Fransisco asked three uniformed officers to leave their premises because they were carrying guns. However, it needs to be noted the officers were on duty. The restaurant's justification resulted in tons of negative reviews online leading to an apology from the restaurant staff. When inquired, the staff explained they only asked the officers to leave as the presence of their guns made the staff uncomfortable.

Named Hilda and Jesse, this restaurant is a brunch spot located in the North Beach area of San Fransisco. This incident occurred on Friday, December 3, Rachel Sillcocks sent out an official statement that expressed an apology and their point of view. This is not the first time restaurants have stirred backlash with their policies. In October, TikToker @trinitycomedy claimed a Texas restaurant segregated Black and White people. In September, a Texas restaurant sent a couple out for wearing masks to protect immunocompromised baby. In a total opposite, Sally Rechelle Lewis, Kaeita Nkeenge Rankin and Tyonnie Keshay Rankin from Texas allegedly punched and struck the hostess at Carmine's and broke her necklace after she asked them for proof of vaccination.

READ MORE

Pacific Heights: San Fran neighborhood slammed after Black delivery man harassed

Asian man, 80, screams for help in vain as he’s knocked to ground by San Francisco teens and robbed in video

Rachel Sillcocks and Kristina Liegas are co-owners of the San Fransisco eatery 'Hilda and Jesse'. Sillocks is also the chef at this place that celebrates the food of Latvia. The co-owners first met each other when they worked alongside at Range Restaurant. Sillocks was the executive chef at Range. She has also worked at other popular joints and restaurants in the Bay Area.

In this statement, Sillcocks said that Hilda and Jesse is a safe space for all individuals. She added that the presence of weapons made some of the staff uncomfortable and potentially a few of the customers too. Further, she explained that the staff would be more than happy to serve police officers when they are off duty and without weapons. To end the note she added, "We're sorry that the decision upset you. We understand your perspective and we hope you'll consider ours."

The statement read, "We respect the San Francisco Police Department and are grateful for the work they do. We welcome them into the restaurant when they are off-duty, out of uniform and without their weapons." 

Customers that dine in this restaurant were definitely not happy with this behavior of the staff. This dissatisfaction resulted in tons of negative reviews on Yelp, Google, Twitter, and other social media platforms. Hilda and Jesse have a 1.4 star rating on Google and on Yelp it has over 900 negative reviews. Even on Twitter, the backlash is straight-up hilarious. Here are some of the best ones!

A follower of this incident blatantly said that in case the restaurant was being robbed, the staff, instead of calling cops, would just explain to the robbers that their restaurant is a safe space and they must leave.  A resident who travels frequently between the UK and the US explained how police officials in different regions may or may not feel the need to carry weapons on them, based on the circumstances. 

Another social media user was frankly surprised at why the apology letter spoke about the LGBT community when the case and backlash were completely unrelated. 

Following are some supremely hilarious reviews on Yelp for Hilda and Jesse. Due to the sudden increase in attention and review this restaurant has been getting, Yelp has currently paused adding new reviews. This review page has also deleted certain reviews that violate the terms of service.