But the apparent creation of a special birthday burger for the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, has dragged a New York restaurant into an argument over what critics say is fake news from the Kremlin. Russian state media reported over the weekend that Lucy’s Cantina Royale had produced a special spicy burger in honour of Putin’s 65th birthday on Saturday. A pro-Kremlin Twitter user then posted a recording of a telephone call to Lucy’s, in which a barmaid confirmed the Putin burger promotion. However, there was no mention of the purported Putin burger promotion on the restaurant’s website, and no sign of it on photographs posted to Lucy’s Instagram on 7 October, the Russian president’s birthday. “Our restaurant has never celebrated Vladimir Putin’s birthday in any way, shape or form and has never offered a Putin burger,” Sean Ryan, a spokesman for Lucy’s Cantina Royale, told the Guardian in emailed comments.

Source: The Guardian October 08, 2017 19:04 UTC