The Willows Inn Restaurant

"The New York Times published a damning report on the sexual harassment and toxic work environment at Noma alum Blaine Wetzel’s idyllic Willows Inn on Lummi Island." - ByGenevieve Yam

"The Willows Inn — the Lummi Island fine dining destination helmed by chef and co-owner Blaine Wetzel that, in recent years, faced numerous allegations of racism, sexual harassment, and wage theft — has closed permanently, the Seattle Times reports." - Adam H. Callaghan

"Even large chains like McDonald’s have paid out millions to settle lawsuits that alleged wage theft. The same is true in the world of fine dining, evidenced by vaunted eateries like Thomas Keller’s Per Se and acclaimed Lummi Island spot the Willows Inn, the latter of which paid $600,000 to settle a class-action lawsuit filed by its employees alleging wage theft." - Amy McCarthy

"In an April 27 New York Times expose, former employees from Lummi Island’s critically acclaimed Willows Inn accuse the restaurant of being, in short, a nightmare work environment. Among some of the most troubling claims in the article are that chef-owner Blaine Wetzel and the restaurant’s manager Reid Johnson oversaw a pattern of sexism, sexual harassment, and racist bullying at the Willows Inn, and that staff members allegedly preyed on teenaged girls from the island. The piece also claims that the carefully cultivated image of local sourcing was false, with items purchased at grocery stores passed off as island-grown ingredients." - Gabe Guarente

"When I first saw Lummi: Island Cooking, the new cookbook from Willows Inn chef Blaine Wetzel, I couldn’t help but pick it up. The book itself is wrapped in a rough but texturally pleasing yellow fabric, and the cover — a single deep-blue photograph affixed to the canvas — captivates. Inside, top-down photos of meticulously plated dishes fill entire pages and beg the question: What is that? And while I may never make the recipes for things like mushroom stews and marinated shellfish, they’re a window into a remote restaurant that I may never get to visit. Sure, I could find a few photos online, but a book that you hold in your hands carries weight — not just literally, but also in the way each page memorializes a recipe, dish, or moment in time." - Eater Staff