North Texas woman says she was discriminated against after Uptown restaurant kicks her out
DALLAS (CBSNewsTexas.com) – A North Texas woman believes she was discriminated against at a restaurant in Dallas' Uptown neighborhood because of her race.
"I was in shock," Dominique Nicole said. "I really couldn't believe it was happening."
On Sunday she met a friend at Baboush, a Mediterranean restaurant on McKinney Avenue. She says at the bar, they were stopped by an employee.
"He was like, 'Unfortunately we have a dress code,'" she said. "Your friends' shorts are too short. You guys will have to dine outside."
They felt they were being discriminated against, so Nicole's friend started recording.
On the front door, the dress code states smart casual, business-casual and elegant-casual attire required.
"They say my friend Dominique can't wear shorts, but there are people here with shorts on," Josh Drake said as he recorded women in shorts.
They say as they exited the restaurant, the employee locked the door. Then they realized they had left a bag inside and tried to let them know.
"He cracks the door and throws it like it was trash that was supposed to come out tomorrow," Drake said. "For them to be held accountable I think is hugely important. For me, it's about who they are as an organization and it's my personal opinion."
In a statement, the restaurant says in part, "We fully condemn the actions of this staff member. We are handling the situation internally to determine appropriate action. We want to extend our deepest apologies to the individuals that were directly affected." They went on to say, "We will do better."
"Allegedly, the manager has been fired so if anything, I just want Black people to stop being singled out in every situation," Nicole said.
The restaurant replied to comments online, saying they fired the employee who was involved.
She said the restaurant requested to meet and talk, but they declined. They feel it was only offered because of the attention the incident has received.
