Zachary's Daiquiris Accused of Turning Away Patrons Wearing Jordans — Some Happen to Be Black

If you've never experienced racism firsthand, I can bet you'd be quick to dismiss an incident called out as racism as one that isn’t. You simply don't know the signs or the feelings of it, and therefore, can't connect. But if you have, then you can detect it right away.

Apparently, what some folks are calling a racial profiling moment happened at a new business in Charleston in 2025 called Zachary’s Daiquiris, which, surprisingly, is actually owned by a Southern Charm star and her husband.

During opening night on Feb. 28, 2025, TikToker Sarah Baus (@sarahebaus) claims she witnessed an incident that's now sparked major controversy around the King Street establishment.

Sarah says the restaurant implemented a dress code mid-opening night, as people were waiting in line to enter and grab drinks. It seemed to be specifically targeted at a group of Black men. Here’s what went down and why some folks are now refusing to support Zachary’s Daiquiris.

Sarah Baus, the TikToker at the center of the story, says she went to the opening night of the new Charleston establishment with some friends.

While sitting outside with a second round of drinks, she noticed a line forming outside the restaurant. At the time, she was in the process of creating a post to promote the new business when a bouncer started walking along the line, announcing a new dress code was being implemented right then and there.

Sarah says that as the bouncer made the announcement, she stopped in front of a group of Black men and, without looking at them, said, "No Jordans, no ripped jeans, no athletic pants." Sarah pointed out that this basically described the group of men.

What struck her as odd, though, was that instead of saying "no athletic shoes," the bouncer specifically said "Jordans." And if you've been paying attention to fashion, you know sneakers have made their way into what’s considered dressy and even business attire. So, nixing them felt a little out of place.

Naturally, the group of men left the line because their outfits no longer met the newly imposed dress code. Sarah says that many others followed suit because, honestly, calling out what people are wearing mid-opening night while they're waiting in line is absurd. And the fact that it seemed to specifically target the group of Black men was the icing on the cake.

So, without finishing their drinks, Sarah and her friends decided they didn’t want to support a business that behaved this way. As they were leaving, Sarah’s husband pointed out to the bouncer that several tables had left because of how they treated that group of men. The bouncer responded, saying she was just following upper management’s instructions.

After leaving and finding a new spot, Sarah and her friends continued discussing the incident. To their surprise, they came across a review from one of the men who had been turned away. He called out Zachary's Daiquiris for shooing him away with his Jordans on but allowing "multiple Caucasians" to enter wearing the same designer shoes.

Sarah, along with her husband, also wrote reviews, and it seems some of the lower-rated reviews mysteriously disappeared from Google. Hmm, strange. Sarah then noticed that a new Google account had been created, which conveniently had a lot of 5-star reviews and even praised the dress code, something that now looked like an attempt to salvage the rapidly plummeting reputation of the restaurant, barely 24 hours after opening.

The restaurant has since posted a dress code on its website that takes effect after 8 p.m., which Sarah says was when people were waiting in line, as the opening was at 8. That’s when the bouncer announced the new dress code. However, it's unclear when this dress code was actually posted on the website. While it does specify that athletic and gym attire aren't allowed, there's no mention of Jordans, which Sarah says she heard the bouncer specifically call out.

The review from the Black patron she shared also mentioned Jordans. What's even more interesting is that a commenter on Sarah's viral video pointed out that her husband saw the DJ at Zachary's Daiquiris wearing Jordans — definitely a little shady, if you ask me. Nonetheless, the owners have since issued a statement of their own in an attempt to address the situation — and no, it wasn't an apology.

After the alleged racial profiling incident at Zachary's Daiquiris in Charleston, owners Leva Bonaparte, a Southern Charm star, and her husband shared a statement on her Instagram. In the post, her husband made it clear that he wasn’t apologizing and appeared to call out the TikToker’s behavior as "very 2025."

While racism has become a major topic of discussion, calling the TikToker’s actions a "trend" seems like a stretch. In any case, he ended the message with, "Dress codes still enforced."