A Texas creator said in a TikTok video that she and her friends were turned away from a reservation at JOEY Maple in Dallas during the restaurant’s soft opening. Sydney, who posts as sydney monet, said staff would not seat them because of their clothes and that the encounter left her disgusted.
On-screen text in the video reads, “Racially Profiled and DENIED ENTRY @ JOEY Maple Soft opening Dallas, TX.” In her caption, she tagged JOEY Restaurants and wrote that she was “Racially profiled and denied entry at the soft opening of JOEY MAPLE in Dallas, TX due to our attire.” She also noted that it was 100 degrees in Dallas.
Sydney said she has never been treated that way before. She described the staff as extremely rude and unprofessional and said management had security escort them out of the building. She said she is a longtime guest of JOEY locations across the country.
JOEY Maple posts a smart casual dress standard on its website
JOEY Maple is the chain’s second Dallas restaurant. It is listed at 2508 Maple Avenue in Uptown. The restaurant’s website says smart casual dress attire is required and that athletic wear, beachwear, and overly revealing clothing are not accepted. The page also says admittance is at the discretion of hosts and management, who reserve the right to refuse service to patrons who are unsuitably dressed.
Sydney said they could not sit down at their reservation “due to the nature of our outfits.” The video then showed what she labeled the outfits in question. She was wearing a black tank top and white shorts. The woman who was with her was wearing a white, cropped button-down shirt and a light blue distressed denim mini skirt…