A British chef has incurred the wrath of vegans across the world after announcing he will no longer cater to plant-based diners at his Australian restaurant.
John Mountain, originally from Preston, Lancashire, caused a stir when he reacted to a negative review from a non-meat eater by declaring: ‘F*** vegans… they can f*** off.’
The 55-year-old has since imposed a ban on all such customers at Fyre in Perth, where a ‘monster lamb shank’ costs £24, claiming to do so ‘for mental health reasons’.
However, it is not the first time the restaurateur has caught the eye, after a memorable stint on the BBC‘s Great British Menu more than a decade ago.
Fans may recall Mountain insisting on serving King Charles – then the Prince of Wales – a rabbit stew pudding on a plastic plate, before storming off set and swearing at Michelin-starred chef Marcus Wareing for marking him two out of ten for a fish dish.
John Mountain, originally from Preston, Lancashire, caused a stir when he reacted to a negative review from a non-meat eater by declaring: ‘F*** vegans… they can f*** off’
He has since imposed a ban on all such customers at Fyre in Perth, where a ‘monster lamb shank’ costs £24, claiming to do so ‘for mental health reasons’
Early in his career, Mountain enjoyed a whirlwind education from Marco Pierre White at his Mayfair restaurant, Mirabelle, and worked under Heston Blumental at the Fat Duck in Bray, Berkshire.
However, he soon decided that he didn’t want to work for anyone else, as he grappled with his drinking habits.
‘The booze was getting a bit too much,’ he told The West Australian in 2019.
‘I was being paid far too much and was p****d almost every night. My fridge was full of nothing but Veuve Clicquot.’
So in 2000, he decided to open his own restaurant in Wood Green, north London called Mosaica, which he described as ‘a magical place’, with walls painted black, tin foil on the ceiling and the place covered in fairy lights and candles.
People told him the idea was ‘ridiculous’, but were proved wrong when he started racking up glowing reviews from some of the capital’s harshest food critics.
As his stock continued to grow, he then appeared on Great British Menu, catching the eye of viewers with some unusual choices.
In one memorable scene, he is questioned over how he is going to present a rabbit stew pudding to the-then Prince of Wales on a white polystyrene tray, only to be ridiculed by colleagues.
But the chef defended himself, claiming: ‘This is what it’s all about. Do you think he cares about what he eats from?’
Wareing – who Mountain would later swear out after being given two out of ten for a fish dish – then suggests there may be some logic behind the young star’s idea.
‘Strangely enough looking at the plastic plate, I think something like that would make someone like Prince Charles chuckle,’ he said.
However, Mountain later revealed in a Channel 4 interview with Ruby Wax that the show sparked a spiral of depression, as he told viewers fascinated by his behaviour: ‘I’m not eccentric. I have a mental problem.’
Great British Menu fans may recall Mountain insisting on serving King Charles – then the Prince of Wales – a rabbit stew pudding on a plastic plate
Early in his career, Mountain (pictured, right, in the Fyre kitchen) enjoyed a whirlwind education from Marco Pierre White at his Mayfair restaurant, Mirabelle, and worked under Heston Blumental at the Fat Duck in Bray, Berkshire
Mountain emigrated to Australia in 2016 with his wife and two children, working with some of the finest chefs Down Under before setting up in Fyre
Speaking of his exit from the show, he added: ‘As I walked out and kicked the doors open, all I saw was this six foot picture of myself staring down at me.
‘I looked at it and pulled it down and snapped it, smashed it and kicked it down the studio.
When I got home I fell into my wife’s arms and cried my eyes out. It just got worse. I thought about suicide and how I would do it.’
His 2010 appearance on Great British Menu came a year before he set up the English Pig in London’s Millbank, using his own money, where he would work up to 80 hours a week.
However, he branded the business a ‘disaster’ after it closed just 24 months later, costing him nearly £200,000 and forcing him to sell off kitchen equipment and furniture to pay off debts.
His carnivorous devotion was clear when he penned ‘Pig: Cooking with a Passion for Pork’ in 2012, describing the meat as ‘healthy, inexpensive and incredibly versatile’.
