Smashburger Kicks Family Out Over Boy’s Service Dog

Popular burger joint Smashburger is under fire for kicking out a family that had come to the establishment with a service dog. Megan Moon and her family were attempting to eat at a Las Vegas Smashburger with their service dog, Medic, who helps Megan’s 9 year old diabetic son. The service dog is trained to react when the boy’s blood sugar is off balance.

However, one of the managers at the burger joint saw the dog asleep and allegedly told Megan “I see you have a dog, he’s not allowed to be in our store. We don’t allow pets. You’re going to have to eat outside.”

Moon says the manager made things worse by saying, “I’m not allowing it to happen. Let’s just not make a big deal out of it.” However, Moon replied back, “I am going to make a big deal about it.”

Following the exchange, the manager canceled the family’s food order, reimbursed them for the cost of the meal and told them to leave the restaurant. Moon tells KTNV, “We were embarrassed. There were other people in the restaurant looking at us like we were causing a scene… like we had done something wrong.”

According to the Americans with Disabilities Act, service dogs have specifically been trained to “work” for people with medical conditions, which means they are safe to travel nearly anywhere in public, including hospital rooms. Furthermore, the dogs are so well trained and trained to handle specific responsibilities to help aid the person or persons they are with.

Following the incident, Smashburger sent a statement to Yahoo Lifestyle stating, “First and foremost, Smashburger respects and welcomes guests of all abilities. Smashburger supports and adheres to the applicable ADA guidelines involving service and support animals, as they pertain to quick service restaurants. We have launched an internal investigation into the matter, and will use this opportunity to reinforce our policies around service animals.”