A former employee at fine-dining restaurant Kinship is accusing the chef and owner Eric Ziebold of repeatedly using a racist slur. Klyn Jones, who worked as a kitchen server/food runner at the restaurant, has been staging a protest in front of the Michelin-starred establishment, reportedly leading it to close on Sunday, when it’s typically open.

A TikTok video that went viral over the weekend shows Jones, a Black woman, standing in front of the Shaw restaurant holding a sign alleging that Ziebold “said the words ‘Stupid N—’ to me four times.” She also tells a passerby, who recorded the video, that “The owner is racist and they [customers] should not give their money to this establishment.”

https://twitter.com/Rock_Harper/status/1561314888433119233

Jones told DCist she filed a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and plans to continue her protest at the restaurant. Jones said the alleged incident happened in May and that she’s been asking for an apology for what she called a “repeated use of offensive, vulgar, and racist language.”

“I get overwhelmed easily and never wanted to take drastic action,” Jones said in a statement. “Too often these things get swept under the rug in the restaurant industry.”

She added that her goal has been to inform Kinship patrons, especially Black patrons, of her experience so they can decide whether or not to dine at the restaurant.

In a statement of his own, Ziebold told DCist: “While addressing the concerns of a team member feeling safe in our restaurant, I was asked a question. While stating I would find the proposed behavior unacceptable, I regretfully repeated their word in my response.

He continued: “I should have been more sensitive while trying to assure our team member that I was committed to an environment where they would feel safe. Kinship has always operated under a core set of values advocating diversity, equity and a feeling of respect and belonging. I apologize to those I’ve hurt and will strive to do better in the future.”

Jones refutes Ziebold’s account.

“There is no context that would make the use of a slur, repeatedly, in the workplace appropriate or acceptable,” Jones said in her statement. “It’s hurtful and conveys a deep lack of respect. I hope my protest and statement brings more awareness to these far too common instances of racial harm so they don’t occur in the future. I am still waiting on a genuine apology from Eric.”

Ziebold and Célia Laurent opened Kinship and its downstairs counterpart Métier in 2016, earning Michelin and James Beard recognition, and last year, expanding to a line of home goods. Before Kinship/Métier, Ziebold was the executive chef of CityZen, the lauded restaurant in the Mandarin Oriental hotel, for over a decade.

This is not the first time one of Ziebold’s employees has called out the workplace culture at his restaurants. In 2017, an anonymous line cook told Washington City Paper the kitchen environment at Kinship/Métier was “emotionally draining” and said that Ziebold was prone to berating staff in front of others during service.

In the meantime, Yelp has temporarily blocked new comments on Kinship’s page as the situation unfolds, citing an “influx of people posting their views” from commenters without first-hand experience at the restaurant.

This story has been updated with additional details and a statement from Jones.