Furious face-tattooed diner labels Melbourne restaurant 'racist' after being turned away at the door because of eatery's 'strict policy'



Criminals often  sport heavy tattoos so the restaurant had reasonable fears that this guy would make them look bad.  They were wise to turn him away

A man sporting a traditional Maori face tattoo was turned away from a restaurant due to its 'strict policy'.

Gary Harding, a Maori man now living in Melbourne, tried to enter the hotel in St Kilda, Melbourne, on Saturday when the bouncer stopped him at the door.

Mr Harding told RNZ the bouncer told him he couldn't let him into the establishment due to his facial tattoos. 'He quickly says, ''I can't let you in with all those facial tattoos all over your face'',' Mr Harding said.

'And I was pretty shocked by his response, and I say ''are you for real mate?'', and he's like ''yeah, it's not a good look, we've got a strict policy around facial tattoos''.'

After attempting to explain his Ta moko tattoo was different from other facial tattoos Mr Harding was still refused entry and started to leave the premises.

Mr Harding also spoke with ABC News about the cultural significance of a Ta Moko facial tattoo.

'It talks about your lineage, it talks about your heritage, it talks about your rank within your community and what you've done for your community,' he said.

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