Donald Trump blasts 'filthy' restaurant that turned away Sarah Huckabee Sanders: 'It badly needs a paint job'

Donald Trump has publicly slammed a restaurant and accused it of having a poor hygiene rating after it refused to serve his press secretary.

Sarah Huckabee Sanders wrote in a tweet that she was asked to leave a restaurant in Virginia because she works for the US President.

She said she “politely” left and criticised the restaurant owner for not treating people with respect.

The President then responded to the incident with a lengthy Twitter post in which he expressed outrage and accused the restaurant of being "filthy".

On Saturday Mrs Sanders wrote on her official press secretary Twitter account: “Last night I was told by the owner of Red Hen in Lexington, VA to leave because I work for [the President] and I politely left.

“Her actions say far more about her than about me. I always do my best to treat people, including those I disagree with, respectfully and will continue to do so.”

The owner later confirmed the incident to the Washington Post and said she stood by her decision.

"Absolutely, yes," the paper reported Stephanie Wilkinson as saying. "We just felt there are moments in time when people need to live their convictions."

She said her reasons included the concerns of employees who were gay and said she knew Mrs Sanders had defended Mr Trump's desire to bar transgender people from the military.

Several thousand people have posted messages of support and criticism of the restaurant for the move on its Yelp page.

And on Monday the President waded into the debate, saying The Red Hen "should focus more on cleaning its filthy canopies, doors and windows (badly needs a paint job) rather than refusing to serve a fine person like Sarah Huckabee Sanders."

The president, an admitted germophobe, added: "I always had a rule, if a restaurant is dirty on the outside, it is dirty on the inside!"

The President, who has become known for his liberal use of Twitter, was then criticised by many who believed it inappropriate to criticise a business in such a public manner.