Celebrity Chef Calls Out Donald Trump Over Restaurant Comments

A celebrity chef has called out President Donald Trump over his claims that people are not going to restaurants in Washington, D.C. because of crime.

Posting on X, Jose Andres, who owns a number of restaurants in the U.S., including seven in D.C. reacted to Trump’s claims that restaurants closed because people were “afraid to go outside,” claiming he was telling “a flat-out lie.”

Why It Matters

There has been a national conversation about the extent to which D.C. is beset with crime after Trump started claiming that there is a high crime rate in Washington, and that it had “become one of the most dangerous cities anywhere in the world.”

Earlier this month, he placed the city’s police department under federal control and deployed National Guard troops to the city.

On Monday, he signed an executive order directing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to create specialized National Guard units in Washington, D.C. and nationwide that are trained to handle “public-order issues.”

What To Know

On Tuesday, Trump told reporters that his friends were previously “petrified” to go to restaurants in D.C. because of the crime rates in the city. “Half the restaurants closed, because nobody could go, because they were afraid to go outside,” he said.

In response, Andres said Trump was “confused” and said it was “a flat-out lie that half the restaurants have closed because of safety.”

However, he added that “restaurants will close” because of Trump bringing federal troops into the city “making people afraid to go out.”

There was a decline in restaurant reservations and foot traffic after Trump deployed National Guard troops to the city, according to OpenTable data. However, that data shows bookings are now stabilizing as D.C. celebrates Summer Restaurant Week, which has been extended to last a two weeks.

“People shouldn’t be afraid of their government…government should have respect for its people, not terrorize them,” Andres added.

What People Are Saying

President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social on Monday: “The incompetent Mayor of Chicago just stated that, in D.C., where crime has been brought down to almost nothing, there have been no murders in 9 days, something which hasn’t happened in years, and people are safe again, only nine people have been arrested. That is wrong, hundreds of criminals have been held, captured, and arrested, and their guns have been taken away. DC IS SAFE AND BOOMING!!!”

A White House spokesperson previously told Newsweek: “Dozens of D.C. small businesses, restaurants, and local shops have closed their doors due to the violent crime that has plagued the city.

“President Trump’s bold leadership will restore our nation’s capital by creating opportunities for businesses to flourish without fear of criminals looting and destroying their property. President Trump is delivering on his promise to make D.C. safer, which will inherently make D.C. more prosperous.”

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser wrote in an open letter to city residents: “Over the course of a week, the surge in federal law enforcement across D.C. has created waves of anxiety.”

Shawn Townsend, president and CEO of the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington said in a statement: “That week after President Trump announced [the federal takeover of the police], reservations were down in restaurants pretty significantly.”

“Our folks are resilient,” he continued. “As a result of feedback that we’ve heard from our members, in terms of how slow the foot traffic has been, we decided to extend Restaurant Week by an additional week.”

What Happens Next

The effect of Trump’s troops on the restaurant industry and other sectors of the D.C. economy will become clearer in the days and weeks to come.

Meanwhile, Trump has indicated he is keen to extend the policy of using federal troops in other cities where he says there is a high crime rate.