One ofFresh&Co’slimited-edition bowls has social media in a firestorm.
The New York City-basedhealth foodchain is receiving backlash on their ‘Miso Lucky Bowl,’ which they created earlier this year to celebrate theLunar New Year. The limited-edition bowl made of zucchini noodles, pickled beets, bok choy, avocado, scallions, bean sprouts, and spicy miso vinaigrette “sold so well” that Fresh & Co kept it on the menu, a spokesperson for the company says.
On Friday, the bowl was still on the menu, and some Twitter users took offense with the meal’s name. The tweet that began the backlash came from Twitter user Martin Hui. He saw an ad for the item and called on the company to “fix” their verbiage. “It’s 2018 and casual racism isn’t cool,” he wrote.
Others used it as a teachable moment, and pointed out that making jokes using slogans like that have historically been associated with the stereotype that Asians can’t speak English and that Asian women are “sex objects.”
Upon learning of the backlash on social media, thehealthy restaurantpublicly apologized and tweeted their condolences at multiple users who had expressed their concerns and removed the dish from their menu, a spokesperson for Fresh&Co tells PEOPLE.
“We were not aware of the historical implications + are so thankful that someone flagged them,” the company tweeted. “We’re a tolerant and progressive company + apologize for any offense this may have caused. We’re currently changing the name company-wide. Rest assured that this will not happen again.”
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Lucky Rice, the interactive Asian culinary experience Fresh&Co partnered with to create the bowl, also issued an apology, stating they “dropped the ball on oversight” because they “emphasized the innuendo” in their campaign. They also admitted they were unaware that the item would stay on Fresh and Co’s menu, and said they “hope Fresh & Co is listening and appreciate the dialogue created.”
source: people.com