His profile picture on Instagram, meanwhile, is one of him in an apron cuddling a piglet.
He then emigrated to Australia in 2016 with his wife and two children, working with some of the finest chefs Down Under before setting up in Fyre.
Mountain and his restaurant then made worldwide headlines after an extraordinary Facebook post, in which he said: ‘Sadly all vegans are now banned from Fyre for mental health reasons. We thank you for your understanding. xx’
His outburst came after a disgruntled customer triggered a series of one-star reviews on his page.
Mountain explained on social media: ‘A young girl reached out to me and said she was coming to the restaurant… and asked if there were vegan options,’ he said.
‘It was my only shortfall… I said I would accommodate her, I said we had gnocchi, vegetables… and that was that.’
However, Mountain admitted he forgot about the woman’s request because he had been busy catering a private party.
His sous chef scolded him for ‘not telling them about the vegan customer’ and the woman then lodged a complaint the following day after what she felt was a below-par experience.
Mountain was a memorable contestant on the Great British Menu back in 2010
Mr Mountain said his decision was simple as if you come at him and his business he will come at you (pictured: Mr Mountain’s restaurant Fyre)
‘My only option was the vegetable dish… it was okay but not that filling… and I was shocked to see it was $32,’ she wrote in her complaint via a direct Facebook message.
‘I think it’s incredibly important nowadays that restaurants can accommodate everyone and to not be able to have actual plant-based meals shows your shortcomings as a chef.
‘I hope to see some improvements in your menu as I have lived in Connolly for quite some time and have seen many restaurants come and go from that building and none of them last.
‘If you don’t get with the times, I don’t hold out faith that your restaurant will be the one that does.’
However, Mountain did not take to the criticism kindly, launching a fierce response via the restaurant’s page.
‘As for vegans/vegetarians being a very low minority, especially in the northern burbs’ I try to accommodate everyone else,’ he wrote
‘Thanks for your negative review… please feel free to share your s**tty experience and I look forward to not seeing you again. How very childish.
‘You and all your vegan mates can all go and enjoy your dishes in another venue. You are now banned.’
A flurry of competing one-star and five-star reviews followed between those venting their displeasure at Mountain’s stance and those supporting the restaurant.
He went on to tell PerthNow how the negative reviews ‘really hurts the business’.
‘F*** vegans seriously… I’m done. At the end of the day, it’s not what I want to do, they can f*** off.’
The ban sparked a reaction across the globe, with Australian vegan activist Tash Peterson leading the charge to stage a protest at the restaurant.
Notorious vegan activist Tash Peterson (pictured) and others online suggested they might stage a protest at his Fyre restaurant
Mountain told The Project: ‘I have nothing against nobody apart from those who want to damage my business.
‘I don’t care whether you’re green, yellow, orange, you could be Mexican, I don’t give a monkeys.
‘You try and damage my business, you come after me, you are going to have the wrath of Johnny Chuffin Mountain against you.’
He also joked that he always knows when a vegan in his restaurant.
‘You always know when you have a vegan in your restaurant because they will tell you 17 times they are vegan before they even step a foot in your building,’ he said.
Despite sparking outrage for many, Mountain says business has picked up dramatically.
‘Things have worked out ridiculously well… I usually do half a dozen people in this beautiful restaurant.. I have 35 booked for dinner (on Wednesday night),’ he said.
‘Thank you so much for your vegans, I can go buy a new farm now and look after my animals beautifully.’
Following his remarks vegan activist Ms Peterson, who has been known to stage protests inside diners before, said that the chef was guilty and insecure.
‘He’s obviously quite triggered by veganism and I think maybe it’s a defence mechanism for his own guilt,’ she told 7News.
Many others across the globe also took exception to his comments on social media.
One said: ‘I wouldn’t eat at this ego maniac’s expensive slop shop if I ever visited England.’
Another wrote: ‘Who are you, John Mountain, to dictate to me what I can eat? Mind your own business, and get smart, you are not my father, you have no RIGHT to be a socialist dictator.’
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