WEST CHESTER, Ohio — A Black server at a West Chester restaurant said he broke down and cried after serving a large party, most of whom he said were dressed in Confederate gear and made racist comments.
"It was probably the worst moment of my life," 41-year-old Arthur Mandy said. "They literally dehumanized me in front of everyone."
Mandy works at the Texas Roadhouse on Kingsgate Way. He said he's had his share of bad customers during his 25 years in the service industry, but he'll never forget the group who walked in at 8:40 p.m. Sunday.
It was a party of 11. Mandy said their appearance was the most glaring, describing outfits including a Confederate sweatsuit, Confederate tattoos and even a toddler wearing a Confederate jacket and onesie.
Mandy said they ignored him, never looking him in the eye as he tried to take their order. He said one of the men sat at the end of the table, the farthest away from him.
"I went over our spiel or whatever, like that," Mandy said. "The first thing out of his mouth was, 'I'll just take a water, boy.'"
Mandy said it was the last big party of the night, but he wasn't originally supposed to wait on them. The server who was refused to, and because most of the other servers were done for the night, he agreed to do it.
Texas Roadhouse spokesperson Travis Doster said the chain does not condone any form of harassment or discrimination by guests towards employees. He said they also strive to maintain a work environment of mutual respect for their employees and guests.
He said several managers were working that night and checked with Mandy to ensure he would be OK taking the table. He said Mandy told management he was comfortable and that he would not let them bother him.
"I think it's the right way we would want to handle it. You're in the hospitality business — folks come in sometimes and you have to make judgment calls," Doster said.
Mandy corroborated that, but he told WCPO that given the circumstances, he felt he had to take the table. He said the only other servers still on the clock were also Black and he didn't want them to have to experience what he ultimately did.
He said that though the group didn't say the word to him directly, he heard them use the N-word while he was at the table.
"They clearly wanted to fight. They wanted to rile me up. They wanted to get something out of me," he said. "I mean, you know, my emotions just came out one way or the other and I started crying and my team members, they came outside."
Mandy said he eventually became too upset and told his managers he could no longer serve the table.
"I was mad," Mandy's co-worker Khalona Watson said.
Khalona was working that night and said she walked outside to console Mandy.
She was so mad, in fact, she shared the experience on TikTok.
"It's 2023, like most people are saying, like why are we even going through this?" she said.
She posted the video Sunday night. It's since racked up hundreds of thousands of views.
"I personally have never experienced anything like this," Watson said. "Other people, you know, we get you're not always gonna get happy customers all the time, so we've had a few nasty customers but not taken to the extent of this and the "n-word" and the "boy" and all the challenging things they did to him. Never seen a table like that or coming in in that gear and all that."
After management took over the rest of the service, Watson and Mandy said the group became unruly. They said they began complaining about their orders and sending food back.
The group's bill totaled more than $400, but management comped most of it, bringing it down to a little over $100. Doster said the group continued complaining and they were ultimately asked to leave.
While the guests were not rude or disruptive upon entering the restaurant, because of their subsequent behavior, they are no longer welcome in the restaurant, Doster said.
"I just don't know why they would wait for it to get bad," Mandy said about management's decision to keep serving the customers after how he said they treated him.
Watson said she echoes that question, wondering why, after she complained to her managers about the customers' use of the N-word, they were allowed to stay.
"I wish they would have handled it better," she said.
But Doster said management handled the situation as best as they could.
"Anyone in any business is going to have to be careful about making judgment calls because of what somebody is wearing or what they look like to then presume and stop service. That's a very slippery slope for any business," he said. "I think how they handled it was that they recognized the situation, took feelings into account and then acted upon that."
Mandy also said the managing partner left while the table was still seated, leaving the situation to be handled by the other younger and inexperienced managers. He said was a lack of judgment that could have prevented the situation.
"I'm not saying he's some terrible person or bad guy," Mandy said. "Good people make mistakes and I think that's just what it is."
Doster said the managing partner had been working for 12 hours that day and called back that night to check-in. Doster said the manager also checked on Mandy the next day, which Mandy confirms.
The MP is discussing the incident with the staff where he will reinforce his support that if anyone is uncomfortable or feels disrespected to let management know, Doster said.
While both Mandy and Watson feel management could have done more to prevent what happened, they said they want the focus to be on the customers.
"Everybody's going after the managers, nobody's talking about them. Nobody's holding them accountable for their actions, for their beliefs for how they're raising their children," said Mandy. "Nobody's holding them accountable for that. So I think that should be the issue. Not Texas Roadhouse."
Watch Live:
