MANASSAS, VA -- Eight police officers were refused service at Buffalo Wild Wings on Wednesday, apparently because they had their weapons displayed.



The Prince William County Police officers were on duty, but were in plain clothes, said Daryl LaClair, a Prince William County resident who wrote a letter to the restaurant chain’s headquarters and started a public awareness campaign regarding the incident.



The group walked into the Buffalo Wild Wings located near Wellington Road and Market Street, but were refused service by an employee who said they had to secure the guns before they would be served.



The officers had their badges displayed but still weren’t served.



Scott Lupton, the general manager of the Manassas Buffalo Wild Wings location, sent an email to LaClair, apologizing for any confusion caused by the incident, which he calls a “huge misunderstanding.”



Lupton said he wasn’t there on Wednesday, but should have been notified immediately. He learned of the incident on Thursday after returning to work.



“… There is no reason why those officers should have been asked to leave … police officers are always welcome in my establishment and even though we do have a no gun policy, as a company that excludes off duty police officer,” Lupton wrote. “As a company we are community oriented. We appreciate everything that police officers do for us.”



Last week he tried to reach out to the officers to apologize, but had not been successful. Lupton said he would reach out to the police department and personally apologize.



“For this to have happened at all is just absurd,” LaClair wrote Friday in an email to Patch.



Lupton said he went down to the Prince William County Police Department with an apology letter, but wasn't able to personally contact the police officers who visited his store.