Trump slams 'dirty' Red Hen restaurant, but let's not forget Mar-a-Lago's 13 health code violations
/https%3A%2F%2Fblueprint-api-production.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fcard%2Fimage%2F798562%2Fa194af7b-579e-4154-bd12-8b360473baec.jpg)
It took Donald Trump more than two days to comment on Sarah Huckabee Sanders being asked to leave the Red Hen restaurant in Lexington, Virginia, but alas, he's finally settled on a comeback.
Rather than claiming he would treat people "respectfully" like his press secretary, who tweeted about the event on Saturday, Trump did what he does best and straight-up trash talked the establishment.
"The Red Hen Restaurant should focus more on cleaning its filthy canopies, doors and windows (badly needs a paint job) rather than refusing to serve a fine person like Sarah Huckabee Sanders," the 72-year-old grown-ass man tweeted on Monday morning. "I always had a rule, if a restaurant is dirty on the outside, it is dirty on the inside!"
The Red Hen Restaurant should focus more on cleaning its filthy canopies, doors and windows (badly needs a paint job) rather than refusing to serve a fine person like Sarah Huckabee Sanders. I always had a rule, if a restaurant is dirty on the outside, it is dirty on the inside!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 25, 2018
Since Trump clearly has such high standards and is incredibly concerned about restaurant cleanliness and business upkeep, Twitter users felt it was their duty to remind him of the several health violations his very own beloved Mar-a-Lago resort and other businesses have received.
Florida's Division of Hotels and Restaurants cited 13 health violations at Trump's resort in January 2017, including but not limited to serving raw or undercooked fish, meats being stored at unsafe temperatures, and coolers filled with rusty shelves.
Sounds like a quality place!
Take your personal water to Mar-a-Lago- black/green mold in ice machine violation https://t.co/LpFQI9nqS5
— colmant_ (@colmant_) June 25, 2018
This tweet is a violation of law and I literally just read that not only has Drumpf been sued for his bedbug issue, his Mar-A-Lago has been cited 17 times. Tf? https://t.co/sKNafCSsqq
— ♎♎ Aisis ♎♎ (@AyeshaMoore) June 25, 2018
When did you last check out the Florida Health Dept reports on Mar-a-Lago? Hit with multiple health code violations in the last year. Maybe you should clean up your own house before complaining about other's. BTW, you are committing an ethics violation!
— Gregg Fiege (@GreggFiege) June 25, 2018
This is libel and a ethical violation, not that ethics matter to you. In 2017 Mar a Lago's kitchen cited 13 times for filth, 51 violations in 2012 at DJT Steakhouse in LV, at least 17 at Bedminster 2011-16. In May '17 Doral settled re: bedbugs. Such dumps.
— Anne Van Atta (@AnneVanAtta2) June 25, 2018
BRAHAHAHAHA! Sooo funny that DT calls a restaurant (that he’s never laid eyes on) dirty as his beloved Mar-a-Lago is famous for being filthy and at last inspection received 13 violation citations!! https://t.co/xZzIneaM5d
— Michael Buffer (@Michael_Buffer) June 25, 2018
And the violations don't stop at Trump-owned properties. As The New Yorker reports, in the past the New York restaurant that's home to Trump's favorite burger has renovated without proper permits. Not good!
Meanwhile, the Red Hen reportedly passed its Feb. 2018 inspection with no violations. Interesting...
The Red Hen — the restaurant Trump said is "dirty on the inside" — passed its Feb. 2018 inspection with no violations. The restaurant has had three violations in the past four years, two of which were corrected during the time of inspection. https://t.co/pXfiCukyv9
— Mary Ann Georgantopoulos (@marygeorgant) June 25, 2018
Since Sanders tweeted about the Red Hen incident, the restaurant's been hit hard with an influx of severely positive and negative Yelp and Facebook reviews. However, since the majority of recent reviews only comment on Red Hen's political views, which is a violation of the platform's guidelines, there's a good chance they'll be removed.
In response to being asked about the off-topic reviews, a Yelp spokesperson gave Mashable the following statement:
"When businesses make the news, their Yelp business page can be affected. Media-fueled reviews typically violate our Content Guidelines, one of which deals with relevance. Yelp reviews are required to describe a firsthand consumer experience, not what someone read in the news. Our user support team ultimately removes reviews that violate these guidelines. More info on how Yelp handles these types of circumstances on this page of our Support site."
Many people are also highlighting the fact that both Sanders and Trump addressed the incident using their professional, rather than personal, Twitter accounts, which will undoubtedly draw a great deal of attention to the business. (It's also an ethics violation!) One would think this would be some sort of violation of Twitter's rules, but Twitter has made it known time and time again it refuses to censor Trump on the basis that his words are newsworthy.
I don't know about you, but I always had a rule: "If a resort has 13 recorded health violations, it is most definitely dirty on the inside!"