New Delhi: A Sikh restaurateur in London, who made headlines over his refusal to serve halal meat, has appealed to customers to help keep his business afloat, alleging that Google was accepting fake one-star reviews while rejecting genuine five-star ratings. Harman Singh Kapoor, who has previously announced the closure of his restaurant Rangrez amid a bitter controversy over its non-halal policy and alleged Pakistani threats, said his current eatery, Singh's Dining, was struggling with outstanding rent and the threat of court proceedings by the landlord.
In a social media post on October 12, Kapoor made a public appeal for bookings, claiming that the online reviews were seriously hurting his business. He wrote that swallowing his pride was necessary to ask for help saving his restaurant, noting that running it represents his passion, livelihood, and years of hard work.
Kapoor alleged that Google was allowing negative reviews to appear while preventing positive ones from being published. He asserted that only fake one-star reviews were getting through while genuine five-star feedback was blocked, though he provided no independent evidence to substantiate the claim. He also cited severe financial pressure, stating that outstanding rent and landlord threats of court action made the situation unbearable.
Kapoor previously ran Rangrez, an Indian restaurant in west London that operated for about 16 years before he announced plans to shut it down in February. He had blamed rising costs, online harassment, repeated disturbances, and inadequate police support, linking his refusal to serve halal meat to his Sikh faith and preference for jhatka meat.
The dispute previously escalated when Kapoor posted remarks about Muslims and called for halal slaughter to be banned in the UK. A subsequent non-halal meetup in March led to a confrontation and his detention by police for nearly 24 hours, after which he announced plans to take legal action against the Metropolitan Police and London Mayor Sadiq Khan for alleged discrimination.
His latest appeal centers entirely on keeping Singh's Dining open, as he urged customers to book tables, visit, and share his post online. He emphasized the restaurant's pride in being non-halal and stated that community support and bookings are vital for survival. As of Tuesday, the restaurant held a rating of 2.8 stars out of 5 based on 20 ratings on the platform.