Chef Jozef and Nathalie Slavik at Jennifer’s Restaurant-Picnic in Manitoba, Canada, have conflated picky eaters with people who have to eat a certain way for medical reasons.
In their snarky note to diners with food allergies, which they shared on their doorpost and somehow made its way online, they tell diners with food allergies not to eat at their restaurant.
Dear Guests with Allergies,
We sympathize with your situation. However, for our own safety, we will recommend that you do not eat here. It is simply not possible to guarantee each product used in this kitchen. Furthermore, we do not have the qualifications to provide you with the service you require.
They could have left it at that, and the allergy community would have appreciated their honesty and quietly gone elsewhere.
Instead, Chef Jozef and Nathalie went on to insult people with food allergies by writing the following:
Are you one of the small group of people who have been living an entitled and privileged life? Then you have been very lucky. If you are one of the few who would like to substitute, modify, customize, etc. then please read on.
Maybe your mother has taken the onions out of your salad, put the dressing on the side, or substitute your vegetables. Here, however, all meals are served precisely the way we prepare them. We do not offer custom meals. Remember, we are not your mother, and we definitely are not genies that will make your every wish come true.
Here are some choices we leave you with:
- Hire yourself a private chef.
- Cook for yourself precisely the way you like!
- Try another establishment.
- Or, accept our hospitality as is.
We have been cooking for almost 50 years. We have many kind, friendly people, acquaintances, and families that have been coming for many decades.
So, look around, it is a pleasure to see their happy smiles and provide them with the best food possible.
Chef Jozef and Nathalie
A Google search also turned up a one-star Trip Advisor review, where Lauren R. from Winnipeg said the restaurant refused her service after she disclosed her dietary restrictions.
“There was no reasoning with them,” she says in her 2016 review of the restaurant.
The Reaction
A Reddit thread shows a mixed bag of reactions to Chef Jozef and Nathalie’s pronouncements.
Some say they appreciate the chef’s candor and honesty and are glad to take their money elsewhere.
Several Reddit members say a well-run and well-organized restaurant would be able to safely handle food allergies, would know all the ingredients in their food, and would keep a clean kitchen, citing that their public note should serve as a red flag to all diners.
Other Reddit members called the note “unnecessarily aggressive,” “snarky,” “condescending,” and “tacky,” among other choice words.
Many say that it’s not hard to hold the cheese on a burger or make a salad with no onions. If a restaurant can’t manage these basic functions, or these basic functions of food service annoy them, some say they shouldn’t be in the restaurant business in the first place.
Another commenter said, at the end of the day, Jennifer’s is a private business, and the owners can choose to run their business as they wish.
Jennifer’s Restaurant is No Picnic
I called the restaurant for comment. A voicemail picks up that cites the restaurant’s hours, then hangs up. I also asked the restaurant to comment on the note via Facebook Messenger and have yet to hear back.
UPDATE: Chef Jozef posted a video on Facebook on June 22, 2023, defending – and doubling down – on his Soup Nazi attitude to serve whomever he wants.
He says that he’s not a “slave” to his customers and that anyone who has sent him a message is “entitled, privileged, and Karen-like characters” demanding to be “obeyed.”
The video rant came as a response to the numerous calls and one-star reviews his restaurant has received since his offensive sign went viral a few weeks ago.
He said he’s received death wishes, blackmail, and threats from people trying to shut him down.
For a tiny restaurant in Canada, the video has already racked up nearly 4,000 views, over 200 comments, and has been shared 104 times in the two hours since it was posted.
The comments on the Facebook post are All positive and supportive, which is surprising given the controversy, the fact that he lives in a town of 200 people, and his flippant attitude toward people who don’t agree with him.
Could Chef Jozef be deleting negative comments? One can only speculate, but I find it hard to believe the Internet has only nice words for this flippant and callous man.
Sadly, what we’re seeing in the case of Chef Jozef and Nathalie Slavik are likely two chefs who haven’t had to face food allergies or celiac disease in their lives. Unfortunately, it takes a diagnosis to gain true sympathy – even empathy – for the food allergy community.
The header image source is Jennifer’s Restaurant-Picnic Facebook page.
Face it folks…food allergies are a symptom of coddling and spoiling bred in the bone. It’s gone that far.
