UPDATE: Cafe owner stood up to racist ‘tip’ note, and the internet trolls attacked

A couple in their mid-40s walked into Under the Moon Cafe in Bordentown City on Thursday night. They enjoyed a piece of cake, complimented the food and decor, paid their bill and left.

But while she was cashing out, the owner said, the server noticed they left her something else. Scrawled on the back of the check in big, black lettering, were the words “Don’t Tip Immigrants!!!”

The note was left by a couple in their mid-40s who paid in cash, the owner said.

Owner Santiago Orosco said he was appalled when he saw the waitress post about it on Facebook. To protect her privacy, he made his own post to make his point — racist customers are not welcome at Under the Moon.

“There’s no home in my restaurant for hatred, bigotry, racism, homophobia, discrimination. If anyone feels the same way, don’t come back,” he said.

Orosco believes the note, which didn’t include a tip, was left for the American-born server after the couple overheard she was speaking Spanish to another coworker. Her family emigrated from Uruguay more than three decades ago.

Since they paid in cash, he has no way of finding the couple. Orosco called it a “cowardly move."

Orosco, himself an Argentinean immigrant, said while racism has always been around, it’s become worse for Latinos more recently.

“(It’s) ignorance, plain and simple. And a sense of entitlement too,” he noted.

People could be under the impression immigrants get things handed to them, Orosco explained. He came to America with his parents in 1991, worked his way up from a dishwasher and has owned the restaurant for 13 years. He opened up a second location in Lambertville last year.

“My thing is, if she went to a Chinese restaurant and people were speaking Chinese, would she reacted the same way? If people were speaking French or German, would she have left the note?” he added. “My place is supposed to be a loving, cozy restaurant, and my family and I worked our asses off to get what we have today. We don’t need that hatred here.”

I apologize in advance for what may be a lengthy post. Thursday night we had a couple come in to dine at our restaurant,... Posted by Santiago Aristides on Saturday, January 26, 2019

He said the support from the community has been overwhelming, with friends and customers far and wide sending him encouraging messages.

“It’s to the point of tears to see such a support for me, my family and the restaurant,” he said. “It’s overwhelming but reassuring that there’s these people out there. There’s much nicer people.”

His only message to the couple that left the bigoted note? “Don’t come back.”

Sophie Nieto-Munoz may be reached at snietomunoz@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her at @snietomunoz. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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