Celebrity chef Geoffrey Zakarian on Thursday said he was pulling the plug on a restaurant at Donald Trump's Washington, D.C., hotel over the Republican presidential candidate’s comments about Mexican immigrants.
"The recent statements surrounding Mexican immigrants by Donald Trump do not in any way align with my personal core values,” Zakarian said in a statement. "In light of this, I am unable to move forward with a restaurant in the Trump International Hotel, slated to open in Washington, D.C.'s Federal Post Office building."
"Zakarian Hospitality employs many immigrants from nations all over the world, and I look forward to continuing this business culture in my future restaurants,” he said. "We are a nation built from immigrants, my family included."
Zakarian is chef and partner at The Lambs Club in New York City as well as an author. He is a host on the Food Network program "The Kitchen" and has appeared on "Chopped" and "Iron Chef America."
Related: GOP Tells Trump to 'Tone It Down'
Trump has been criticized across the political spectrum for insensitive comments he made on illegal immigration from Mexico.
Several companies, including NBC Universal, cut ties with Trump after his remarks. Trump has defended his comments. Restaurateur and chef Jose Andres, a naturalized U.S. citizen who immigrated from Spain, on Wednesday also backed out of a deal to open a restaurant in the Trump International Hotel.
