Just two days after opening its new location in east London, a vegan restaurant has become the target of meat loving vandals.
Globally Local employees arrived at the Highbury Ave. and Cheapside St. location Friday to find the words "I (heart) meat" spray painted in teal above the drive-thru window.
"We worked so hard to get the place in good condition and put our brand on it so it was disheartening when I first saw the vandalism," said James McInnis, who owns Globally Local with his wife Lia. "But then I took a few steps back and a few deep breaths, I realized something like this only makes us stronger and bring the community together in support of our mission."
The incident isn't the first time the vegan fast-food restaurant has been struck by vandals. During construction of Globally Local's second location homophobic slurs and generic graffiti tags were scrawled across the building four different times. But McInnis notes it never felt personal until now.
"This was the first one that seemed really loud and directed right at us," said McInnis. "Vegans do come under a lot of ridicule and a lot of criticism. It's something that we are use to. I think lots of people feel threatened by the change and they lash out in different ways. This is just one of the ways they are expressing that emotion."
The Highbury Ave. location is billed as the world's first 24-hour vegan drive-thru. It offers vegan versions of hamburgers that are made with wheat protein , including the "Famous Burger" and the "Vopper" - vegan spins on the Big Mac and Whopper.
A photo showing the mean-spirited message posted by staff on the establishment's Facebook page was shared more than 550 times within four hours. Vegan and non-vegans decried the act of vandalism in the comments section, with many stating as a result they would make a point of dining there.
Plans are already in the works to have security cameras installed and McInnis plans to notify police about the latest act of vandalism.
Throughout the soft-launch, the drive-thru is open daily from 8am to 10pm. There are also plans to soon open the 120 people in store dining area. The official grand opening is slated for July 15.
"We are committed to doing a positive thing in the world, we are committed to making people healthier and we won't be stopped by people who try to undermine that mission," said McInnis. "Even if it happens again, we are resolute in our mission to over come people who try to bring us down and we won't be stopped."