Brit chef John Mountain bans vegans from Perth restaurant

British chef John Mountain has hit the headlines after banning all vegan diners from his Perth restaurant Fyre.

Mountain emigrated to Australia having previously worked under Heston Blumental at the Fat Duck in Bray and Marco Pierre White at Mirabelle in Mayfair before opening Westminster restaurant the English Pig, which closed in 2013.

A memorable appearance on Great British Menu in 2012 saw him walk off the show and swear in the direction of chef Marcus Wareing after he was given low marks for one of his dishes. He later spoke about his mental health challenges.

In a Facebook post announcing his new policy he wrote: “Sadly all vegans are now banned from Fyre (for mental health reasons). We thank you for your understanding.”

Mountain told PerthNow that he had made the decision after he told a vegan guest they would be accommodated but forgot to inform the kitchen after being required to cater a private event, prompting a complaint from the guest.

He told the news outlet: “It’s not a vegan restaurant… if they want vegan food, they can go to a vegan restaurant.

“The rebuttal and attitude [of vegans] is the reason for the ban… they are piling on trying to ruin my restaurant.”

The guest’s complaint had read: “I think it’s incredibly important nowadays that restaurants can accommodate everyone and to not be able to have actual plant-based meals shows your shortcomings as a chef.”

Mountain said the review had prompted a flood of one-star Google ratings, which would impact his business.