Entertainment

Pablo’s Escoburgers restaurant criticised over patty topped with fake cocaine

A burger on sale in Melbourne, Australia, has been condemned as being in poor taste.
A burger on sale in Melbourne, Australia, has been condemned as being in poor taste. A burger on sale in Melbourne, Australia, has been condemned as being in poor taste.

A restaurant named Pablo’s Escoburgers has stoked controversy with a burger that comes with a free line of fake cocaine.

The pop-up burger restaurant, located at Promise Bar in Melbourne, Australia, has faced a mixed reception for a dish called The Patron.

Images of the burger, which comes with “candied bacon, cartel secret sauce and a few other surprises”, show a rolled-up banknote stuck into the bun, which also has a line of white powder on top.

Drugs lord Pablo Escobar, the subject of the popular Netflix series Narcos, ran Colombia’s Medellin Cartel and is thought to have been responsible for the deaths of many thousands of Colombian people.

The restaurant’s Instagram posts have been met with a mixed response, with some enjoying the joke and others offended by the concept.

One Instagram user wrote: “You know that Pablo Escobar killed lots of people right? You’re making economical profits thanks to the death of INNOCENT people and thinking it’s funny. You didn’t feel the fear of having him in your country, you didn’t feel the horrible past of Colombia, don’t take it as a joke it’s disgusting and disrespectful.”

Another comment read: “This is so disrespectful! Stop glorifying a man that put my country, my city and so many families through hell. This is disgusting.”

The restaurant responded with a statement on Facebook which read: “We are very proud of our burgers but we do also understand that Pablo Escobar was a horrible man who destroyed the lives of thousands of Colombians.

“We do not condone, idolise or promote Pablo Emilio Escobar or his actions in any way. We are however Australian and know how to have a laugh about a good play on words. It’s just a name of a pop-up burger bar not really a theme. Hard not to offend someone in 2019.

“Lots of Colombians enjoy the burgers here, also a lot give us terrible reviews and upset comments on FB much the way Pablo himself would have if he was still here today. Take the high road people, put it to rest and learn to forgive and forget!”

The restaurant also received support from some Facebook users who felt the joke was being taken too seriously.

One wrote: “Snowflakes, petals and the easily offended. When did you lose your sense of humour? It’s a play on words FFS. With a cheeky visual prop. Don’t take life so seriously. None of us get out alive.”