Several restaurant workers in Washington, D.C. have indicated they plan to refuse service to certain Trump officials or create an uncomfortable dining environment for them. These service industry employees shared their intentions while speaking with the Washingtonian. “You expect the masses to just ignore RFK eating at Le Diplomate on a Sunday morning after a few mimosas and not to throw a drink in his face?” Zac Hoffman, a D.C. restaurant veteran and current manager at the National Democratic Club, told the outlet. He is reportedly worried about possible safety risks for both Team Trump members and restaurant staff, as well as unaffiliated diners.
“This person theoretically has the power to take away your rights, but I have the power to make you wait 20 minutes to get your entrée,” a fine-dining bartender said of potentially serving members of Trump’s staff — on condition of anonymity. “There’s a lot of opportunities for us as workers to feel like we’re taking our power back, while not necessarily ruining someone’s life. Giving them a subtle inconvenience feels like a little bit of a win for us.” The bartender stated she would resign if management disapproved of her methods.
“There is power in making it known that you’re not comfortable with a situation, and it doesn’t necessarily have to be this big dramatic show,” she told the outlet. “It’s just little bits of resistance that add up, and little bits of resistance that other people will see and hopefully feel empowered to stand on those convictions as well.” Meanwhile, Suzannah Van Rooy, a server and manager at Beuchert’s Saloon on Capitol Hill, said she wouldn’t serve those “trying to deport millions of people.” She said: “It’s not, ‘Oh, we hate Republicans.’ It’s that this person has moral convictions that are strongly opposed to mine, and I don’t feel comfortable serving them.”
Another interviewee stated that she would serve Trump officials but deliberately make their dining experience uncomfortable. “I’ll only give them a bad table but will otherwise guarantee decent and polite service,” she explained. “I feel like them getting a bad table is nothing compared to the harm they’ll be inflicting.”
However, not all interviewees expressed dissatisfaction with the incoming Republican administration. Joseph, a bartender who voted for Kamala Harris, mentioned that in his experience, Republicans tend to tip better because Democrats talk about ‘helping out the working class’ but never with their own money. “I think my tip average from Republicans—at least ones that I or a coworker has recognized—is close to 30 percent. With Dems, I’m surprised if it’s over 20,” he said.
