A case of alleged discrimination in the renowned Candé restaurant in Cartagena is already viral on social networks. Through a video, Félix Ladron de Guevara, 26, assured that he was denied a reservation in this commercial establishment located in the San Diego neighborhood of the Historic Center for “being Cartagena.” Read: “You have to take that off”: hotel that did not hire Cartagena because of Afro hair
In dialogue with The universalthe young man said that he chose the restaurant to share a pleasant time with his sister and brother-in-law who had come to the city from the United States.
“My sister arrived in the city on Friday (July 15) and as usual between us we always look for a place to eat. My sister already knew of Candé because of her recommendations and that is why we chose it. That night we arrived and they told us that the restaurant was already full and we had to make a reservation,” said the young man.
According to Felix, the next day, on Saturday, July 16, he decided to call the restaurant and the person in charge of reservations told him that they had no tables available. However, the young man asked his brother-in-law, a US citizen, to make the same request in another call and, to his surprise, the restaurant told him that there were tables available.
“I called the restaurant at 12:30 noon and the reservations girl told me that she had no tables available. Since I know how this works in the city, I asked my sister’s boyfriend to call and speak in English and within ten minutes he made the call and was offered two tables; one for 7:00 pm and one for 9:00 pm.
I asked my sister’s boyfriend to call and speak in English and after ten minutes he made the call and they offered him two tables (…)”.
Felix Thief.
With obvious indignation, the young man began to document what happened and recorded another couple of calls he made to the restaurant and in which he also got the same answers.
“I made four calls to the restaurant and they never answered. I had to call from the company number, they answer me and after several minutes they tell me that they did not have a table available for me. Then my brother-in-law called and they offered him the tables. What is dismaying to me is that the lady who answered the phone did not even try to get me to the restaurant, she never asks me if I am going alone or accompanied. From the first moment she tells me that there was no room for me, ”said Félix Ladron.
The complainant maintains that this is not the first time that this type of situation has happened to him in bars and restaurants in the city, so he is already in talks with several lawyers to advance the legal actions that may take place.
Candé speaks Kitchen
In a statement, the restaurant “Candé Cocina, 100% Cartagenera” lamented the young man’s complaint about alleged telephone discrimination due to his way of speaking.
“The greatest pride of the Candé Cocina 100% Cartagenera Restaurant, with 11 years of presence in the city, is to be a permanent tribute to the Cartagena culture. Candé is not in the city just as a stage. Candé wants to show Cartagena through the five senses with his team of more than 100 collaborators, all from Cartagena, as well as his directors and artistic team,” reads the statement.
The greatest pride of the Candé Cocina 100% Cartagenera Restaurant, with 11 years of presence in the city, is to be a permanent tribute to the Cartagena culture (…)”.
Cande Kitchen.
The commercial establishment explains that after reviewing the fact with the reservations team, they conclude that the procedure carried out was appropriate and “at no time was it motivated by segregation or preferences for the client’s place of origin.”
They emphasize that, contrary to what the young man expressed, the reservations department first received the call from abroad and 40 minutes later the call from him.
They also emphasize that, as ambassadors of the Cartagena culture, the people are their “main heritage”.
“We greatly regret that in a recent video circulating on social networks, an alleged telephone discrimination is manifested due to the client’s style of language, when our restaurant, at its very entrance, offers a tribute to the Cartagena lexicon.”