Customers of Corralito Steak House in El Paso, Texas, were shocked when they arrived at the restaurant expecting a hearty dinner only to be met with insults directed at their intelligence and their nation. This restaurant assumed that its challenges were unique when every other business was closing due on the epidemic. Staff shortages became frequent throughout the United States after President Trump’s economic collapse in 2020. This consequently caused millions of people to lose their jobs and have to fend for themselves during one of the world’s worst pandemics in more than a century.
A diner captured a photo of the Corralito Steak House’s sign, which was posted near the eating tables. The notice informed guests that they were understaffed and wished them to wait with patience, but it also blamed the government for making it difficult for them to serve meals as if the federal government hadn’t given them assistance in the form of the Paycheck Protection Program, which gave businesses thousands of dollars to keep employees on duty.
The message that caused the issue was: “Sadly, due to government handouts, no one wants to work anymore. Therefore, we are short-staffed. Please be patient with the staff that did choose to come to work today, and remember to tip your server. They chose to show up to serve you.”
After the billboard went viral on social media, journalists from Texas’s KTSM 9 News contacted the steak house to obtain a statement — but the establishment has remained quiet in the hopes that everything will go away and consumers would cease focusing on their rude message to clients.
What makes El Paso’s Corralito Steak House’s government handouts even worse is that they received $1,000,000 in the form of Paycheck Protection Program benefits.
Veronica Frescas was the person who first noticed the offensive sign and decided to act about it. According to a June report by KTSM, Frescas took a picture of the sign and posted it on social media so that people would understand that the steak house was managed by hypocrites.
“I understand a lot of us are frustrated, but there could’ve been a better way to say something,” stated Frescas. “We’re still all in this together, and, for something like that, it didn’t seem like it was very El Paso strong.”
The restaurant was willing to accept government handouts, which commenters found insulting – but the same people criticize others for doing the same. Rather than having their employees rely on tips, other people suggested that the restaurant should pay their servers a living wage so they can make ends meet.
Some Texas-based businesspeople are aware that steak houses like this one are having difficulties competing with national chains. However, the Texas Restaurant Association’s Leo Duran thinks that employers must increase compensation in order to remain competitive.
“If you’re going to survive, you’ve got to compete, and wages are really the baseline of what employees are interested in,” stated the president-elect of the Texas Restaurant Association. “Just trying to shake off this pandemic and realize that we’re going out of it; let’s get back on our feet and get back to work.”
The restaurant has yet to issue a statement in response to the viral sign – but we will definitely update you when they do. Meanwhile, tell us what you think about this billboard and Corralito Steak House’s decision to display it in the comments below.
