Cuban Revolution faces social media buzz tumult over one group's experience

One way to get some buzz for a new business, it's said, is to stir up some controversy.

If the owners of Cuban Revolution are in fact trying that strategy, one might have to ask if they're succeeding at it too well.

First up, the American Tobacco eatery and Providence, R.I. import was raising some jeers from the local Latino community before its arrival over what some have taken to be a glamorization of Fidel Castro and Che Guevara.

And while owner Ed Morabito has been quick to note his goal in the imagery has been to simply spark conversation and to create a theming -- one that includes portraits of JFK and Marilyn Monroe, too -- it hasn't stopped some Cuban-Americans and their supporters from expressing concern over the theme, in the comments here and in communication directly with the business.

Last week, the restaurant started getting an entirely different buzz... or is that buzzkill? This time, it started coming in from Durham's African-American community.

We at BCR got word of this a few hours before a note hit Facebook containing complaints from a member of The Young Professionals Experience (TYPE), a group that seeks to draw in young professionals from the Triangle with grad students from Duke, Central and UNC.

And while the group is multiracial in its organizers and members, it draws a uniquely strong presence among young African-American professionals and students (and counts powerful local, largely Af-Am law firm and Durham Committee stalwarts Perry, Perry & Perry among a dozen or so sponsors.)

The complaint? An event at Cuban Revolution on Wednesday night that left some members of TYPE feeling dissatisfied with their experience. TYPE member Stephanie Baker posted this account, excerpted below, to Facebook, a message that's drawn almost 90 comments and replies at this writing:

The conversation was great, graduate students, attorneys, entrepreneurs, business folks, lots of connections were made that evening. Sure, it was annoying that when someone got out of their seat to go meet another person or use the restroom, the waitress would inquire if they were leaving and emphasize they hadn't paid their tab...seriously? We all left, acknowledging it was a pretty good evening...and then comes the craziness.

The next morning, the organizer of our event received a phone call from one of the owner's of Cuban Revolution and the dialogue was as follows:

Let me be very frank with you, I did not like your crowd last night. They were very rude and didn't buy enough food. They were rude to my staff. We don't do events like that. I had told you so and thought you understood, but if you ever come to my restaurant again, I will have you arrested for trespassing." "Excuse me?", I inserted.

"I don't understand", I explained.

The owner closed, "Listen, you don't have to understand! You and your friends are not welcome at my restaurant. If you ever do, I will have you arrested for trespassing. It is private property. That's it."

And, as I was saying ok, "he hung up.  [....]

I'm not sure what he meant by "enough" food, but I do know that the majority of people in attendance ordered something. I also know that there was nobody waiting for a table at the restaurant and that the restaurant would have been empty if we had not been there. Again, I understand as servers you want to turn your tables over fairly quickly to increase sales and tips, but like I said, no one was waiting for a table.

The choice of words, the tone of the conversation, and the threats from the owner of Cuban Revolution was totally unjustified. If he was unhappy with something, there were so many other ways he could have addressed it. I hope that you will take a moment and consider the happenings and come to your own conclusions about why something of this nature might have occurred. Personally, I think it was motivated by the fact that we were all black.

BCR reached Cuban Revolution owner Ed Morabito over the weekend, who apologized for what he twice described as his "boneheadedness" over the Thursday morning phone call, though the owner strongly denied that any racial antagonism was at play.

While not going into details akin to this claimed by the event organizer, Morabito described the call as a poorly-chosen reaction to an event which he said was not fully confirmed, in his mind.

"We should have made it clear -- and I thoguht I had, right at the end [early Wednesday[ before he had this function -- that we really weren't set up for it, and other than a catered buffet or catered per-person event, we really weren't in the business of doing any other kind of event," Morabito said.

The owner noted that the event, originally slated for 300 and then 150 people, was to his mind not confirmed for Wednesday night beyond a small group of perhaps ten people that TYPE organizer CJ Broderick said he'd bring in to the restaurant.

"To make a long story short, I was a litle bit caught off-guard that he had the event at our place," Morabito said, citing staffing and liability concerns over the presence of a large group. "Any event like that, we tend to want to have a contract in hand, know exactly what we're doing, know what our obligations are" so that all parties are "all on the same page," he said.

