The US Department of Justice has opened a civil rights investigation into Poetica Coffee, a New York City coffee shop chain, after it posted that it would have refused service to Democratic Congressman Dan Goldman because of his pro-Israel views [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7].
Goldman, who represents New York's 10th congressional district, visited Poetica Coffee on June 21, 2026, accompanied by his 7-year-old daughter. Although his daughter was initially allowed to use the restroom without making a purchase, Goldman bought a coffee and left a large tip, saying, "I had such a nice interaction with the barista in the coffee shop. She was wearing a hijab ... I honestly was so grateful for her kindness that I felt like I should buy a coffee — and so I did" [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8].
Shortly after, Poetica Coffee posted a now-deleted social media message calling Goldman a "genocide enabler" and stating they would have turned him away had they recognized him. The post included a refund of $9.82 for his purchase and harsh language rejecting his politics, saying, "We don’t serve racists, fascists, homophobes, genocide enablers... Too bad we didn’t recognize you right away" [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7].
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon of the DOJ Civil Rights Division announced the investigation on June 22, emphasizing that "Federal law prohibits public accommodations such as coffee shops from discriminating against patrons based on their race, religion, or national origin. These actions are not only reprehensible, they’re potentially illegal. The Civil Rights Division has opened an investigation, and will bring an enforcement action if warranted" [1, 3, 4, 6].
Goldman expressed disappointment with the incident but said he would rather see DOJ focus on antisemitism targeting less prominent individuals, noting, "I would rather they spend their time and resources investigating antisemitism against people who do not have a platform that I do... who do not – in some ways – ask for this" [2, 3, 8].
Poetica Coffee is a small Uzbek-inspired chain with seven locations across Brooklyn and the East Village. It was founded by Parviz Mukhamadkulov, who has faced separate issues including unpaid taxes reportedly in the hundreds of thousands and health violations, including a recent fly infestation reported in June 2026 [3, 7].
On June 24, about 65 protesters and counter-protesters gathered outside Poetica Coffee’s Williamsburg location clashing over the ban and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict [9]. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who is also challenging Goldman in the Democratic primary, faced criticism for not publicly condemning the coffee shop’s ban [1, 10]. Goldman himself is also challenged by former Comptroller Brad Lander in the primary, with both candidates Jewish but holding differing views on Israel [1, 2, 4, 6].
