Sarah Sanders flipped off, kicked out of restaurant that claims employees were 'uncomfortable'
Both Sanders and the restaurant released statements about the incident
By Andrew Mark Miller Fox News
Published March 19, 2026 12:48pm EDT
Republican Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders is speaking out over an incident in a restaurant in her home state where she says she was treated rudely and asked to leave by staff while having lunch.
"Last week I was having lunch with two other moms at a restaurant when the owner approached a member of the State Police Executive Protection Detail and said my presence made their employees feel threatened and told us to leave," Sanders said in a statement Thursday about her recent dining experience at The Croissanterie restaurant in Little Rock, Arkansas.
"Arkansans are known for their warm hospitality, and while that restaurant certainly doesn't meet that standard, my administration will continue to focus on lifting Arkansans up, not tearing others down with discrimination and hate."
Sanders’s office tells Fox News Digital the governor visited the establishment on Friday, March 13, along with her security detail and after about an hour and fifteen minutes, during which her group was seated at two tables and had already paid and tipped staff, the restaurant’s owner approached a member of the security detail and requested that the governor leave.
Her office said the request was made due to concerns that her presence was making employees feel threatened and uncomfortable due to her political views.
Sanders and her party complied with the request and exited the restaurant. As they were leaving, an individual standing with the restaurant staff shouted for them to go and made a crude hand gesture in the governor’s direction.
The Croissanterie released a lengthy statement about the incident to local media, saying when they first learned she had arrived at the establishment they were "surprised and uncertain how best to respond."
"By the time we entered the dining room, she was already seated and eating. At that point, we chose not to interrupt, expecting that the party would complete their meal and depart without issue," the statement said.
The restaurant says that as time went on, the governor’s security detail became "more widely noticed, by both employees and guests, questions were raised about them remaining in the restaurant."
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https://www.foxnews.com/politics/sarah-sanders-flipped-off-kicked-out-of-restaurant-that-claims-employees-were-uncomfortable