"When I had learned that there were that many people in the restaurant, that we were not really planing for, I did have a conversation with him," Morabito continued. "But my boneheadedness is not disciminatory, trust me. It was not directed toward them for any reasons other than I thought we were caught off guard."

Morabito noted that he hadn't been aware of TYPE's predominately African-American nature, and added that he was particularly struck, in the wake of this past week's focus on Harvard professor Skip Gates' arrest in Cambridge, Mass., as to how his reaction might have looked from the group's perspective.

The restrauteur elaborated more in an email reply to Baker (also excerpted below) that has also been posted to the Facebook thread:

While I consider myself a very progressive individual and take pride that my restaurant's music selection includes spoken passages from speeches by and artwork of both Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X, your words have struck a chord.

I have watched with a certain degree of horror as the media reported Professor Gates' arrest. I have also read of the feeble attempt of the law enforcement officials as they attempted to explain their actions.

If my actions suggest, as they apparently did, that anyone of any skin color is not welcome in my restaurant, I do sincerely apologize for my lack of sensitivity. Although unintended, you and others have every right to feel offended.

Thank you for your eloquent letter. It has definitely made me rethink the entire situation. I am going to place a call to CJ and apologize for my actions and words.

BCR attempted to find out from other diners at Cuban Revolution what events transpired last Wednesday; a reader dined there earlier (in the 6pm hour) and confirmed that the restaurant was largely empty in advance of the TYPE group's arrival.

We also attempted on Sunday evening to reach TYPE organizer CJ Broderick; we'll post an update to the story once we have a chance to speak with him.

A follow-up message from Baker on the thread confirmed that she and presumably some of TYPE's leaders would be meeting with representatives from Cuban Revolution and possibly American Tobacco in the coming weeks to continue a dialogue on the matter.

Meanwhile, for Morabito -- who's taking a big step in unfamiliar territory with the opening of a new Durham restaurant that burst onto the scene with little prep time and has reportedly been shuttling staff and management between its Rhode Island base and the Bull City -- the restaurateur is quick to point out that he's not seeking to alienate Durham's diverse population.

Heck, Morabito says, the revolution-focused theme has even turned off some of his white customers, he noted ruefully:

"[Friday] a couple came into the restaurant and they alerted one of my servers that they were leaving because they heard one of Malcolm X's speeches come up," Morabito told BCR. "So, you know, to be accused of racial discrimination of any sort was a surprise to me."

What's that we said about controversy being good for business?

Update: One of the servers involved in waiting on the group wrote into BCR with their perspective:

I took over a 10-person table around 10:00 PM when one of the other waiters was getting off work. I was told that he had closed out the people that had already eaten and that some new people had just sat down. The people were coming in in shifts and at first the new people occupied nearby tables at their own choice and since the restaurant was not crowded, I didn't object and let them spread out as they chose. One group had a baby so they wanted to have their own space and I accommodated them with complimentary bread for the baby and a high chair. Another group of three individuals expanded out to a separate table and I helped them as well. I continued to help the people at the large table as they came in. Another table sat themselves adjacent to the large table after a little while. I brought everyone everything they asked for in a timely fashion. I accommodated everyone with separate checks that wanted one.

Most of those "satellite" tables asked for their checks before the larger 10-person table in the middle. CJ left his tab open, though the other people at the table he sat at paid their tab and left. He took his drink over to the other side of the restaurant. When one customer at the 10-person table asked for his tab, I brought the other two open checks I had at that table. One was for a Tanqueray and Tonic and one was for a Chicken Empanada. It didn't seem crazy to me to bring over the open checks for that table at the same time, especially since at this point it was about 11:30 and the restaurant closes at midnight. About the same time that I brought their checks, the individual that had the Chicken Empanada went to the other side of the restaurant. So, I did keep an eye on her because if she did forget that she had ordered that item then I would have to pay for it. When she paid her tab, she did not leave a tip.

CJ paid his tab with me at the very end of the night. He had two Jack Daniels and Coke, which totaled $12. He left a $2 tip.

Comments

[Mintech]

I was unimpressed with my visit to Cuban Revolution. The Ropa Vieja had a ton of rice but little meat stew, and the Sangria tasted EXACTLY like the store-bought Sangria that you can get in bottles at supermarkets (so not very good). In fact, I'm pretty sure it was grocery-store sangria.

