A circus-themed bar in Austin, Texas, has been accused of arranging beers in the shape of a swastika and sending profane language and derogatory insults toward customers.
RELATED: Athens bars face first test of anti-discrimination rules
The alleged behavior of staff and management at Unbarlievable, which opened this past spring, might be the most unbelievable thing of all about the boozy concept.
Facebook and Reddit began to blow up last week with accusations of racism against the bar after a customer's Facebook review noting the swastika-shaped beer arrangement got attention online: “Table next to us ordered a lot of beers and the worker brought the beers out then put them in the shape of a swastika,” she wrote. “Totally uncalled for and disrespectful.”
She said she brought the swastika to the attention of the owner, who she said didn’t care at all. But it’s the response of Unbarlievable to her review, since deleted from the site, that is also raising online furor.
“If you have feelings all complaints should be directed to our HR department. You can reach them at get(expletive)(at)unbarlievable(dot))com,” someone connected to the bar wrote through Unbarlievable’s Facebook page.
RELATED: Boycott of popular Atlanta nightclub after owner calls V-103 'racist station'
It now appears that all Facebook reviews of the bar have been disabled, although that hasn’t stopped angry users from commenting about the nasty behavior on Unbarlievable’s unrelated posts about a Fourth of July celebration and upcoming lobster boil. (There also appears to be a new Facebook page devoted entirely to the “Unbarlievably Racist Rainey Street Bar,” posting all of the since-deleted reviews.)
A recent Google review sparked additional backlash on Reddit overnight. After the user talked about the “ill-conceived and poorly executed” blend of circus theme and sports bar at Unbarlievable, a response that was labeled to have been from the owner said, among other things, that “since you had a towel on your head my bartender thought you were the new bus boy and handed you dirty dishes to wash.”
The Statesman has not confirmed who is behind the bar’s social media.
Others have called the bar out on social media for similar reasons. (Editor’s note: Some of the tweets below include strong language.)
The owner is Brandon Cash, who is also proprietor of two other bars in Austin, the Goodnight.
Calls made to the owner were not returned as of Wednesday afternoon.
Support real journalism. Support local journalism. Subscribe to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution today. See offers.
Your subscription to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution funds in-depth reporting and investigations that keep you informed. Thank you for supporting real journalism.
Download the new AJC app. More local news, more breaking news and in-depth journalism. AJC.com. Atlanta. News. Now.
Download the new AJC app. More local news, more breaking news and in-depth journalism. AJC.com. Atlanta. News. Now.