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'Straight up racism': Influencer accuses NY restaurant of having separate section for Asian diners

TikToker @rokug4n, who goes by Annie, criticized the upscale restaurant One if by Land, Two if by Sea for its alleged discriminatory actions

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: One of the most romantic restaurants in New York City is being criticized for allegedly discriminating against its Asian customers. TikToker @rokug4n, who goes by Annie, criticized the upscale restaurant One if by Land, Two if by Sea for its alleged discriminatory actions, including putting Asian customers on the second level of the establishment and isolating them from other customers on the first. She claimed in a video, “Let's cut to the chase: One if by Land, Two if by Sea racially discriminates against non-White people, particularly Asians.” 

Annie, who is an Asian herself, recalled being the only diners while she and her boyfriend were eating on a recent evening on the second level of the restaurant, which she claims offers a dull atmosphere contrasted to the first floor's mosaic-covered walls sparkling with natural light. She claimed in her TikTok clip, “I want to preface by saying, I have no issue dining with other Asian people. I don’t care. What I I do care about, and have an issue with, is people of color being separated from White people by White people in higher-end establishments.” 

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The restaurant meanwhile was listed as one of the most romantic restaurants in New York City by Architectural Digest. Annie flashed a screenshot of the carriage house dining room's first floor, which she had downloaded from Yelp that appeared to depict a predominantly White crowd. “Because so many foodies are Asian and so many people have been hyping up this restaurant on TikTok and social media and none of the reviews of people being racially discriminatory against are like being brought to light — so many Asian foodies are paying hundreds of dollars to this restaurant and getting racially discriminated against,” she remarked. 

She then looked back at earlier Yelp reviews that criticized the eatery over similar claims. Despite making a reservation for a table on the ground floor, one reviewer described having to wait for 40 minutes with a buddy before getting seated upstairs. Similarly, another Asian customer revealed that other customers were given priority during their visit last year, the waiters ignored them, and the restaurant's captain was arrogant. Another Yelp reviewer wrote in 2017 that she was placed in an area of the restaurant that was surrounded by Asian diners, while another section was filled with White diners. 

Many Reddit users reacted to the TikToker's claim while slamming the restaurant as one person wrote, “Not even accused. Straight up racism, but I’m not surprised considering how the north loves segregating race ironically.” “Never knew this was a thing. I wonder if there are many more restaurants that are guilty of this but have gotten away with it. Closet racism at its finest,” another user remarked. Meanwhile, on her TikTok, Annie highlighted in her conclusion, "This restaurant has been doing this for seven years." Annie then showed a video she recorded at One if by Land, Two if by Sea's second floor from the night she and her boyfriend dined there to prove her argument at the end of the TikTok. The video shows a room filled with what appears to be only Asian customers.