I suffer from food allergies, and I spent many years in the restaurant industry.
Over the years food allergies have become much more prevalent. Not sure why, but that is a topic for another day. (Remember when most kids brought PBJ to school for lunch)?
Food is a science and an art, and ingredients work together or against each other. Seemingly minor changes can significantly alter the entire dish, then the patron would likely complain or at least be disappointed. This might be the very reason a person doesn’t like certain ingredients.
Asking a chef to alter their dishes can be insulting. Would one ask DaVinci to change Mona Lisa’s eye color, or Van Gogh to change the colors of Starry Night sky? Would Alston’s Girl in a Red Dress have the same impact if it were Girl in a Yellow Blouse?
If you do not have a medical condition precluding certain foods, why not give it a try? You might find you actually enjoy foods you never knew you could!
p.s. The “Dreaded Ritual Cobb Salad Lunch” restaurant scene from “Julie and Julia”
Server: “What can I get for you ladies?”
Guest 1: “I will have a Cobb Salad no bleu cheese”
Guest 2: “Cobb Salad no beans”
Guest 3: “Cobb Salad no bacon”
Guest 4: “Cobb Salad no eggs”
That sign has been there a few years now. Despite it there is a long line up. It’s just him and his wife serving hundreds of people with a few hours between lunch and supper to prep. I hung out with him one evening when we were the last ones there. He’s a great guy and very personable.
Sometimes people have to realize that their “special needs” are their issue, not everyone else’s. It’s like me being upset at the alcohol industry for me having a bad liver and not serving me a liver friendly alcohol. It’s up to me to make my choices.
Normally, I do not eat at restaurants for fear of cross contamination. No problem. To be insulted, in multiple ways, by someone who is too lazy to serve salad dressing on the side or not putting cheese on a burger is laughable and sad. We are “privileged” and “spoiled” to have a condition that doesn’t allow us to eat certain foods. He’s privileged to not worry about eating something that would make him sick for days.
He’s hoping this attention will be good for business. All customer decide with their dollars so will be interested to see if he is truly supported by the community.
I understand he has a small food truck and I guess he is not wanting to deal with having to make exceptions for people with allergies but being rude about it is not cool!! It is hard enough to find places that are safe to eat at but I just came back from Banff and Jasper, Alberta and had the best experiences in every restaurant, great meals and gluten free options at every one.
This is awesome, id rather read a hilarious sign like this and leave then be told oh yeah, glutenfree is no problem.. then be glutened (ignorantly.. not accidentally). Free speech is welcomed. I only want to pay for what I know is safe for me. More restaurants and food packaging should be labelled with truth. We can then decide what is safe for us and where to spend our money on Certified Gluten Free.
The rudeness and disrespect that is shown by someone who is in the hospitality industry is is unbelievable to me. That he compares us to a child that was spoiled by being allowed to be picky about what they ate shows how ignorant he is of our situation…does he think we ENJOY having to eliminate so many of the foods we used to love eating?? I don’t agree with death threats, etc, but WOW, what a jerk!
I have been told by restaurants locally that they “can not” or “prefer not” to feed me. It always hurts, but especially when going in with a group of people. But we once could not find a restaurant that did GF so we stopped at a family restaurant and I asked about options. Again I was told they could not accommodate my needs. As we had run out of options at that point, I encouraged the others in my party to go ahead and order. A short time later our waitress came out and asked me if it would be ok for the cook…no chef here…to use a clean pan and make eggs for me. I agreed, of course, and a larger than usual tip was given, along with praise to others about the restaurant. Such a little effort goes a long way.
As rude as this owner is, I see it as better to know than not. And, I believe most who have to adhere to a gf diet know where they can or cannot be welcomed to dine. As long as there is fish, meat, salad, potatoes on a menu it isn’t or shouldn’t be that difficult to figure out without making a big deal.
I do not expect every restaurant to accommodate my needs as a celiac. I do however expect all to treat customers with kindness and empathy. Not everyone has the means to “hire a personal chef” 🙁
Wow. Coming from someone with Celiac disease, it sounds like these people need to get out of the restaurant business. The first half of the letter was fine. Second part, disrespectful and uncaring.