A HOTEL owner in Co. Louth was left shocked after receiving a number of poor online reviews, simply because he refused to break Covid-19 guidelines.
Terry McKevitt of McKevitts Village Hotel in Carlingford said he refused two diners after discovering they came from Dublin last week.
Current guidelines state that customers must provide their Eircode, and as Dublin is currently in lockdown, no one from there is allowed to be served.
After being informed of this, the disgruntled customers promptly took to TripAdvisor to leave a review of the hotel, and Terry was flabbergasted by what they wrote.
The one-star review, titled "Avoid this place" reads: "My parents went in here for lunch and a young lady member of staff promptly approached them and demanded their Eircode.
"As our Eircode starts with a D, she promptly interrupted, declaring that they will not be serving anyone from Dublin.
"Understandably it was very humiliating for my parents to be denied service in front of all those people.
"This den of ignorance should not be frequented by any right minded individuals.
"My parents moved their custom where the staff were polite and happy to receive customers. I'll make certain when the current crisis is over that not a solitary individual known to myself will be darkening the door of this establishment as long as it stands."
Owner Terry McKevitt said in a reply: "We do not apologise for protecting our customers both old and new in these trying times."
He added: "We accept all feedback whether it be positive or negative. However we feel like this type of review is very unfair.
"Since our reopening on June 29th we have taken every precaution to ensure the safety of our customers and staff.
"We have completed all Covid-19 safety charter criteria. As a result we have passed Fáilte Ireland inspection and are proud to be registered as Covid-19 compliant premises.
McKevitts Village Hotel is just a short drive from Co. Dublin"Part of these changes has been to abide by all government guidelines in relation to Covid-19.
"We made the decision as a business to not accept guests from any county affected by government restrictions as a protective measure for all."
Mr McKevitt described the criticism as a "slap in the face," particularly given the struggles the hospitality industry is currently facing.
"I can't believe we have been slated for trying to do the right thing and abide by these restrictions," he told the Irish Independent.
"We always ask customers for their addresses for contact tracing purposes and that's why the Dublin Eircode came to light.
"We have 26 staff and since reopening, we have tried hard to keep them all in jobs and keep them safe and we will continue to do that," he added.
