FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – A Fresno restaurant owner is closing his business over online rumors saying they cook and serve dog meat to customers.
The owner of Tasty Thai on Belmont and First says these allegations are false and he’s now facing threats online and over the phone.
The owner says they have received so much backlash on not only their social media pages, but they have gotten dozens of negative reviews. They say none of it is true and it all started with someone posting a video of a dog at a house next to the restaurant.
“It started spreading like wildfire that we were abusing dogs, torturing dogs, serving dog meat here,” says David Rasavong, the owner of Tasty Thai.
Rasavong says these claims couldn’t be further from the truth. He says it all started when someone posted a video about a dog being tied up without water next door. He says he doesn’t live there and doesn’t own the home but Rasavong says before long commenters concluded the Tasty Thai was putting that dog and others on its menu.
One review he sent us says “Do not eat here!! This place steals dogs and eats them!!” Another saying “Are you seriously torturing and killing dogs here in the States to feed your customers.” Rasavong says a caller told him to go back to his country and used explicit language.
We reached out to the original poster of the video and she has since apologized and called on people commenting to stop sending threats saying she was just concerned about the dog.
Rasavong says he believes the original commenters leaned into harmful Asian stereotypes and says he doesn’t believe this would have happened if he was of a different race.
“We already live in a nation where there’s so much divide. And to just jump. And attack without finding out the fact and the truth and especially basing it on disgusting stereotypes about Asians it’s not right, you need to know better you need to do better,” says Rasavong.
On Tuesday, he made the call to close the business he’s only had open for six months due to safety concerns.
Rasavong says they have filed reports with the Fresno police about the threats, but at this time he says he doesn’t know when they’ll reopen.
