NYC Restaurant Cancels Gay Couple's Wedding for “Bad Feng Shui”: Suit

A West Village restaurant manager is being sued by a gay couple after he allegedly canceled the couple's wedding party, claiming same-sex parties were "bad for feng shui," according to a published report.

The manager of Asian fusion restaurant Amber Village, which shuttered in June, is being sued for unspecified damages after he ordered an employee to cancel a rehearsal dinner and wedding reception catering for Barrett Greene and Thomas Eng, according to the Daily News

Greene, 50, a plumbing contractor from upstate New York, and Eng, 38, a Manhattan-based computer professional, decided in March to have their wedding rehearsal dinner at Amber Village, the newspaper reports. The couple also wanted to have the eatery cater their wedding. 

Greene met with the restaurant manager, Tommy Ho, to plan a rehearsal dinner for 40 people and reception food for 200 guests, according to court documents obtained by the newspaper. Greene paid a $750 deposit on his credit card. 

One week later, a senior manager, identified only as Mr. Fong, summoned Ho and told him to cancel the rehearsal dinner, the Daily News reports. 

"Fong was visibly angry and told Ho that he didn't want any 'gay parties' at Amber Village," the suit alleges.

Fong allegedly told Ho to "make an excuse" and tell Greene and Eng that the restaurant would not be able to accommodate the rehearsal dinner or cater the wedding reception.

"Fong told Ho that it's 'very bad' for Amber Village to book 'gay parties' and that big groups of 'gay partyers' are especially bad for feng shui," court documents stated.

Then Fong fired Ho, whom the Daily News could not reach for comment. 

The newspaper could not reach the restaurant owner for comment, but the manager at a sister restaurant denied the company discriminated against gay customers. 

"This is the West Village," said Bo Lee. "We don't turn away anyone. We have gay managers."

Lee said feng shui "has to do with luck and fortune. It has to do with where do you put your plants and flowers, your furniture. It has nothing to do with who are your clients."

Greene and Eng are seeking unspecified damages, and said Amber Village -- which closed in June -- never refunded  their deposit. 

The Daily News observes the couple had a happy ending: the two got married at the Midtown Loft and Terrace on June 9. 

Contact Us