Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) said he was disappointed after a Brooklyn coffee shop declared him unwelcome over his support for Israel, as the congressman faces a competitive primary challenge from New York City Comptroller Brad Lander.
Goldman recounted what he described as a pleasant interaction with an employee at Poetica Coffee before the shop targeted him in a social media post while speaking with CNN’s Laura Coates on Monday.
“I had such a nice interaction with the barista in the coffee shop,” Goldman said. “She was wearing a hijab. I didn’t know her, but she couldn’t have been nicer and allowed my daughter to go use the bathroom. I honestly was so grateful for her kindness that I felt like I should buy a coffee, and so I did, and I gave her a large tip.”
Goldman said the exchange underscored what he sees as growing political divisions.
“It’s a reflection, I think, of a sad state of affairs that without knowing me, we could have had such a nice interaction,” he continued.
Poetica Coffee later posted and subsequently deleted a message criticizing Goldman that also referenced the pro-Israel lobbying group AIPAC.
“Hey Congressman Dan Goldman, we see that you stopped by our shop today for a coffee,” the post read. “Do you see how it doesn’t taste like genocide juice? Or are you still having a hard time telling the difference?”
The post also told Goldman, “we don’t need your money (it’s probably coming from AIPAC anyways).”
The controversy comes as Goldman faces a competitive Democratic primary challenge from Lander, who is backed by Mayor Zohran Mamdani, on Tuesday. While Goldman has maintained a reliably liberal voting record, his strong support for Israel has become a focal point in the race, reflecting broader divisions within the Democratic Party.
During his CNN appearance, Goldman accused Lander of using references to AIPAC “as a dog whistle” and said he would “refuse to cave into that type of rhetoric and that divisiveness.”
“I have many issues with Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu, but simply because I support the existence of Israel as a Jewish state, as the only Jewish state, does not by any means mean that I support everything that government does,” Goldman said. “And in fact I do not, and I’ve been very open about that.”
Lander also condemned the coffee shop’s post in a statement to the New York Times.
“There are plenty of ways to lobby elected officials and express outrage at the votes they’ve taken without turning coffee shops into places people don’t feel welcome,” Lander said.
The Justice Department civil rights chief Harmeet Dhillon announced Monday that her office had opened an investigation into the coffee shop.
“Federal law prohibits public accommodations such as coffee shops from discriminating against patrons based on their race, religion, or national origin,” Dhillon said. “These actions are not only reprehensible, they’re potentially illegal.”
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Goldman weighed in on the announcement, saying he would rather the DOJ commit its resources elsewhere.
“I would rather they spend their time and resources investigating antisemitism against people who do not have a platform that I do, who are not elected officials, who do not — in some ways — ask for this,” Goldman said. “I mean, I don’t ask for the antisemitism, but I’m a public figure and I can accept the criticism.”