Emtee Calls Out Restaurant on Alleged Discrimination

Rapper Emtee claims to have been being subjected to racial profiling at a local restaurant.

On Tuesday, 12 March, Emtee – real name Mthembeni Ndevu – shared a screenshot via Instagram of an email written by lawyer Dumisani Motsamai to Chris van Zyl, the CEO of the popular restaurant franchise Mike’s Kitchen.

In the email, Motsamai addressed his client’s grievances: “On Monday 11 March 2024, [Emtee’s] official driver dropped him and his friends off at Mike’s Kitchen in Parktown [in Johannesburg, Gauteng], where they intended to have dinner before going to the studio.

“They were, however, unable to enter the eatery, as they were refused entry, ostensibly because they were ‘smelling of weed’ and ‘had too many tattoos’; they were further escorted out of the premises into the street where they stood stranded, their driver having now left.”

Decrying this as an act of “harassment and racial profiling”, Emtee demanded a public apology from Van Zyl by Wednesday, 13 March, or else he would take the issue to court.

In response to Emtee’s post, Mike’s Kitchen issued a statement via Instagram the same day: in it, they distanced themselves from the Parktown eatery, claiming that it operates independently from them.

They also reiterated their stance on racial inclusivity, and extended an invitation to Emtee and his friends to experience “true hospitality at one of our stores.”

Image Credit: Source