A London restaurant run by a former Nobu head chef has been forced to turn off neon signs saying “prostitutes available” and “sluts” in Japanese after angering women’s rights campaigners.
The owners of the Marble Arch branch of Kurobuta, which is close to Tony Blair’s main London residence on Connaught Square, sparked fury when they put up the signs written in Japanese script outside the venue last month.
Shocked Japanese speakers realised that the blue installation translated as “prostitutes available” while the red one spelled out a highly offensive word that roughly translates as “slut” — and is only ever used against women.
Feminist group the Fawcett Society said it showed women are “still demonised and insulted” while Twitter users called for a boycott and said the signs were “sleazy” and showed “horrific misogyny”.
The outcry has forced the Japanese restaurant to apologise “for any offence caused” and switch the signs off.
But Australian chef-owner Scott Hallsworth told the Standard: “I think the protests have been unfair.
“We have no record of sexism as a company and the signage actually doesn’t mention women — prostitution is an ancient trade which involves men, women, everyone.
“This is simply a piece of art in a big, cosmopolitan city. I’m going to get an electrician to take the signs off the main circuit — will the Fawcett Society help me with the bill?”
A Fawcett Society spokeswoman said: “Why on earth would you display signs in a restaurant that insult and alienate 50 per cent of your potential customers?
“It does underline, though, how much there is still left to do before some people get that women are not here to be demonised and insulted and that we won’t put up with it.”
The restaurant’s fans include celebrity chefs Nigella Lawson and Tom Kerridge.
Hallsworth spent six years at Michelin-starred Nobu Park Lane before setting up Kurobuta on the King’s Road and subsequently opening in Marble Arch.