A café in Dublin has caused controversy online after claiming that they will require customers to show a doctor's note if they hope to get gluten free food.
The White Moose Café in Phibsborough is no stranger to getting negative feedback online, and has made headlines in the past after they banned vegans for posting negative reviews about the café, and posted CCTV footage of a woman who wrote a negative review on their Facebook page.
On Saturday, the restaurant once again took to social media to stir the pot in relation to the gluten-free trend, which they appear to have had their fill of.
In a post titled "DOCTOR’S NOTE REQUIRED TO GET GLUTEN-FREE FOOD," they claimed that they had enough of people asking for gluten-free options on the menu, and "guests who demand gluten-free food are required to produce a doctor’s note which states that you suffer from coeliac disease," or else they will be served the regular item as listed.
The new "policy" got plenty of negative reaction in the comments, with hundreds of people posting to say that they would never be visiting the café as a result of the announcement.
However, there were also some people who posted in defence of the stance, stating that they had eaten there before and were given gluten-free food when they asked for it.
Previously, owner Paul Stenson has (sort of) issued apologies for riling people up in this way, but is no stranger to getting publicity through creating online outrage, and regularly doubles down on the comments to create as much interest as possible.
Is this smart marketing or insensitive and offensive to people who have difficulty dealing with gluten?
