A woman has accused a high-end New York City restaurant of discriminating against Asians by seating Asians in one specific area of the restaurant.
A TikTok user named Annie (@rokug4n) recently spoke about her experience at a restaurant in Greenwich Village called One if by Land, Two if by Sea. The restaurant offers pricey pre-fixe menus.
In the video, Annie said she and her boyfriend were seated upstairs with other Asian diners. It appeared as if Asian people were only being seated on the second floor.
She showed photos of the first and second floor pointing out how the ambiance on the first floor was much nicer than the second floor. The first floor had giant windows, chandeliers and high ceilings. The second floor was much darker and only had two windows.
After Annie posted her video, the restaurant received several negative Yelp reviews referencing the discriminatory behavior described in the TikTok.
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According to The Daily Mail, the restaurant has claimed that it does not discriminate against anyone.
“The reason people love coming here is the way they’re greeted, regardless of religion, nationality and what they look like,” the restaurant said in a statement.
The restaurant also described some reviews as “suspicious.”
Other Asian customers described the discriminatory behavior they experienced in reviews written months before Annie posted her TikTok. She shared a few screenshots she found after searching for the keyword “Asian” in the restaurant’s Yelp reviews.
Yelp has currently shut down reviews for the One if by Land, Two if by Sea after the viral TikTok.
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