A restaurant in Collingwood Ont., has become the target of online hate comments after Trump supporters mistook the eatery for one that asked White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders to leave.
The restaurant involved in the incident, is located in Lexington Va., approximately 989 kilometres from Collingwood.
According to Sanders, on Saturday evening, the owner of the Red Hen restaurant in Virginia asked her to leave because she worked for the president. Following the encounter, Sanders took to social media to express her disdain.
On Monday, the president tweeted his criticism of the restaurant, saying staff should “focus more on cleaning its filthy canopies, doors and windows,” rather than refuse to serve Sanders.
Following the incident, Trump supporters began sending hateful comments and filling out negative Yelp and Trip Advisor reviews about the restaurant.
An eatery in Collingwood with a similar name, The Olde Red Hen Restaurant, became tangled in the crossfire after a link to their restaurant was wrongly shared, making them the target of several nasty comments.
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“I hope you go out of business, everyone should be treated fair,” said one commenter.
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Owner of The Olde Red Hen Restaurant, Diane Smith, took action, and began responding to each negative comment on Facebook, to let posters know they were targeting the wrong establishment.
LISTEN: ‘We were dumbfounded,’ Olde Red Hen owner Diane Smith says
“I started getting these nasty comments on my Facebook, and I was thinking I haven’t had this kind of feedback ever, and I was thinking we aren’t political,” Smith said.
Smith said she received hundreds of comments saying things like “go out of business,” “their food is gross,” and ‘you shouldn’t eat there.’
In order to combat the influx of negative comments, Smith also called upon the residents of Collingwood and customers of the breakfast and brunch spot to fill out positive reviews.
A quick search online for the Olde Red Hen Restaurant now shows that Collingwood residents and visitors who have enjoyed the food at the family establishment for years have stepped in to defend their local spot.
“Whoever took the time to write a poor review because of an American restaurant should maybe take the time to get an education, or even look at a map,” commented Marc Smith.
“CANADIAN restaurant that had nothing to do with the drama in the USA. Fact check before attacking people and running down their business for zero reason based on knee jerk reactions,” Angie Malcom echoed.
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“I have been inundated with love,” Smith said. “The amount of positive feedback we have received is overwhelming, I feel totally blessed.”
While Smith was worried the negative attention may deter people from visiting, it appears as though the incident has actually encouraged some to visit, with several commenters vowing to stop in the next time they are in town.
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“Just for this, I’m going to make a special trip to your restaurant next time I’m in the area, and have no doubt I will thoroughly enjoy it,” commented Maria Dolnycky.
“I’ll serve anybody,” Smith said. “We are a small community, and we have a lot of tourists coming and going and that’s who we are.”
The Olde Red Hen Restaurant is located at 146 Hurontario St. in Collingwood Ont., in Canada.
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