A Washington State sheriff was stunned to learn his deputies were no longer welcome to eat lunch at a local Asian restaurant.
Four Skagit County, Washington, deputies were having lunch at the Lucky Teriyaki restaurant in Sedro-Wolley earlier in the week. When two of the deputies approached the cash register to pay there bill, the owner told them they were no longer welcome to eat at his restaurant, according to a post by the sheriff on the department’s Facebook page.
Sheriff Will Reichardt was stunned to hear of this. He had his chief deputy contact the owner to confirm the information. “The owner not only repeated the request but asked that we spread the word to other law enforcement that they were no longer welcome either.”
Sheriff Reichardt said he is not often speechless and that this incident took him by surprise. “Particularly on the heels of the United We Stand by our Law Enforcement event that was such an overpowering show of appreciation for our deputies and officers serving Skagit County,” he explained.
The sheriff said the owner claimed that “other customers didn’t like law enforcement there.” Breitbart Texas attempted to call the restaurant on Thursday and repeatedly got a busy signal. Other news outlets reported similar results when trying to contact the establishment.
Sheriff’s deputies in North Carolina were not only snubbed by a restaurant in Shelby. Cleveland County deputies claimed the workers in the Zaxby’s chicken restaurant in not only taunted the deputies, but served them tainted food, Breitbart’s Warner Todd Huston reported on Wednesday.
The Lucky Teriyaki’s Yelp* page has been flooded with comments that are negative about the restaurant’s statement and supportive of local law enforcement.
Read Olystacy B.‘s review of Lucky Teriyaki Restaurant on Yelp
Another Yelp* user wrote:
Read Jet T.‘s review of Lucky Teriyaki Restaurant on Yelp
Breitbart Texas reviewed 18 pages of posts before finding a pre-incident review. This customer was also not impressed with the attitude of management.
Read L M.‘s review of Lucky Teriyaki Restaurant on Yelp
Facebook readers have posted nearly 8,000 comments to the sheriff’s post.
Mike Stahlman praised the sheriff for making the information public, while Eric Cummins criticized the sheriff for what he called “childish behavior.” The sheriff responded that the information was already out on social media and he was simply confirming the accuracy of the reports.
Brian Kinsman told the sheriff his deputies were welcome at his restaurant.
Perhaps the most humorous post came from the owner of another local business. This one is in the business of selling cannabis.
The sheriff responded that he appreciated Thomas’ sense of humor.
Reichardt acknowledged that business owners have the right to refuse service. “I also understand that as customers we all have the right to find some other restaurant to take our lunch break in.” As do other residents in the community.
Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior political news contributor for Breitbart Texas. He is a founding member of the Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX.