A restaurant owner in New South Wales, Australia has drawn online ire after insulting vegan customers on Facebook, calling them "so easy to mess with" and "single minded and nazi like in there conviction [sic]." According to News.com.au, Mark Clews, the owner of a burger restaurant called Tuk Tuk, mocked a vegan customer on Facebook, noting that she consumed a falafel burger at his restaurant that was grilled alongside meat. In the post (now removed but screengrabbed here), Clews wrote that the customer was informed of the potential cross-contamination but "happily ate it anyway," questioning the conviction of her vegan beliefs.
But after vegans responded to the original post, Clews started sounding off about vegans in general, spouting the Nazi comment and writing that "their veganism was inspired by some tragic childhood event, or a divorce, or a car accident, or some crap." The original vegan customer also chimed in on a Facebook page called "Tuk Tuk Hunter Valley Honest Reviews," claiming she was not told about the cross-contamination when she placed her order. The Facebook group has collected many of Clews' online arguments that have since been deleted, and Clews tells the Daily Mail that he's received death threats as a result.
In an update posted yesterday, Clews does not apologize for the uproar, writing: "We have ruffled feathers with our outspoken irreverence, for this we make ZERO apology... it's a pleasure to serve like minded people, the whingers and complainers can eat elsewhere."