A New York City coffee shop banned a Jewish Congressman from the establishment on Sunday, stating that they "don't serve racists, fascists, homophobes, genocide enablers" after Democratic Congressman Dan Goldman visited the cafe with his child.
Poetica Coffee, a chain with seven locations across New York City, posted a photo of Democratic Congressman Dan Goldman on Facebook and Instagram. It was captioned, "We see that you stopped by our coffee shop today for a coffee. Do you see how it doesn’t taste like genocide juice?"
"We don’t serve racists, fascists, homophobes, genocide enablers. Too bad we didn't recognize you right away, or we would have turned you away."
The shop claims to have issued Goldman an unrequested refund for $9.82, saying, "We issued you a refund - we don't need your money (it's probably coming from AIPAC anyways)."
They alluded to the primary challenge Goldman is facing in tomorrow's election, saying, "Enjoy your loss on Tuesday. Don't ever come to Poetica."
The post was accompanied by the song "F*** you" by British singer-songwriter Lily Allen.
Poetica's Instagram account and the Lorimer Street Branch's Facebook page appear to have been taken down since.
Doubling down on antisemitism
Shortly before the account was deleted, Poetica Coffee posted a screenshot of a threatening email from "ilovehitler@hitlerwasright.com" saying "F*** you Nazi. May you die painfully," with the caption "well, well, well."
On their website, Poetica boasts "Radical hospitality," saying that "the guest is sacred, the books are unbanned, and the door is open to everyone."
Goldman is a Jewish centrist and is critical of the Israeli government and the war in Gaza. Although he supports Israel's existence, he has called the war a "humanitarian crisis," and described the current coalition as an "extremist government" that "unjustly hurts Palestinians."
He commented on the post, saying that his seven-year-old daughter needed to use the bathroom, and he made the purchase as a thank-you.
Responses to the post
New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani responded to the incident, saying, "I'm glad Poetica took down their post, and I thought Representative Goldman's reply was extremely gracious."
Radio host Ari Hoffman said in a post on X/Twitter that "This story proves that no matter how left you are, you can never be left enough for the radicals."
Rabbi Elchanan Poupko, President of EITAN - The American Israeli Jewish Network, added in his own X post that "I would love to better understand your process for accepting or denying service in your store, because I believe that, if this indeed happened, denying Dan Goldman service would violate civil rights law."
Mark Treyger, CEO of the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, issued a statement, saying, "Assigning collective blame to Jews or perceived supporters of Israel over disagreements with Middle East policies is the very definition of antisemitism."
"It is shameful and hateful, and businesses open to the public do not get to discriminate based on religion, ancestry, ethnicity, or stereotypes."