Former Trump DC hotel chef said that suppliers 'were suddenly sending' rotten produce and lower-quality meat after he started working there
- BLT Prime, the Trump DC restaurant hotel, often received rotten produce, according to a former chef.
- According to the Washingtonian, food suppliers sent the chef "rotten produce and subpar cuts of meat."
- Rudy Giuliani was a regular presence at the restaurant and treated his table like a workspace.
While the BLT Prime restaurant at the Trump International Hotel in Washington DC was marketed for its upscale sensibilities, it often received spoiled produce, the steakhouse's former executive chef told Washingtonian magazine.
With former President Donald Trump out of office and living at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida, several employees spoke out about their experiences at the hotel.
After Bill Williamson, the executive chef of BLT Prime at the Trump International Hotel from February 2018 to March 2020, joined the restaurant, food suppliers whom he had successfully worked with in the past "were suddenly sending him rotten produce and subpar cuts of meat and fish," according to Washingtonian.
"I guarantee someone in that warehouse picking this product saw where it was going and was like, 'Oh, f--- it, give 'em this stuff,'" Williamson said.
Former executive chef Shawn Matijevich, who worked at BLT for part of 2017 and 2018, said that a green supplier whom he used in the past stopped working with him, saying their "conscience" precluded them from servicing the hotel restaurant.
Williamson also noted that Rudy Giuliani was a frequent presence at BLT Prime and had a regular table, despite performing more work duties than perusing the restaurant menu.
"It was pretty much his office," he told Washingtonian. "He was doing more paperwork there than eating. Some days, he'd be there all day."
While the coronavirus pandemic forced the restaurant to temporarily shutter last year, once restrictions were gradually lifted, supporters of the former president were often spotted dining sans masks, which forced staffers to ask guests to use their face coverings.
"I doubt as many restaurants in the city have to put up with grown men rolling their eyes when we ask them to put on their masks," a former employee said.
According to the magazine, several employees are concerned that they may not be able to find new positions if they list the restaurant on their résumés.