- Disabled man claims a cafe refused him service because customers complained
- Matthew Cook, who can’t use his arms and legs, has to eat and drink from tubes
- He says a Gloria Jean’s in a Western Australia Westfield said it was ‘unsightly’
Matthew Cook was reportedly denied service at Gloria Jeans because of his feeding tube
A disabled man claims a cafe refused him service because customers complained it was ‘unsightly’ seeing him being fed through a tube.
Perth resident Matthew Cook says employees at a Gloria Jean’s Coffees store in Western Australia denied him a drink out of respect to other customers.
Mr Cook, 35, told Seven the incident occurred ‘because of a few other customers complaining that it was unsightly, and even to give me a coffee in the parents change room.’
Mr Cook was diagnosed with tetraplegia, the loss of control of all four limbs and his torso, after a car accident he suffered nine years ago when he was 26.
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Gloria Jeans allegedly denied service to a wheelchair-bound man after customers complained
He speaks to children at schools about the battle of living with 24-hour care and being confined to his manual wheelchair, which his family helped him raise $5,000 to purchase.
He has to feed and drink through a series of tubes, which staff at the Gloria Jean’s Coffees in Westfield Innaloo deemed inappropriate for its customers.
After learning of the incident, Westfield sent a notice to its vendors reminding them the shopping centre is a ‘place for all the community’.
A spokesperson for Gloria Jean’s also confirmed they had been informed of Mr Cook’s situation and were investigating.
Mr Cook told Channel 7 that Gloria Jeans customers said that his feeding tube was ‘unslightly’
Gloria Jeans has released a statement saying that they will look into the alleged incident
Mr Cook informed Gloria Jeans that staff as Westfield store told him to drink in the bathroom
‘We are saddened to hear about the experiences of some of our guests at our Innaloo coffee house and we are in the process of directly contacting the parties involved to get to the bottom of what has happened.’ the spokesperson said.
‘Gloria Jean’s Coffees is committed to providing outstanding and personal service in a vibrant store atmosphere and we will work to ensure that this tradition continue in the Innaloo community.’
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Mr Cook and Gloria Jean’s for further comment.