Cafe's conflict with vegans descends into epic online war

A cafe in Dublin is locked in an all-out war with vegans after the manager wrote a terse Facebook post asking vegan customers to give the cafe advance notice if they planned to come in and ask for food that’s not on the regular menu:

The post on The White Moose cafe’s Facebook page went largely unnoticed until two days ago, when one commenter wrote, “Wow, you guys really are rude. I’m sure you think it’s funny but it actually comes across as pretty childish and unprofessional. I’m sure the vegans of Dublin will be delighted to waltz else where with their idiosyncratic notions.”

Things then escalated, fast. In another post, White Moose manager Paul Stenson said that the cafe had received over 1,000 1-star Facebook reviews from vegans in the last 24 hours.

“So guys, whatever you do, keep up the negative reviews, spread the word about us around the globe, and most importantly, abuse and hate me WITH CONVICTION. Come on lads, you are supposed to be vegans,” he wrote, before challenging vegans to leave at least 5,000 negative reviews before midnight tonight:

The cafe then made this anti-vegan cartoon its cover photo on Facebook:

There are now no less than five Facebook pages full of people fighting it out over the White Moose Cafe, and what they believe are the merits/evils of veganism in general.

At one point Stenson, who said his parents own the cafe, wrote that vegans are now banned:

That was a step too far for some. One commenter said he should be reported to the police. “You’re just lucky no one’s taken screenshots to the gardaí [the Irish police]. Even threats will find you in prison for intent and your parents’ restaurant shuttered.”

Stenson, in return, suggested the vegans writing back to his posts can’t take a joke. “Your naivety when it comes to this Facebook page, your lack of humour (inability to comprehend satire) when it comes to my posts and your continued writing of negative reviews without having set foot in our café is now beginning to make you look like complete and utter twats as a community,” he wrote. He then posted that the cafe would offer a £5 meat-heavy Irish breakfast for non-vegans.

Apparently this is not the first time Stenson has reacted to customer criticism by lashing out online. Earlier this month, the Belfast Telegraph reports, a customer wrote appears to have written a negative review of the cafe on Facebook. The cafe responded by posting CCTV footage of the customer while she she was eating.