Worst part was that the waiter kept touching me on the spine and small of my back, trying to be "friendly" I guess. He did this to my male dining partner too, so it wasn't a gender thing. But it was incredibly annoying and even though I would squirm away he did not seem to get the message. I guess I should have said something, but I thought if I said "please stop touching me" it would be rude and weird, because I know he didn't mean it to be as creepy-feeling as it was.

He was also one of those waiters who feels the need to psychoanalyze you before he gets your order. He asked me how I was, but when I said fine, he kept pressing, saying "you don't look like you're doing fine." So I made up some crap about being tired (honestly I think I looked perfectly normal, even nice). Then he kept pressing with stuff like "you don't look like you're having a good day." I have no idea why he thought this was appropriate or helpful.

[Gabe]

Awesome restaurant! I don't think it should be taken as serious as it has been by some, its something new and spicy for ATC. Definately an upgrade from Symposium!

[5 jack and cokes]

Jon: CJ's place is Cafe Beyond in Chapel Hill http://www.cafebeyondnc.com/

[GreenLantern]

@Mintech: You had the same dish as I did a few days ago. The waiter told me he'd definitely tell the manager about the skimpy portion of meat, but it appears nothing changed for your visit. What did you think of the salt-bread?

[Gary]

Ed Morabito sounds like a moron whose restaurant deserves to go out of business--which, given CR's lukewarm-to-poor reviews combined with this incomprehensible PR fiasco, it certainly will. Way to shoot yourself in the foot before things have even gotten off the ground. Next time, wait a day before making that irate phone call. You may find that it wasn't such a big deal and that the episode isn't worth tanking your business over. Idiot.

[JPL]

I'd just like to add that I know Aurelia (a little), and she's awesome. If I had to work my ass off serving customers, I certainly wouldn't want to pay for the privilege. I don't know if she chased anyone around the restaurant with a check or not, but I certainly would have.

[Tia]

Major Toro:

I think even people who were there who were not associated with the event have attested that the place was virtually empty. Not completely empty, but DEFINITELY not busy...at all...by any stretch of the imagination. If it was not dead, it was because it was on life support. There were people there, but even with the group, there was still seating available. When I arrived, there were some people dining outside and a couple on the inside. Nobody expected this upheaval, so no one was sitting down dissecting everything at the time it happened. I can't tell you exactly how many other people were in the restaurant. Maybe the waitress can. What I can tell you, that should be undisputed, is the restaurant was not busy AT ALL besides the group.

By 8:00 most people have already eaten dinner. The "event" was not scheduled to start until 8. I did not arrive with my family until 9. Some people did not arrive until about 10. They did not close for business until 12. This was a Wednesday night. Nothing anyone in attendance said is inconsistent with what happened.

Basically, this is a group that contemplated eating at Ruth Chris that evening, but decided to come here instead. I have been to similar events at Firebirds, Cheescake Factory, and Champs to name a few. There has never been a catering requirement. Maybe the difference is CR is individually owned? I don't know.

One of the associated groups has a similar meeting (not exactly the same as they have a dj) @ 1013 West Main Street (which is far smaller in my estimation than CR). I go there some Tuesdays as well. I believe them to be individually owned as well. When needed, the person who appears to be the owner starts taking orders, serving drinks, and taking food orders. He always seems very gracious and grateful.

The point being that these events have been happening for years by professional groups and there has never been a catering requirement.

It is unfortunate that the owner made these statements. I hope that he and CJ can sit down and talk about what happened and come to a successful resolution. Let me know if you need a mediator. I understand the owner of the restaurant does not want to have events such as these without it being a catered event. I do not think that he has to worry about it from this group and associated groups in the future.

I think this is a classic example of why you should be cordial to everyone, because you never know who is who, or who knows who. CJ has 3,297 facebook friends, most of which he has likely met their acquaintance. CJ happens to be a Duke Graduate who is a business owner in Chapel Hill. CJ is very committed to the progress of Durham and building personal and business relationships. He has introduced me to everyone from young African American graduate students to Caucasian 55+ year old esteemed businessmen. You just can not tell all of that by looking at him.

[carphone]

restaurauteur? ruely? spellcheck is our friend...

[Will]

Just thumbing through Durham Magazine and couldn't help but laugh at CR's ad with the headline "The Most Talked About Restaurant in Durham"

Talk about your self-fulfilling prophecies!