Salt Lake City therapist Becky Andrews lives with retinitis pigmentosa, a degenerative eye condition that has claimed her eyesight over time.
Around noon Sunday, she, a friend and her Labrador service dog visited Café Terigo, a French and Italian restaurant that’s been in Old Town since 1988.
“We were seated in the patio area. Then, though, the waiter came and said that we could not sit there with my guide dog,” Andrews said. “And so I said, well, she's a service animal.”
Utah code allows dogs on patios only if restaurants conform to specific requirements.
About eight years ago, the Summit County Health Department piloted its Pooches on Patios Program, which created a permitting process for dog-friendly patios.
26 Summit County restaurants participate; Café Terigo is not one of them.
A spokesperson for Café Terigo told KPCW there have been three recent instances in which a dog bit a waiter, and said Andrews’ dog Kalimba was large. Andrews said Kalimba weighs 47 pounds and was under her chair.
Regardless, service dogs are exempt from restrictions under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Andrews said she asked for the manager, who reiterated what the waiter had said. The manager recommended Andrews and her friend sit inside, but they chose to leave instead.
The restaurant’s spokesperson said the patio was crowded on Sunday and there was more room inside.
Even though Andrews remembers the street being busy because of Park Silly Sunday Market, she said the restaurant patio itself was quiet.
After leaving, Andrews filed an ADA complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice. She told KPCW she doesn’t expect much to come of it, though.
“My hope would be that they would make sure it doesn't happen to the next person,” she said. “That some education would happen on their part.”
Andrews said she and her dog have been asked to leave an Ann Taylor store in the past, and she will occasionally be denied by Uber drivers.
The U.S. Department of Justice did not respond to requests for comment about the status of Andrews’ ADA complaint.
The following Summit County restaurants participate in the Pooches on Patios Program:
- Vessel Kitchen
- Windy Ridge Cafe
- Hearth and Hill
- Este Pizza Park City
- Blind Dog Restaurant & Raw Bar
- Cena at Silverlake
- Mirror Lake Diner
- Troll Hallen Lounge
- High West Saloon
- The Silver Star Cafe
- Tekila Mexican Grill & Cantina
- Dick's Burger Shack
- Harvest
- Powder at the Waldorf Astoria
- Deer Valley Grocery Cafe
- Red Rock Brewing
- Royal Street Cafe
- Salt Box
- The Corner Store Pub & Grill
- Squatters Roadhouse Grill
- Wasatch Pub & Brewery
- Tupelo
- Five5eeds
- Oakley Diner
- Bartolo's
- The Cabin
