Celebrity life coach and best-selling author Johnny Wimbrey and his wife Crystal just wanted dinner and a couple of drinks Saturday night at Sambuca 360 in Plano…but was shocked when the restaurant’s manager asked them to give up their seats and leave because “he did not like him” and wanted to accommodate a “regular” customer.
WFAA reports:
They found a good seat and were given menus. They were about to order when the manager asked them if they would give up their table. “I said, ‘No I think we want to sit here. We have a great view. It’s only a table for two.’ We declined the offer respectfully,” Wimbrey said.
Wimbrey, who is black, says the manager wanted to give the table to a white man who is a regular. The manager got angry and told the Wimbreys to leave when they wanted to keep their table. Some of the exchange was recorded on their cell phone.
What the manager doesn’t know at the time is that Wimbrey is a world-renowned author and motivational speaker who has held company parties with more than 2 hundred people at the same place.
He believes race was a factor in this incident. “I do believe it’s because of who I am and how I look that they asked me to move tables,” said Wimbrey. Sambuca issued the following statement to WFAA: “We apologize for the miscommunication with our guest on Saturday night, which resulted from a mix-up at our host stand. Sambuca has no tolerance for discrimination and always wants to make every guest feel welcome and respected.”
Watch the video below:
