Kentucky restaurant faces hateful backlash for demonstrating support for Ukraine

Thousands of miles from the battlefield that Ukraine has become as a result of Russian President Vladimir Putin's brutal invasion, reverberations are being felt in a small Kentucky town. And it's only because one resident decided to show his support for the embattled nation.

Ben Ashlock is the general manager of a Colton's Steak House & Grill in Bardstown, Ky., population 13,500. The 41-year-old related to The Washington Post that he and his wife had forged lifelong relationships three years ago with Ukrainians while they were there to adopt a son, who is now 16. The 16-year-old is one of the couple’s 13 children — eight biological and five adopted or in the process of being adopted.

Ashlock says he decided to fly the Ukrainian flag over the entrance to his restaurant to demonstrate his solidarity with the country. That simple, sympathetic gesture, however, has generated vitriol among some in the central Kentucky community and the restaurant's phone, Facebook page and Google reviews page are being targeted.

Ashlock told WaPo that the owner of the steakhouse - who had helped him raise money for the adoption and paid for all three of the trips he took to Ukraine - backed him and sent him the country's blue and yellow flag days after the Russian offensive began. All was fine until April 9, The Post reports, "when someone sent the Colton’s Facebook page a direct message: 'My family eats at Colton’s steakhouse, but will not eat there again until the Ukrainian flag is replaced with our national Flag.'

"Ashlock replied about 30 minutes later, explaining that Ukraine’s flag had not replaced an American one but one of two Texas state flags the steakhouse uses to cultivate the chain’s Wild West, old saloon theme. Ashlock also told the man about adopting his son 'whose hometown is now in ruins and under occupation.'"

Negative comments kept coming from all quarters. The restaurant manager removed many of them, but not before taking screenshots and sharing them with The Post.

One said: “Take that trash flag down! May Ukraine be leveled to the ground!”

Another read: “It seems the only thing you accomplished flying this foreign flag is to further divide your fellow americans. One can’t even [sit] down to a meal these days without having politics flown in ones face.”

“I hope that Ukrainian flag is gone,” one user said, adding a face-with-monocle emoji. “I prefer my steak without a side of Nazi.” On Google, someone left a one-star review of Colton’s: “food tasted woke, management is a war monger.”

“I hate to say it, because I try to be thick-skinned,” Ashlock told The Post, “but it was hurtful.”

After the misunderstanding that he had replaced an American flag, Ashlock swapped out the other Texas state flag for the Stars and Stripes. He consulted with military friends to make sure he was practicing proper flag etiquette by flying it higher than the Ukrainian one.