Mamdani Was Booed at an Oct. 7 Vigil, Then Dined at a Restaurant Whose Chain Drew Fire for a “From the River to the Sea” Menu.
On Wednesday, the third anniversary of the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attacks, Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D) walked in a silent candlelit march from City Hall to a vigil in Union Square, where demonstrators heckled him, calling him a “coward” and a “traitor,” according to Mediaite.
Afterward, the New York Post reported, he ate at Ayat Hinds Hall on the Upper West Side, a branch of a Palestinian restaurant chain whose Brooklyn location was criticized in 2023 over a menu section titled “From the River to the Sea.” The owner rejects the accusation of antisemitism. The mayor’s office had not responded in the reports we reviewed.
- 3rdanniversaryof the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attacks, the night of the vigil and dinner — Fox News Digital
- 1,100+Israelis killedby Hamas that day, per the mayor's statement; he said Hamas also abducted 251 — Mediaite
- 74,000+Palestinians killedin Gaza since, a figure from the mayor's statement and not independently verified here — Fox News Digital
- 2023menu controversythe year a chain location's "From the River to the Sea" section drew criticism — VIN News
- 21,000+childrenamong the Palestinians killed, per the mayor's statement; not independently verified here — Mediaite
Mediaite reports that Mamdani attended a candlelit vigil in Union Square and joined a silent march from City Hall honoring those killed on Oct. 7. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators called him a “coward” and a “traitor” while he carried a candle. Fox News Digital reports that protesters shouted, according to media reports, “Zohran, what do you say? How many kids did you kill today?” VIN News says the protesters accused him of abandoning the Palestinian cause. Videos posted by The National Desk and CNN are headlined as showing him booed.
Ayat Hinds Hall is named for Hind Rajab, a 5-year-old Palestinian girl killed in Gaza in January 2024, Mediaite reports. VIN News adds that the name also echoes what Columbia University protesters called Hamilton Hall during their 2024 takeover. Mediaite credits the sighting to an X post by user Kendis Gibson, who called it “the only Palestinian restaurant on the Upper West Side.” Reports do not say who dined with the mayor.
The menu controversy concerns a different location. In 2023, a menu at one Ayat site had a section titled “From the River to the Sea,” and the Anti-Defamation League describes the phrase as an implicit call for Israel’s eradication, Fox News Digital reports. Critics called the restaurant “openly genocidal.” Owner Abdul Elenani rejects that, saying the phrase was on the menu months before Oct. 7, that he supports a two-state solution and condemns violence on both sides, and that he hosted a free Shabbat dinner for hundreds in 2024.
In his Oct. 7 statement, Mamdani called the day “profoundly painful for so many New Yorkers” and the Hamas attack a “horrific war crime,” and said the suffering “did not begin nor end that day,” calling Israel’s campaign a “devastating, ongoing genocide,” Mediaite reports. Speaking to reporters Thursday, he stood by that characterization. “I believe that there must be room to mourn every single life,” he said, citing more than 1,100 killed by Hamas and 74,000 Palestinians he says Israel has killed since.
“I believe that there must be room to mourn every single life.”
Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D) — remarks to reporters, Oct. 8, 2026, via Fox News Digital
Israel has been a defining theme of Mamdani’s mayoralty. Mediaite notes he called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a “war criminal” and said he would seek his arrest if he visited New York, later acknowledging he lacks the power to enforce one. In September, Netanyahu told the UN General Assembly that Mamdani is “New York’s anti-Semitic mayor”; Mamdani replied that Netanyahu is “the architect of a genocide.” Mediaite reports the statement drew criticism, and VIN News says it came from Jewish leaders and pro-Israel activists.
Zohran Mamdani (D) — Mayor of New York City; attended the vigil and the dinner.
Abdul Elenani — restaurant owner; rejects the antisemitism accusation.
Benjamin Netanyahu — Israeli Prime Minister; called Mamdani “New York’s anti-Semitic mayor.”
Anti-Defamation League — describes the menu phrase as a call for Israel’s destruction.
Established: the mayor attended the Oct. 7 vigil and was heckled, and the New York Post and others report he dined at Ayat Hinds Hall that night. Also established: a different Ayat location’s 2023 menu drew the criticism described above, and the owner denies any antisemitic intent. Not established: who dined with him, whether the Upper West Side menu carries the phrase, or how his office views the report.
On the third anniversary of Oct. 7, Mayor Mamdani was booed at a vigil and then, reports say, dined at a restaurant whose chain drew criticism for a “From the River to the Sea” menu. The menu was at another location, the owner denies antisemitic intent, and the mayor’s office had not responded in the coverage reviewed.
