Insomnia Cookies staff tells Black customer the store is closed. Two minutes later, they allegedly serve white customers: ‘That’s crazy’

A man’s trip to buy a dessert in St. Louis, Missouri, turned into a less-than-sweet experience after he was supposedly told by a staff member that they could not serve him because the store was already closed. However, he believes he was unfairly treated when the staff member at the Delmar Loop location of Insomnia Cookies allegedly did not treat the customers who came after him the same.

The encounter was shared by Da’Mon (@ayedam0n) in a video on TikTok. According to Da’Mon’s account of the incident, he visited Insomnia Cookies to order ice cream but was turned away. When he went to leave the store two minutes later, two males, whom he described as white, allegedly walked inside and were able to purchase ice cream. “I waited and watched outside just to see if she would serve them!!” Da’Mon said.

As seen in the video, Da’Mon confronted the staff member. “So, nobody else can get ice cream?” Da’Mon asked, and the staff member responded, “Correct.” The staff member maintained that her “ice cream was closed,” but Da’Mon argued that the other customers were in the middle of paying for the ice cream they had just ordered. “That’s crazy,” he added.

The store is open until late at night

The staff member asked Da’Mon to leave the store, but he tried again to purchase an ice cream. “No, especially now that you’re taking my video. Please leave,” the staff member replied. Da’Mon appeared speechless at the staff member’s insistence, calling the situation “not right at all.”

According to Insomnia Cookies, the brand’s main selling point is that they are open late every night, until 1 a.m. on weekdays and 3 a.m. on weekends, for both delivery and in-store, although hours may change based on location. The video doesn’t establish what time Da’Mon visited or what happened prior to the recording.

One viewer claiming to work at Insomnia Cookies argued that the staff member was in the wrong: “As a shift lead at Insomnia, she’s dead wrong!! We don’t close the ice cream EVER unless we’re completely out of ALL flavors which she obviously had all of them.”

Insomnia Cookies fires staff member

Businesses also have the right to refuse service to an individual for any legal reason, including failure to follow rules, intoxication, disruptive behavior, maximum occupancy, or if the store is closed. However, refusing service to an individual based on race, color, religion, or national origin is a civil violation under Title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

In just a day, the video quickly amassed more than eight million views across Da’Mon’s social media. The incident eventually reached the ears of the company, and Insomnia Cookies responded to Da’Mon’s video, announcing the staff member’s firing.

“The employee’s conduct was unacceptable and has no place at Insomnia Cookies. The employee has been terminated.” Insomnia Cookies said. “We value every Insomniac who walks through our doors, and it is our responsibility to ensure that every member of our team treats our guests with warmth and respect.”

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