CHARLOTTE — Charlotte-native Tasha McCaskie said she and her friend were excited to go to uptown Charlotte’s new rooftop bar, Novelty House.
She said they tried to go inside but security told her male friends that they couldn’t enter because they were wearing shorts, which was against the dress code.
“Luckily, he had, you know, pants in his trunk, jeans,” McCaskie told Channel 9. “Because I saw white guys with jeans. ‘So, he can’t wear shorts, but he can wear jeans?’ And the guy says, ‘Yes.’ So he goes to the car, puts on jeans and they still deny him.”
McCaskie said the manager eventually let them, including her Black male friend, inside.
[Rooftop bar, cigar lounge open in uptown]
She pulled out her phone and shot a TikTok video to show what others were wearing.
The video showed white men wearing shorts.
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McCaskie and her friends didn’t stay because employees didn’t give them the drinks they ordered.
“The server comes,” McCaskie said. “She takes our order. Never brings the drinks. A white table in front of us gets their drinks. After 20 minutes, we just left.”
The company’s Facebook review page showed similar complaints of discrimination regarding the dress code.
Channel 9 contacted Novelty House and the managing partner said that there was confusion about the dress code.
“We’ve been open for less than a week and there has definitely been some confusion about our dress code, so we have posted some guidelines on our website to help customers better understand our expectations,” the business said in a news release.
McCaskie said she wants an apology from the business. She wants owners and employees to treat customers equally.
“If you are going to establish a business, make sure everything is fair all across the board,” she said. “We are all about inclusion. “Its 2021.”
(Watch the video below: New mural in uptown promotes community, nutritious food)
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