Maggiano's Apologizes for Hosting Neo-Nazis, Tila Tequila in Friendship Heights

WASHINGTON, DC — Maggiano's Little Italy in Friendship Heights claims that they had no idea a Neo-Nazi group had booked a reservation at their restaurant, resulting in protests that shut down the restaurant, and now they are pledging to make things right.

Former reality TV star and pro-Adolf Hitler activist Tila Tequila was part of the group, and posted a picture of herself giving the Nazi salute at the event on social media.

The event was hosted Friday night by members of a white supremacist think tank known as the National Policy Institute, which held a conference at the Ronald Reagan Building where they celebrated Donald Trump's election win. After learning of the private banquet at Maggiano's, protesters reportedly showed up the next day, forcing the restaurant to close.

Maggiano's took to Facebook on Monday to apologize for hosting the group, saying that it was the "inadvertent site" of a protest that forced the closure of the restaurant.

"The protesters were upset because of a banquet we were hosting for a group called the National Policy Institute (NPI)," the statement reads. "This was a last minute booking made Friday afternoon, and the reservation was made under a different name, therefore we were not aware that NPI was dining with us or what the group represents. After the event, an attendee sent a tweet in which she made a 'Sieg Heil salute' in support of Hitler and white supremacy. This expression of support of Hitler is extremely offensive to us, as our restaurant is home to Teammates and Guests of every race, religion and cultural background."

The statement goes on to say that ownership wanted to "sincerely apologize" to the Friendship Heights community for hosting the meeting, "which resulted in hateful sentiment." Maggiano's stated that the entire proceeds of Friday's restaurant sales, a total of $10,000, will be donated to the D.C. office of the Anti-Defamation League.

Image via Maggiano's