Overview

• TikTok user @itskarlabb said chef Luke Sung publicly disparaged her 15,000 followers during a scheduled collaboration, leaving her in tears; the video has been viewed more than 15 million times.
• Kis Cafe posted on Instagram that Sung’s behavior was unacceptable, confirmed he is no longer part of the team and noted that he personally apologized to the influencer.
• The Hayes Valley wine bar has temporarily closed to restructure after its Yelp and Google pages were flooded with one-star reviews and unusual activity alerts triggered by the viral video.
• On July 26, Kis Cafe’s co-owner told NBC Bay Area that the restaurant will reopen under new leadership separate from Sung to preserve staff livelihoods.
• The incident highlights the rising influence of micro-influencers on restaurant reputations and the speed of modern digital crisis management strategies.