Allegations of anti-veganism have caused one Sydney restaurant to hit back, causing a stir online from diners and commentators.
The Blue Door, an 18 seat fine dining restaurant, recently highlighted its inability to cater for vegan diets, stating that making concessions to a dish would take away from the perceived experience of that dish or result in food waste. The result was a debate on anti-veganism claims that its owners didn't want.
One social media user took to Reddit to voice their opposition to this move.
“Anti-veganism at The Blue Door, Sydney,” the poster wrote, alongside the image.
“I was supposed to go to an event at this place until I was told they could not/would not cater for me as a vegan. Why are so many high-end chefs like this?”
More than 100 comments have now led to a debate on whether or not The Blue Door restaurant was in the right or wrong. Some have said that it was an understandable stance that the restaurant took, while others have disagreed.
Some online users have called it “embarrassing” and that the restaurant should “employ better chefs”.
“Chefs who rely on animal products are so insecure,” one comment said.
Owners Dan and Angelica said the allegations against the restaurant were completely unjustified.
“Bullying a venue (or doing fake one-star google reviews) because they simply don’t provide a service for you is unfair, and quite frankly, slandering a business, causing them to lose revenue on unfounded, unprovoked accusations, causing mental anguish to our small team is simply not fair,” the couple shared in a joint statement.
“We are genuinely saddened by the comments on this post and whilst we appreciate the people who understand our restaurant and are sticking up for us, we just don’t want the negative energy.”
The owners added that being able to curate a menu with more than 15 dishes for one person was not a feasible option, and its kitchen team only consists of two chefs.
While there is still a debate online about the issue, The Blue Door Restaurant’s owners said they are just a small business choosing to operate how it wants to.
“We have the right to serve whatever and whoever we wish without vilification. There’s no difference between persecuting us for our belief system and spreading hate on the internet, to spreading hate against a religious group or any sort of cultural background.”
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