Amid pressure from Donald Trump critics, famed chef José Andrés has scrapped plans to open a restaurant in Trump's forthcoming Washington, D.C., hotel, the Washington Post reported.
The Spanish-American restauranteur's decision comes in response to a Change.org petition that demanded he rethink his plan to open an eatery in the $200 million Trump property being constructed out of the old Post Office Pavilion. The petition's author cited Trump's "insensitive remarks against Mexican immigrants" as reason for Andrés to sever ties with the business mogul and Republican presidential candidate.
As of Wednesday afternoon, the petition had acquired over 2,700 signatures.
"Donald Trump's recent statements disparaging immigrants make it impossible for my company and I to move forward with opening a successful Spanish restaurant in Trump International’s upcoming hotel in Washington, D.C.," Andrés said in a statement Wednesday. "More than half of my team is Hispanic, as are many of our guests. And, as a proud Spanish immigrant and recently naturalized American citizen myself, I believe that every human being deserves respect, regardless of immigration status."
Unfortunately for Andrés and his ThinkFoodGroup restaurant empire, backing out of the deal may not be so easy. Trump's son, Donald Trump Jr., responded in a statement that the chef "has no right to terminate" the contract, which allegedly spanned 10 years.
"In the event Mr. Andrés defaults in the performance of his obligations, we will not hesitate to take legal action to recover all unpaid rent for the entire 10 year term together with all attorneys’ fees and additional damages we may sustain," explained Trump Jr. "We will also enforce the exclusivity provisions preventing Mr. Andrés from opening a competing restaurant anywhere in the D.C area."
The hotel, due for completion in 2016, will sit blocks from the White House in the nation's capital.
Multiple organizations such as NBCUniversal, Univision, and Macy's have terminated business relationships with Trump in the aftermath of his controversial statements on illegal immigration. He is suing Univision for $500 million.