Eco-zealots have staged sit-ins at multiple Michelin Star restaurants tonight demanding an end to all non-vegan food – risking long-held Christmas dinner plans for dozens of diners.
Nine members from Animal Rebellion took up seats in the £130-a-head House Of Tides in Newcastle, which the eco-mob said ‘refuses to cater to vegans’, before staging a similar protest in Heston Blumenthal’s Dinner in central London.
In Newcastle, however, they were swiftly removed by police before it emerged they had only occupied an ‘unused downstairs bar area’, meaning there was no disruption to bookings.
House of Tides assistant manager Conor Goulding told MailOnline: ‘They occupied our unused downstairs bar area while we were still able to accept guests who had booked in our upstairs restaurant so their protest was completely ineffective.
‘Unfortunately for them, they were sat on our wonderful bespoke real leather seating in our bar area throughout their 45 minute protest and we would like to thank the police for removing them in a very swift and professional manner.’
The eco-warriors warned it was not the only restaurant they would occupy on their ‘national day of action’, threatening similar scenes in Birmingham, London and cities ‘across England’.
Nine members from Animal Rebellion took up seats in the £130-a-head House Of Tides in Newcastle (protest pictured), which the eco-mob said ‘refuses to cater to vegans’
Heston Blumenthal’s Two Michelin-Starred Dinner restaurant is occupied Animal Rebellion members on Saturday
It comes after protesters staged similar action in Salt Bae’s famous Knightsbridge restaurant Nusr-Et earlier this month.
In pictures shared from House of Tides this evening, Animal Rebellion supporters can be seen occupying reserved tables while holding ‘mock menus’ which contain the group’s demands.
A video shows an employee apparently on the phone to police, as he asks: ‘Can you send someone to remove them please?’
MailOnline has contacted Northumbria Police for comment.
Robert Gordon, 26, a former animal care assistant, said: ‘This action is the first of multiple high-end restaurant sit-ins that will be happening across England this evening. We are targeting these venues in sustained action as they are symbolic of a broken system.
‘Households in the North-East have the lowest disposable income when compared to other regions in the UK. Yet ‘House of Tides’ continues to profit off a wealthy minority by serving meat, dairy, and fish at the expense of our natural world.
‘Instead, luxury restaurants like these should be leading by example and transitioning to serving sustainable, plant-based foods. A plant-based food system could eliminate the suffering of the one billion farmed animals, and many more fish, killed in the UK each year.
‘This would also free-up space for crucial rewilding to draw-down carbon from the atmosphere and restore our countryside, coasts, and precious wildlife’.
Michelle Farnham, 24, A psychology graduate, took part in the protest at Dinner by Heston tonight.
She said: ‘Today, Animal Rebellion is declaring a national day of action. The luxury restaurants, like Heston Blumenthal’s, that are being occupied are symbols of a social and political system that is failing the 99%.
‘We need massive changes to our food system, alongside radical shifts towards renewable energy and a mass insulation programme. We know beyond all doubt that our current, animal-based, food system is wrecking the environment and the lives of billions of animals yearly.
Eco-zealots have staged a sit-in at Michelin Star restaurant House of Tides (pictured) tonight demanding an end to all non-vegan food
‘A plant-based food system would offer us food security in a sustainable, low-cost way. It’s a no-brainer.’
The same eco-mob targeted Gordon Ramsay’s 3 Michelin Star Restaurant in Chelsea two weeks ago, with a similar protest resulting in the restaurant closing for the night.
A later action at a Michelin-star restaurant in Manchester ended in the arrest of 14 protestors.
The group says it will only stop the disruption to high-end restaurants when the Government ‘takes meaningful action to prevent climate breakdown and animal suffering.’
Animal Rebellion is urging ‘wholesale governmental and societal support for farmers and fishing communities to transition to a plant-based food system and programme of rewilding that will secure a future for generations to come.’
A study last year found meat alone accounts for nearly 60% of all greenhouse gases from food production, with beef and lamb some of the worst polluters.