Restaurant denies dress code rules of ‘no baggy pants and chains’ designed to bar people of color after bad Yelp reviews
At what point does a dress code for an upscale cross over into discrimination?
That’s the question being considered in Jersey City, NJ, where users of the online review site Yelp are saying the dress code for a new restaurant is being used to keep out people of color.
The owners of The Ashford, which opened last year say they only wanted their dress code to reflect the upscale dining experience they intend customers to have, but Yelp reviewers have described some intense experiences, according to a report in the New York Daily News.
“My blonde female friend was allowed in with loose sweatpants but for some reason the other guys in our group (who happened to be Black and wearing normal looking pants, or at least we thought they were) were not allowed in and told by the bouncer they do not let people in pajamas in,” wrote one user quoted by the News. “If you’re a guy not wearing a midtown uniform, it seems like you’re not welcome.”
The News quoted another Yelp user who made reference to the “uneven enforcement” of the dress code. “Not a good look,” that user wrote.
Items banned for Ashford diners that were reportedly listed on a sign at the entrance of the restaurant included: oversized jeans or shirts, ball caps, work boots, gym sneakers, shorts or athletic apparel, sweatpants or joggers, cargo pants, oversized jewelry/chains, sleeveless shirts, sunglasses, camouflage, low or baggy pants, headphones. There also is a requirement that belts be worn with pants, according to the News.
The owners told the News that the sign was an “oversight” and created by one of their employees, and that it has been taken down.
“We rectified it straightaway when the oversight was brought to our attention,” co-owner Kenny Caulfield said.
Caulfield told the news organization they were only trying to encourage customers to “dress to impress.”
“I want to make it very clear that it had nothing to do with race,” Caulfield said. “We’ve built a very nice place. I expect people to dress nicely. It’s not a construction site, and not a gym.”
Co-founder Jeff Lam echoed sentiments expressed by his partner that the restaurant does not discriminate.
“I’m an ethnic Chinese and I don’t tolerate any kind of discrimination in my establishment,” Lam told the News.
Caulfield told JerseyCityUpfront.com “We want to be upscale, but comfortable. Jersey City is all about diversity so it doesn’t matter where you’re from. We want you to feel at home when you’re here.”
