Illinois family says they were asked to leave Morton’s The Steakhouse after another customer complained they smelled like marijuana

A Black family in Illinois says they were recently asked to leave Morton’s The Steakhouse. Staff allegedly told the family that another customer had complained about a marijuana smell coming from their table. The family had gone to the restaurant to celebrate Father’s Day. They recorded the interaction and shared the video on Instagram.

In the clip, a staff member tells the family that the alleged marijuana smell counted as an offensive odor, meaning the restaurant could no longer serve them. The woman filming the encounter argued back with the staff member. She also commented on his appearance, telling him his red hair “isn’t professional for this restaurant either.” As the family got ready to leave and handed back their menus, the employee said, “I apologize.”

The family member who posted the video made their frustration clear in the caption. They accused the restaurant of discrimination and called on others to boycott the business. They wrote, “Do not support @mortonssteak this is discrimination.” 

Online reaction to the video has split sharply along two main lines

The caption also claimed that other customers are often allowed inside while smelling like cigarettes or other substances without facing the same treatment. The poster also insulted the employee, writing, “[Expletive] your hair is offensive [expletive] on.”

Since the video spread online, people have reacted in very different ways. Some viewers backed the family strongly, calling the incident a clear case of mistreatment. One commenter wrote, “The way black people are treated in America is disgraceful! Black people built this country and still get treated like they’re sub-human. The audacity of these WHITES is unsettling. There will come a day when blacks have had enough & cause havoc just because! Mark my words….” 

Another commenter pushed back on that framing of race, asking, “Are you seriously saying only the black smoke weed????” A large number of other viewers sided with the restaurant instead. Many said private businesses have the right to set rules about odors and to act on complaints from other diners in order to keep a certain atmosphere. 

This isn’t the first time a steakhouse chain has faced public scrutiny over how it treats customers, as seen in a separate dispute over a steak topping at a different chain that also drew heavy online attention. One commenter who said they also smoke wrote, “I smoke and I don’t want to sit next to someone who smells like that either.” Another said, “I’m so tired of smelling weed in public. This man is a hero.”

Several other comments focused on how the woman filming the video behaved during the exchange. One person wrote, “Funny how she went straight to physical appearance on him.” Another commenter brought up race directly, writing, “Black Yellow Green Purple Pink Red …. does not matter. 

Self Dignity, Courtesy … matters. Well done!” Disputes like this one often turn into a wider discussion about how businesses handle customer complaints, especially when a customer feels they were treated unfairly.

Some commenters questioned the family’s motives for being asked to leave in the first place. One wrote, “They were gonna dash and everyone knows it.” Others criticized how the family conducted themselves in front of their child, with one commenter writing, “What an example they just set for their child. Just pathetic behavior all around.” As of writing, Morton’s Steakhouse did not publicly address the accusation.