The owner of a Dallas restaurant on Monday apologized after Donald Trump Jr. and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) celebrated a birthday at the restaurant with “an Obama cake” he said was not created by the restaurant.
Trump Jr. on Sunday posted photographs of himself and Cruz at the restaurant with a dessert resembling a cookie cake that featured a vague depiction of former President Barack Obama. He described the creation as “an early 40th birthday cake” given to him by “some good friends.”
In a statement, Stephan Courseau, the owner of Le Bilboquet Dallas, apologized for “the unfortunate circumstances” and called it “distasteful.”
“This morning a lot of you have been shocked and appalled to hear that Donald Trump Jr. and Ted Cruz celebrated a birthday of a friend at Le Bilboquet with a cake with our former president Barack Obama’s face on it,” Courseau said. “Let me be clear, I share your indignation without any reservation.”
He said Trump Jr. and Cruz “were attending a birthday celebration of one of our regular patrons who rented out our venue for a private event.”
“The party was not for either one of them nor was it any kind of partisan rally,” Courseau said. “Someone that attended the party brought in an outside cake for Donald Trump Jr.’s upcoming birthday and we are not sure who that was.”
Courseau said he was not working on Sunday “and could not intervene in the unfortunate circumstances that unfolded.”
“I believe I owe you an explanation and an apology,” he said. “We at Le Bilboquet feel betrayed and sad.”
Courseau said that the restaurant’s “friends and patrons represent a wide spectrum of American beliefs including: Republicans, Democrats, and Independents.”
“The fact that guests decided to use our restaurant as a platform to promote, disrespect, and spread hatred goes against everything we stand for,” he said. “I am truly sorry that such distasteful events happened at our venue and that these circumstances brought me to write this statement today.”
Corseau posted the statement on Instagram. Though the post is no longer available, D Magazine published its contents.
Courseau was not immediately available in response to TPM’s request for comment.
