Celebrity chef Jose Andres has called out President Donald Trump for his “flat out lie” that half of restaurants in Washington, D.C., have closed down due to high levels of crime frightening customers away.
Andres, who launched the global charity One World Kitchen, said the president was “confused” and had not once eaten outside of the White House or his own hotel in all the time he had been in the capital.
It comes after Trump boasted again that his administration had cleaned up crime in D.C., telling reporters Tuesday that friends of his were now returning to restaurants. “They haven’t gone out in four years – they were petrified,” he said. “Half the restaurants closed, because nobody could go, because they were afraid to go outside.”
In a blistering response on X, Andres claimed that it was in fact the president’s actions that had caused a decline in people eating out at restaurants in the city.
“Mr. President… I understand why you are confused…all your time in D.C. you haven’t eaten ONCE outside the White House or your own hotel,” he wrote.
“I’ve lived here for 33 years, and it’s a flat out lie that half the restaurants have closed because of safety…but restaurants will close because you have troops with guns and federal agents harassing people…making people afraid to go out.”
Recent data collected by OpenTable showed that restaurant reservations in D.C. dropped nearly 25 percent on average after Trump’s announcement that the federal government would be taking over law enforcement in the city.
Seated reservations declined 16 percent on August 11 which is the same day the president announced he would deploy approximately 800 National Guard members around the city.
The pattern continued in the days after, with reservations down 27 percent on August 12, 31 percent on August 13, 29 percent on August 14, and 25 percent on August 15, compared to the same time last year.
As a result of Trump’s measures and the subsequent effect on business, D.C.’s Summer Restaurant Week – during which participating restaurants offer multi-course prix-fixe menus at special prices for lunch, brunch and dinner – has been extended for an extra week.
The event also occurs in other major metropolitan cities and allows tourists to experience local cuisine at affordable prices as well as supporting the local restaurant community through tricky summer months.
Around 230 of the 380 restaurants that signed up to participate for the first week of Summer Restaurant Week in the capital will be taking part in the second extended week, which runs until August 31.
In his post on X, Andres added: “Cities and towns and rural areas of America need policies that allow small business to thrive and all people including immigrants to live and work with dignity.
“People shouldn’t be afraid of their government… government should have respect for its people, not terrorize them.”
