ATLANTA — An NBA Hall of Famer who spent most of his career with the Atlanta Hawks says he was refused service restaurant at a Buckhead restaurant known for it’s French Bistro style food.
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Hawks legend and broadcaster Dominique Wilkins posted on Twitter Saturday that he’d been turned away from grabbing a meal at Le Bilboquet restaurant in the “Shops of Buckhead” plaza. Wilkins posted a photo on Twitter and said the restaurant denied him service.
Wilkins believes he was turned away due to the color of his skin.
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The restaurant was made aware of the post later in the day and posted a response stating:
“We do our best to accommodate all of our guests. We have a “business casual” dress code which includes jeans & sneakers but prohibits athletic clothing including sweat pants & tops. The definition of “casual” is ever evolving, we strive to maintain our policy requirements daily.”
Wilkins did add later in the day that he wouldn’t have had an issue if they had said there were no tables available at the restaurant. He added that restaurant staffers looked him “up and down” and told him the clothes he was wearing were not appropriate.
Wilkins says he was wearing “designer casual pants and a shirt.”
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Dominique Wilkins played for the Hawks for 12-years. He attended and played basketball at the University of Georgia before he was drafted by the Utah Jazz in 1982 and was traded to Atlanta shortly after.
The nine-time NBA All Star has a statue in front of State Farm arena in downtown Atlanta, where is jersey hangs in the rafters.
Nicknamed the “Human Highlight Film” Wilkins was enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006 and has been the “vice-president of basketball” for the Hawks since 2004. He’s also an analyst for the team’s television broadcasts during the NBA season.
