A diner has been left 'near to tears' after being turned away from a Miller & Carter steakhouse because of the clothes he and his friend were wearing.
Twenty-seven-year-old David Fulton and his mate turned up at the restaurant in Maidstone expecting to have a lovely meal, but were turned away after falling foul of the dress code.
David and his pal had decided to go out for a meal to celebrate the purchase of his friend's new car - is that a thing? - but were turned away and claim an employee called their attire 'chavvy'.
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He explained to Kent Live how they had even researched the restaurant's clothing policy before they set off, and called ahead to be told that they'd be fine.
The civil servant explained: "We'd driven past [the restaurant] a number of times and we like to try out new places to eat out.
"We noted that they had a dress code and, to make absolutely sure we weren't in any violation of this, both placed individual calls to the restaurant to confirm this.
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"My friend described his exact outfit and the gentleman on the other end confirmed that it was absolutely fine."
Despite their efforts, when showing up in jeans and a t-shirt, David claims he was made to feel like a 'second class citizen' whilst his outfit was judged.
His friend, wearing a t-shirt and shorts, was allegedly deemed to be too casual to enter the dining room.
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David continued: "We drove up on the day and got into the restaurant foyer. The woman at the front desk asked if we had a reservation and I confirmed. She then hesitated to give us a menu and called over a gentleman colleague.
"They both started murmuring to each other whilst physically looking us up and down, paying particular attention to my friends clothing and tattoos. Whilst doing this, the gentleman used the word 'chavvy' to describe, I assume, our clothing.
"The woman then looked at the sign to her left which stated the dress code, looked at me and, patronisingly, asked if I had 'read the dress code', to which we explained we called twice to confirm this."
So, the dress code at Miller & Carter is 'smart casual' and calls for 'no tracksuits, hoodies, sports/work wear'.
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David and his mate believe that they weren't wearing anything that was explicitly forbidden.
After reaching out to the restaurant via email, David was further disappointed to be told that the restaurant is 'heavily monitored by dress code'.
He added: "They categorically refused to address the conduct of their staff and only reiterated their dress code, which did not exclusively prohibit any of the clothing me and my friend were wearing,
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"If I wasn't working from home and had turned up straight from work in my office, there would have been no hesitation to seat us. I can't understand why our money, that we were willing to spend, seemed to not be good enough due to our not-at-all shabby appearance."
In the end, they went to a place called Fido's Bistro, and said it was 'very accommodating' and 'fantastic'.
A Miller & Carter spokesperson said: "We're sorry for any disappointment caused, however we do have a dress code in place at the Steakhouse."
Featured Image Credit: Kent Live