Bizarre feud erupts between Ivanka Trump and celebrity chef, who claims she prevented him from entering swanky Washington after-party
Win McNamee/Getty Images
- Celebrity chef Jose Andrés accused Ivanka Trump of blocking him from going to a Washington, DC, after-party last weekend.
- The feud has now entered its second day.
- Trump has denied she prevented him from entering the event.
A bizarre feud erupted last weekend between celebrity chef José Andrés and Ivanka Trump, as Andrés claimed Trump prevented him from entering a Washington, DC, restaurant.
Andrés on Sunday tweeted a photo of himself outside Cafe Milano, a DC establishment that hosted the Saturday after-party for the annual Alfalfa Club dinner, which The New York Times described as "a gathering of political types known for speeches with self-deprecating humor." Andrés claimed that Trump, President Donald Trump's daughter and an assistant to the president, denied him entry to the party, asking restaurant owner Franco Nuschese to keep him out.
A number of prominent allies quickly jumped to Andrés' aid. Television personality Anthony Boudain said it was "loathsome" and a "grotesque betrayal," while former Mexican ambassador to China Jorge Guajardo tweeted that Andrés was asked to leave "because his presence made Ivanka Trump uncomfortable."
The history between Andrés and the Trump family extends beyond this feud. Andrés was supposed to open a restaurant in the president's DC hotel prior to its grand opening in late 2016. But he pulled out of the lease after comments Trump made about Mexican immigrants along the campaign trail. The two entered litigation and settled a lawsuit last year.
But after a text-message conversation with Ivanka later on Sunday, Andrés tweeted that he then didn't believe she "personally" had anything to do with the incident. She said in a statement that she "had nothing to do with anything that transpired relating to him last night at the restaurant," adding that she was "thankful" for the celebrity chef's "clarification."
But by Sunday evening, Andrés returned to his original position.
"Let's not confuse my trying to Be generous and move on, with anything else," he tweeted. "What happened happened and I stand by my account. I'm ready to move on."
He told The Times that guests told him they saw Ivanka and Nuschese talking at the after-party.
"I was told I was not on the list. I was told I was not welcome," he said. "I was told I was making people uncomfortable."
"It didn't make any sense that I was the only one not allowed in," he added.
Andrés told the publication that his earlier tweet about Ivanka not being "personally" involved was just his effort to "take the high road."
"I'm not a perfect boy, but I am a good boy," he said.
Nuschese told The Times that he did not speak to Ivanka at the party, however, adding that Andrés was not on the guest list for the event.
"I'm sorry he was upset," Nuschese said. "It was a big misunderstanding. We both paid a big price."
But Andrés insisted that there was no guest list for the after-party.
"Nobody was checking anybody," he said.
On Monday, Andrés tweeted that "someone with connections" to Ivanka "made the call not the let me in."
"Could be she didn't know, but it did happen," he added. "And this is not the Washington we know."
Thank you @CafeMilanoDC Franco Nuschese! I was a guest of the #alfalfaclubdinner2018 "everyone"welcome to the after party, but I'm the only individual not allow in? Is because @IvankaTrump told you so? You should be ashamed of yourself Franco.@washingtonpost pic.twitter.com/iJ5wQM18Z6
- José Andrés (@chefjoseandres) January 28, 2018
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