A Dallas restaurant owner is furious after Donald Trump Jr. posted a photo of himself with Senator Ted Cruz holding a cookie frosted with Barack Obama’s face while at the establishment. The Obama face cookie was apparently not made at the restaurant, Le Bilboquet, but brought in by one of the guests attending a function.
After Donald Trump Jr. posted the photo on his Instagram account, there was an immediate social media backlash. People called for a boycott of the restaurant, mistakenly thinking that Stephan Courteau, the owner of Le Bilboquet, was responsible for making the cookie. This prompted Courteau to release a statement regarding the issue.
“Both Donald Trump Jr. and Ted Cruz were attending a birthday celebration of one of our regular patrons who rented out our venue for a private event.” Course wrote in his statement. He continued, “The party was not for either one of them nor was it any kind of partisan rally.” He made his position clear, writing “I share your indignation without any reservation.”
The course also noted that he was not working at Le Bilboquet the night the photo was taken, but if he had been, he would not have let it happen. “Unfortunately, I was not working yesterday and could not intervene in the unfortunate circumstances that unfolded but I believe I owe you an explanation and an apology.”
The course emphasized the inclusivity and non-partisan nature of owning a restaurant, writing “Restaurant business is about creating a hospitable environment for all, a non-partisan, non-politicized, nondiscriminatory and respectful environment.” He continued, “Our friends and patrons represent a wide spectrum of American beliefs including Republicans, Democrats, and Independents.”
The course is French, and as he noted in his statement, his wife is Mexican. He wrote that they both “believe in universal values of love, respect and tolerance.” The course also noted that an instance such as this one “reminds us that a divide still exists and that we have to keep promoting our core values so that events like these don’t happen again.”
The initial photo was posted on Instagram on December 17th by Donald Trump Jr. Part of his caption read “What birthday is complete without an Obama cake?” Donald Trump Jr. also began his caption by saying “with friends like these…” implying that it may have been insulting to him to receive a “cake” with Obama’s picture on it.
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