Restaurant apologises for 'offensive' 9/11 menu

The manager of a restaurant in Virginia has issued an apology after releasing a controversial special menu themed around the terrorist attack on 9/11.

According to a Virginia tourism website, the Clubhouse at Aquia Harbour restaurant is typically home to food described as 'American-casual with a dash of New Orleans style and a pinch of Italian'.

Customers can get their hands on a variety of dishes including appetisers, entrees, and desserts, but recently the menu got a bit of a shake up, with some new names applied to the food on offer.

Images captured online reveal the restaurant was offering dishes such as the 'Remember-tini', 'Flight 93 Redirect' and 'Pentagon Pie'.

Also on the menu was the 'First Responder Flatbread', which consisted of a 'crispy oven baked flat bread loaded with tender shrimp, fresh tomato, spinach, garlic and mozzarella, as well as '9-11 Oysters' and the 'Never Forget Sampler', which offered customers the chance to get their hands on a bit of everything from the themed menu.

The release of the menu was quickly met with backlash, with one person describing the offer as a 'sick joke' while others questioned whether it was actually real.

"This can’t be real," one appalled internet user wrote, adding: "Can’t be. Please tell me this is not real."

Another comment reads: "Who in their right mind would think this is okay?"

Following the criticism, George White, a manager at The Clubhouse at Aquia Harbour, issued an apology on Facebook in which he said he was sorry for 'those [he] offended with the 9/11 seafood Sunday post'.

"My intention was to bring attention to that horrific day 21 years ago," he continued. "To honor [sic] those who lost so much as well as those who gave everything that day. We will have a new theme tomorrow."

This Sunday, 11 September, will mark 21 years since aircraft were highjacked in the United States as part of the terror attack which left almost 3,000 people dead.

The menu for The Clubhouse at Aquia Harbour appeared to allude to the number of people killed in the incident with the '2977 Chowder'.

Two of the planes crashed into the World Trade Centre's Twin Towers on the morning of 11 September, with the second hitting the tower just as evacuations were underway. A third plane hit the Pentagon in Virginia, and a fourth crashed in a field in Pennsylvania.

UNILAD has reached out to White for comment.

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