Memphis restaurant owner defends not serving National Guard members: ‘I love this country’

A Memphis restaurant owner said he “completely” stands behind his decision to refuse service to four uniformed members of the Memphis Safe Task Force, saying the federal task force has made the city “harder to live in” and “less safe.”Miles Tamboli, the owner of Tamboli's Pasta & Pizza, has faced scrutiny from some in the community after denying service to National Guard members, who are part of the task force established by President Donald Trump last year. Although his restaurants have received “harassing calls” and “fake reservations” as a result, he says he does not regret turning them away because he’s committed “to stand against the military policing our streets.”

“On Saturday night we declined to serve four uniformed members of the Memphis Safe Task Force, and I stand behind that decision completely,” Tamboli said in a statement, obtained by Fox 8.“I love this country and I love this city, and that is exactly why I made this call. I want Memphis to be safe….

What the Task Force has actually done is make this city harder to live in,” Tamboli said. open image in galleryA Memphis restaurant owner said that the federally established task force to crack down on crime has made the city less safe. He faced criticism after refusing to serve members at his eatery (Getty)The restaurateur added: “Its own records show that the overwhelming majority of its arrests began with routine traffic stops, not violent crime.

Families in this city are now afraid to drive to work, afraid to take their kids to school, afraid to be seen. Our own schools reported that fear drove children to stop showing up to class.”Tamboli’s protest to the task force comes after months of violent incidents involving members of the Memphis Safe Task Force.

In May, one federal agent on the task force shot and killed 25-year-old Jonah Neal during a mental health crisis, NPR reported. The same month, another member of the task force killed 41-year-old Darrin Pigram while serving an arrest warrant at a Burger King.Earlier this month, National Guard soldiers fatally shot 20-year-old Tyrin Johnson as he was being pursued on foot.

Another man, 47-year-old Alfonso Ivy, was also fatally shot this month after members of the task force were serving an arrest warrant. Referencing the recent shooting of Johnson, Tamboli said: “None of that makes us safer. It makes us less safe, and it does the most damage to the people who were already struggling.”

In September 2025, Trump established the Memphis Safe Task Force as a joint state and federal operation to crack down on crime in the city. The task force is comprised of roughly 350 federal agents and 1,450 members of the Tennessee National Guard, according to the U.S.

Marshals Service, NPR reported.open image in galleryTamboli's Pasta & Pizza said it has received fake reservations after denying service to uniformed members of the National Guard (Google Maps)Memphis has experienced one of the highest crime rates per capita over the last few years. Though its crime rate dropped between 2024 and 2025 – with a large decrease in burglaries, murders, aggravated assaults, robberies and larcenies.

Tamboli said he and “dozens” of other businesses had made a “public commitment to stand against the military policing our streets” and that he would continue to make that same decision. “Being pro-safety means telling the truth about what actually protects a community, and it is not soldiers trained for combat doing the work of police officers. That mismatch is dangerous for the people of Memphis and dangerous for the troops themselves, who were sent here to do a job they were never trained for,” Tamboli said.

“The founders wrote their objection to standing armies among the people into the Declaration of Independence itself, because they understood that a free country does not let the military police its own citizens. That principle is older than any political party, and I am not willing to abandon it because it became inconvenient.”Join our commenting forumJoin thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their repliesComments