Gay couple told sharing dessert 'doesn't go with the ambience' of restaurant
A gay couple have been told sharing their dessert “doesn’t go with the ambience of a restaurant”.
Ron Gage, 55, and his partner, Henry McKinnon, 58, were enjoying dinner at the Prime Rib in Washington D.C. on Thursday night.
The pair, dressed in blazers, which the restaurant requires, had a reservation for 8.30pm.
They had enjoyed playful banter with their waiter, but according to Mr Gage a nice evening went downhill after he and his partner ordered a sundae, according to The Washington Post.
“When it came time for dessert, we asked for one sundae with two spoons,” Mr Gage said.
Their server “said he would bring it in two separate dishes. He said ‘It wouldn’t look right with two gentlemen eating out of the same sundae. It doesn’t go with the ambiance of the restaurant.’ ”
Mr Gage said the pair were speechless.
They continued their meal, tipped the waiter the minimum (15 per cent) and left the restaurant without telling the manager.
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“I’m kind of embarrassed to say we didn’t say anything,” Mr McKinnon said.
“It just took us back to such a shameful place, in a way.”
The Prime Rib’s general manager James MacLeod said he was still trying to figure out what happened and was yet to speak with the server in depth.
Mr MacLeod said the waiter was Bulgarian and speaks four different languages, but English was not his first language and he may have been confused by the request.
“I cannot believe that a waiter would have ever said anything like that,” Mr MacLeod said.
“There’s no way we would condone anything remotely like this.”
Mr MacLeod said he planned to reach out to the couple.
But Mr Gage and Mr McKinnon don’t think they’ll return.
