When Marquise Vanzego picked up his food at the La Plata Chick-fil-A drive-thru last Friday, he was shocked by the racist name on the label.

The Charles County man says the tag he received had the word “monkeys” on it instead of his name.

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“It was devastating,” Vanzego said. “It set me back years. As a black man, we’ve been through a lot, and it’s a constant reminder, just when you think you’re healing from a situation, someone opens that wound again.”

Vanzego says he went inside to complain, and that a manager and the store owner later apologized to him. The owner told Vanzego that he would not fire the employee involved because the employee was a minor and said he had misheard the name.

Vanzego says he placed the order in person and not through a microphone, as the employee was standing outside in line at the drive-thru.

“I think it could have been very different,” Vanzego said. “I think the employee should have been fired on the spot. It’s a shame he lost his job, but it happens. He has to learn from this.”

Vanzego told News4 he used to be a regular customer at the Chick-fil-A location, often visiting multiple times a week.

Chick-fil-A responded to a request for comment with a brief statement.

“This Chick-fil-A is an independently owned and operated franchise. The franchisee of this restaurant has apologized to the guest. However, this experience did not meet our expectations and is unacceptable.”

News4 also called La Plata Chick-fil-A. An employee who answered the phone said they had no further comment.

Vanzego says he has hired an attorney and is considering filing a federal lawsuit against Chick-fil-A for discrimination.

“I’m not going back to Chick-fil-A,” Vanzego said. “Racism is still alive.”