Irish traveller family wins £20,000 payout after Belfast restaurant refused to serve them when they went out for meal following deaths of two of their sons

• Patrick Joyce and his family were asked to leave the Cuisine Buffet, Belfast 

An Irish Traveller family has won a £20,000 payout after a restaurant refused to serve them as a court ruled they were unlawfully discriminated against on the grounds of race. 

Patrick Joyce, his wife and two adult children were reportedly asked to leave the Cuisine Buffet at Cityside, York Street, Belfast, after they took their seats.

Mr Joyce said his family was left feeling upset and embarrassed by the incident – and that it was their first meal out as a family following the death of two of his sons. 

Staff at the restaurant accepted the Joyces had not caused any problems but that they were asked to leave due to alleged incidents with members of the travelling community in the past, according to reports. 

Reports said Cuisine Buffet Ltd was ordered to pay each member of the family £5,000 in compensation and did not defend the case, brought by the Joyce family and supported by the Equality Commission. 

Staff at the restaurant accepted the Joyces had not caused any disturbance, reports said (stock image)

The restaurant is described as a modern, fixed-price, all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet 

‘We were looking forward to our first dinner as a family, after a very difficult time for us following the death of two of my sons, instead we were made to leave the restaurant,’ Mr Joyce told the Irish Independent. 

‘We tried to reason with the manager, but it was very clear to us that Travellers were not welcome. 

‘My late mother Nan fought for years to improve rights for Travellers, but sadly, being treated like second class citizens is not a new experience for us. We just want it to stop.’

The incident happened on October 1 last year. 

Head of Legal Services at the Equality Commission Eoin O’Neill said discrimination based on race is unacceptable and unlawful. 

The restaurant is described as a modern, fixed-price, all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet. 

MailOnline has contacted Cuisine Buffet for comment.  

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