Spanish restaurant owner triples business after expelling Israelis: “Get out! Long live free Palestine”

Spanish restaurant owner triples business after expelling Israelis: “Get out! Long live free Palestine”

While children are dying in Gaza, some come to “decompress” on the Spanish coast… except that the owner of the Mimassa restaurant in Vigo hadn’t planned to roll out the red carpet for them. He kicked them out. Cleanly. Firmly. And now he’s becoming a symbol.

LE MEDIA EN 4-4-2

We thought that global indignation had been numbed by empty declarations and sterile press releases. But a Spanish restaurateur has clearly not lost the use of his spine.

In the coastal city of Vigo, in north-west Spain (just above the border with Portugal, in the region of Galicia), the owner of the Mimassa restaurant purely and simply expelled a group of Israeli tourists, in a shower of remarks that not even career diplomats would have dared to dream of in their bathroom.

The scene, captured on video, set social networks ablaze like a barrel of gasoline spilled on the prevailing hypocrisy. It shows the manager taking the menus out of the hands of Israeli customers who shamelessly declared “Fuck Lebanon” and “Fuck Palestine”, firmly inviting them to take their luggage and their “bloody vacations”, and suggesting they go and dine… in Gaza. Atmosphere.

And mind you, it wasn’t a polite “sorry, we’re full” refusal. No. It was a frontal rejection, filmed and claimed, with phrases that have gone viral such as:

“You kill innocent people, and then you have an aperitif? Get lost! Long live free Palestine.”

ER: Ignore the Malaga reference …

Translation of tweet: “You kill Palestinians in Gaza and then you come here on vacation, get out of here.” #Espagne A waiter at a restaurant in Malaga refuses to serve Israeli tourists and asks them to leave their table to show support for the Palestinian cause.

« Vous tuez des Palestiniens à Gaza et ensuite vous venez en vacances ici, vous partez d’ici. »

🚨🇪🇸🇵🇸#Espagne Un serveur d’un restaurant à Malaga refuse de servir des touristes israéliens et les invite à quitter leur table pour manifester son soutien à la cause palestinienne. pic.twitter.com/eT532ktLd0

— Les Spectateurs (@SpectateursFr) July 9, 2025

A worldwide buzz and queues at the Mimassa restaurant

But the best part is what followed. First, a wave of harassment from Israelis all over the world: insults, death threats, intimidation. However, far from being boycotted for this gesture, the Mimassa restaurant is experiencing an unprecedented influx of customers: the number has literally tripled. People flock there to eat a dish, have a drink and, above all, personally thank the restaurateur who has become a popular icon. Proudly sporting a keffiyeh, the manager is now treated like a rock star in the town and beyond.

Translation: Here is the owner of the Mimassa restaurant in Vigo, Spain, who expelled Israeli tourists. He explains how his establishment is experiencing a real boom, with a clientele that has tripled since the video went viral around the world.

🚨🇪🇸🇮🇱| Voici le propriétaire du restaurant Mimassa à Vigo, en Espagne, qui a expulsé des touristes israéliens. Il nous explique comment son établissement connaît un véritable essor, avec une clientèle qui a triplé depuis que la vidéo a circulé à travers le monde. https://t.co/1kxy3GxUN1 pic.twitter.com/xTn6TZwpF7

— Les Spectateurs (@SpectateursFr) July 17, 2025

Videos of support poured in, T-shirts bearing his image circulated, and while European governments stammered out sanitized indignation, he took action. A simple restaurateur whose courage and outspokenness made more noise than all the diplomatic summits put together.

When a dish becomes a political act

Of course, on the side of Israel’s unconditional defenders, there are cries of scandal, “anti-Semitism” and ostracism. But for thousands of people around the world, this refusal to welcome insulting holidaymakers from the world’s deadliest country, while the Gaza Strip is transformed into an open-air cemetery, is seen as an act of conscience.

For while some capitals turn a blind eye to the bombings and massacres, one man behind his counter dared to say “no”. No to normalization. No to impunity. No to the preposterous idea that you can destroy a people and sip a mojito in peace on European beaches.

A symbol of resistance… between two services

The restaurateur from Vigo has no army, no chancellery and no lobby. He has a restaurant, a keffiyeh, and above all, an indignation that he doesn’t keep to himself. His gesture, simple as it was, resonated louder than diplomatic silences. And today, he is celebrated as a hero of the Palestinian cause, proof that solidarity is not limited to hashtags.

So, while the world’s leaders scrape together reports on “de-escalation”, in Vigo, they’re serving up dishes with an extra dose of dignity. And they’re clearly enjoying it.

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