California waiter fired after demanding ‘proof of residency’ from customers

Diana Carrillo, her sister and her two friends decided to splurge at an upscale restaurant in Huntington, South California, when a waiter reportedly refused to serve them until they showed “proof of residency.”

The four Hispanic women, who were born and raised in the U.S., said they were dumbfounded when the waiter reportedly said he needed to “make sure you’re from here.”

Not exactly sure how to handle the situation, Carrillo said they handed over their IDs before what was happening really sunk in. Angry with the situation, the 24-year-old business analyst from Orange County, Calif., posted about the incident on Facebook March 11th.

“After fully digesting what he said, we all got up and left to speak to the manager. For a few seconds I thought maybe he was being a smart ass or joking but the fact that he said ‘I need to make sure you’re from here before I serve you’ was completely unacceptable,” Carillo posted on Facebook.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "After fully digesting what he said, we all got up and left to speak to the manager. For a few seconds I thought maybe he was being a smart ass or joking but the fact that he said 'I need to make sure you're from here before I serve you' was completely unacceptable," Carillo posted on Facebook.

After complaining to the manager, Carrillo says they were offered another table in a different section, but she and her group decided to leave.

The restaurant’s management has since responded to Carrillo and offered the women a VIP dining experience, as well as a promise to donate 10 per cent of the weekend’s proceeds to a charity of their choice.

The women declined the dinner but have asked that the proceeds go to an undocumented immigrant youth-led organization.

“This very unfortunate incident has been handled internally through the termination of the employee at fault. We also contacted the guest and plan to donate 10 per cent of this weekend’s sales to the charity of her choice, Orange County Immigrant Youth United,” Saint Marc management wrote in an email response to Global News.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "This very unfortunate incident has been handled internally through the termination of the employee at fault. We also contacted the guest and plan to donate 10 per cent of this weekend's sales to the charity of her choice, Orange County Immigrant Youth United," Saint Marc management wrote in an email response to Global News.

“In no way are the actions of this former employee representative of the Saint Marc brand nor are they reflective of the opinions of anyone else on our team, including executive management. We have always celebrated being part of the diverse Huntington Beach community, which means valuing all guests and treating every individual with respect.”