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Restaurant closes doors for 'day of kindness' to recover after tough customers make staff cry
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Restaurant closes doors for 'day of kindness' to recover after tough customers make staff cry

A Massachusetts restaurant closed its doors to honor a "day of kindness" after irate customers reportedly made staff cry.

What are the details?

Apt Cape Cod restaurant in Brewster, Massachusetts, announced that it would be closed for breakfast on Friday, Mass Live reported, for employees to take advantage of a "day of kindness."

In a Facebook post on the temporary closure, the restaurant said, "As many of our guests and patrons treat us with kindness and understanding, there have been an astronomical influx daily of those who do not, swearing at us, threatening to sue, arguing and yelling at my staff, making team members cry. This is an unacceptable way to treat any human."

"Please remember that many of my staff are young, this is their first job, or summer job to help pay for college. We have had to make adjustments due to the increase in business volume, size of kitchen, product availability and staffing availability, we are not trying to ruin anyone's vacation or day off," the statement added.

What else?

Apt Cape Cod owner Brandi Felt Castellano told WHDH-TV that customers have been increasingly upset about wait times and more.

“Patrons have crossed the line from being just like rude or upset to verbally abusive," Castellano revealed. “They told one of our workers that 'I hope you get hit by a car when you leave work today.'"

“It just makes them like not wanting to come to work, the young ones crying or going home and crying," Castellano added.

Castellano added that customers have been more polite since announcing the temporary closure.

“These are people who are showing up every day for work and they are human beings and that's what everyone needs just to be nice to everybody, everywhere," Castellano told the station.

On the closure, a spokesperson for the restaurant told The Hill, "We decided to close for the morning because we wanted our staff to know that they have value to us, not just as employees but also as humans. Everyone should be treated with kindness and respect, no one deserves to berated."

The restaurant owners added that they hope the decision to close — which they said was met with a vast positive response — resonates with the hospitality industry across the country.

"The response not just from our own small community, but from all over the country has been humbling and overwhelmingly supportive," the spokesperson told the outlet. "And now we hope that our act of kindness for our employees turns into a movement of kindness for everyone."

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