An Odessa, Texas, waiter admitted Monday that he faked a credit card receipt that accused him of being a terrorist, and Saltgrass Steak House’s chief operating officer called the incident “disturbing.”
The waiter, Khalil Cavil, 20, told the Odessa American Monday that he faked the “we don’t tip terrorist [sic]” on the receipt, which showed no tip in the gratuity field, and posted it on his Facebook account. Company officials said he was no longer employed at the restaurant.
“I did write it,” Cavil told the newspaper. “I don’t have an explanation. I made a mistake. There is no excuse for what I did.”
Terry Turney, Saltgrass COO, issued a statement, saying, “After further investigation, we have learned that our employee fabricated the entire story.
“The customer has been contacted and invited back to our restaurant to dine on us,” Turney said.
Turney had acted swiftly when the original account came out July 15, saying he supported the waiter and would bar the customer.
On Monday, Turney added: “Racism of any form is intolerable, and we will always act swiftly should it occur in any of our establishments. Falsely accusing someone of racism is equally disturbing.”
The customer’s name was not revealed in Cavil’s initial Facebook post, which produced about $1,000 in donations.
Cavil told the newspaper: “Most all of it has been returned.” Cavil added: “I’m sorry. I deeply made a huge, big mistake. And I’m in the process of getting the help that I need.”
Saltgrass is a 70-unit casual-dining division of Houston-based Landry’s Inc.
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