QUEENS — A group of outraged Forest Hills residents have been urging the local community to boycott a business owner and his establishments after he posted a picture of himself with a ballot folder and a caption quoting Donald Trump’s groping comment on his Facebook page.
Georgios Aspiotis, 43, owner of Greek restaurant Corfu Grill and Sorry Not Sorry Bar and Lounge on Austin Street, posted the photo with the caption that read “From tomorrow we grab them by there pu--y" on his private page Tuesday.
But the post was later shared on a local neighborhood page, prompting dozens of group members to express their fury in the comment section.
"It was not funny. A sexual predator made that remark originally," one member wrote. "I have never eaten in your place. Your action do not make it very appetizing to me."
“Please boycott this establishment,” wrote another.
Some have also been posting a screenshot of his post on the Corfu Grill's Yelp page, urging prospective customers to avoid the restaurant.
Aspiotis said Thursday he didn't realize that people would find his post offensive.
“I found that comment extremely funny,” Aspiotis said about the remark Trump was caught making during a conversation with former "Access Hollywood" host Billy Bush in 2005.
“What happened is I went to vote — I’m a proud American and I vote — I take a picture for myself and I put that as a joke on my private personal Facebook page," he said.
He also said that once he realized how upset people were, he deleted the photo and posted an apology on both his private profile and the neighborhood page.
He wrote: “I post a joke yesterday about trump comment and people go crazy put nasty stuff about me on line I didn’t mean to offend any body was a joke if any one take it the wrong way please accept my apologies.”
The apology which also prompted numerous angry comments, was later deleted by group administrators who on Thursday decided to block Aspiotis.
"After a review of his posts, hearing from members of the community who had contact with him, and his own comments within the group, the administrators voted and were in agreement that his language and behavior violated our rules," the administrators said in a statement, citing one of the regulations which forbids using "racist, homophobic, sexist or hateful language" on the page.
"Our community page should be a safe space and we felt it was in the best interest of the group and for our sense of community to revoke his membership," the admins added.
Aspiotis, who appeared to have deleted his profile as well as the eatery's Facebook pages Thursday night, blamed Trump haters for the controversy.
“I’m not even following politics,” he said. “People are upset because [Donald Trump] is the president of the country and they are angry with everyone around them.”
Aspiotis opened Corfu Grill in a retail complex on Austin Street 12 years ago. In 2013, he opened Pride, the first gay bar in Forest Hills, next door to his restaurant. Two years later, he changed its profile to a “neighborhood bar” to attract a broader clientele and renamed it “Sorry Not Sorry.”
“I love beautiful women, I love beautiful houses and I love my job,” he said. “I work seven days a week, I try to reach the American dream and I don’t know why people now try to get back to me in this nasty way.”
