Trump promotes Kid Rock's new Nashville restaurant after ICE raids briefly shut down singer's steakhouse

WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump just tipped his cowboy hat to pal Kid Rock’s newest Nashville joint.

The 78-yar-old took to Truth Social on Monday, June 2, to give a shout out to the musician's brand-new restaurant. The Detroit Cowboy, which proudly sports the slogan — “Go where you’re celebrated, not tolerated.”

“Congratulations to my friend, Kid Rock (I call him Bob!), on the Grand Opening of his new Nashville restaurant, 'The Detroit Cowboy.' I hear it is a very friendly MAGA establishment, and look forward to going there sometime soon,” Trump wrote. 

The restaurant — which quietly opened last month — is officially throwing open its doors Tuesday morning with Kid Rock himself in attendance, and 'Fox & Friends' broadcasting live from the scene.

Controversy around Kid Rock's Big A** Honky Tonk Rock N' Roll Steakhouse 

While Trump’s full-throated approval rings loud, Kid Rock–branded ventures have been facing issues of late.

Just a few weeks back, his previous Nashville hotspot — the Big A** Honky Tonk Rock N’ Roll Steakhouse — courted controversy when reports surfaced that managers reportedly told undocumented workers to leave mid-shift during ICE raids in the area.

According to Nashville Scene, several restaurants along Broadway — including the Kid Rock–affiliated steakhouse — instructed employees without legal status to make a swift exit to avoid detection.

The steakhouse is owned by Steve Smith, a local bar mogul and outspoken conservative. It’s unclear whether Smith knew about the orders to evacuate the kitchens, the Daily Mail reported.

Kid Rock’s restaurant rodeo

Kid Rock — real name Robert James Ritchie — isn’t new to the restaurant game. His culinary debut came during Donald Trump’s first term, when he opened Made in Detroit inside Little Caesars Arena back in late 2017.

A year later, he ventured down south to launch the Big A** Honky Tonk. But things took a turn in 2019 after he made some incendiary remarks about Oprah Winfrey — and suddenly, his Detroit restaurant was no more. At the time, the stadium's owner said Kid Rock had “voluntarily decided not to renew” his licensing agreement, per the Detroit Free Press.

Now, Kid Rock is back with a vengeance. In an Instagram post, the rocker stood in front of a painted eagle mural and threw direct shade at his Detroit critics.

“A small group of very bad people thought they cancelled me and my restaurant in Detroit in 2020,” he wrote. “All you dumbaes did was hurt the city I LOVE."

His new venture, The Detroit Cowboy, takes over the former Nashville location of Joe Muer Seafood, a Detroit staple that had expanded south.

Kid Rock credits Donald Trump for killing cancel culture

Just last month, Kid Rock hailed Donald Trump as the “dragon slayer” of cancel culture, wokeness, and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI).

“I think wokeness and DEI and cancel culture is starting to exit the building, and we can thank President Trump for leading that charge once again,” the musician told Fox News at his Rock N Rodeo event in Texas. “I call him the dragon slayer in that regard, ‘cuz he just came and slit the throat of DEI and wokeness.”

He admitted there’s always going to be a little backlash in society, saying, “There’s always gonna be cancel culture at some level, somebody getting butt sore about this, wants to protest and not buy a product or whatever.”

But when it came to big brands bowing to the pressure, he made it clear where he stands.

“You know me, personally, I’m not into seeing people lose their jobs over some corporate decision that was made,” Kid Rock explained. “But sometimes there needs to be a little spanking there, like Bud Light had from me and some other people, but at the end of the day, we forgave them, said, ‘It’s all good. Let’s get back on track.’”