Celebrity Coach Johnny Wimbrey was out having dinner with his wife at a semi-popular restaurant in Plano, Texas when he experienced racial bias and was asked to leave.
The re-known motivational speaker dined at Sambuca 360 on Saturday, April 28, with his wife Crystal Wimbrey, when they were approached by the manager and asked to switch tables. However, Johnny kindly declined.
“I said, ‘No I think we want to sit here. We have a great view. It’s only a table for two.’ We declined the offer respectfully,” Johnny told ABC affiliate WFAA.
After refusing to give up his seat to a white “regular” customer, the manager got angry and asked Johnny to leave the restaurant. The entire exchange between the two were caught on video and posted on the life coach’s social media.
“Why are you asking me to leave?” Johnny asked the manager of the restaurant in the video.
“Because I don’t like you,” said the man, who accused Johnny and Crystal of trespassing and called Plano Police.
“I do believe it’s because of who I am and how I look that they asked me to move tables,” the author of “The Art of Science and Success” admitted.
Sambuca 360 released the following statement to WFAA: “We apologize for the miscommunication with our guest on Saturday night, which resulted from a mix-up at our host stand. Sambuca has no tolerance for discrimination and always wants to make every guest feel welcome and respected.”
Johnny told Newsweek, “This is a place where I’ve spent tens of thousands of dollars here, and have rented out this space multiple times… I walked in as a normal person, and I should be able to come in as a normal person and listen to some music.”
He added, “I am not new to first-class treatment and five-star accommodations around the world… But, I’ve never experienced this kind of treatment in my own hometown.”