Celebrity Chef Blasts Newsom's Outdoor Dining Ban: ‘I’m Not an A**hole, He Is'
Business owner defends decision not to comply with state orders
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A celebrity chef, and owner of multiple restaurants in Southern California, has refused to comply with state orders to shut down outdoor dining, claiming his customers are safe.
Andrew Gruel, founder and executive chef of Slapfish Restaurant, blasted Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom calling him an “a**hole.”
“I can go into Walmart,” Gruel said in the video.
"I can go get a pink cockatiel for my Christmas tree but I can’t go dine outdoors at a restaurant.
“I can go to Target. Amazon’s making a ton of money.
"All big businesses are getting rich. Therefore screw that."
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Gruel starred on the Food Network, said in the video:
“We’re staying open outdoors. It’s that simple.”
“I’m not an a**hole,” Gruel said.
“The governor is.”
WATCH:
My message for all the haters. Please share the logic. Sorry, haven’t had a haircut since March. pic.twitter.com/SOjy3bt4l5
— Chef Andrew Gruel (@ChefGruel) December 3, 2020
Gruel responded to accusations that he was not taking the coronavirus seriously by explaining what steps he took to protect customers.
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“I’ve got everybody blowing up my replies right now saying that I’m a grandmother killer and that we don’t take this pandemic seriously so I’m just going to address it all right here,” Gruel said.
“So here’s the situation. Do we take the pandemic seriously? Of course we do. Am I saying that we shouldn’t close outdoor dining? Yes I am,” Gruel added.
“At every single juncture along the way here — from the beginning shut down to today we’ve listened to all of the advise from our government officials only to be shut down over and over again and then not compensated for the elements that we put in place in our businesses in order to protect our customers,” Gruel continued.
“We shut down indoor dining. No problem,” Gruel said.
“I’ve got a warehouse full of plexiglas right now. We went outdoors.
"Now that’s getting shut down. I just put thousands of dollars into outdoor heaters.”
“My message for all the haters,” Gruel tweeted with the video post.
“Please share the logic. Sorry, haven’t had a haircut since March.”
Just a reminder while everyone is here: Anyone who lost their job is welcome to a free meal at @SLAPFISHseafood or @BigParm4 anytime. Just message. Courtesy of me and the boys. pic.twitter.com/Dpvm6nlYZC
— Chef Andrew Gruel (@ChefGruel) December 4, 2020
