Saffire Restaurant will donate proceeds from a catering booking tied to the Fight Laugh Feast conference to World Central Kitchen, the Franklin eatery announced Monday, Sept. 28.

Lauren Morales, Saffire's COO and owner, said in a statement posted to Instagram that the restaurant accepted the reservation months ago from a Gmail address for what was described as a "business luncheon." Staff did not know the booking was connected to the Fight Laugh Feast Network's "Holy Wars" conference, scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 1, through Saturday, Oct. 3, at The Factory at Franklin, 230 Franklin Road.

Morales said a concerned neighbor alerted the restaurant to the connection. Saffire then identified statements by the conference's featured speaker that it called "deeply troubling," citing what it described as defenses of slavery, advocacy to repeal the 19th Amendment and calls to criminalize the LGBTQ community.

The restaurant said it is frustrated that it was not given the information needed to make an informed decision before the booking was made. After consulting an attorney, Saffire determined it is contractually obligated to honor the reservation.

Morales described Saffire as "a female owned and operated restaurant where everyone is welcome." The restaurant said it will send the luncheon's proceeds to World Central Kitchen, a disaster-relief charity Saffire works with as a Chef Corps member.

Saffire originally operated at The Factory from 2001 until it closed in 2017. It reopened at the same location and was featured on Resy's Nashville Hit List in February 2026.

The Factory at Franklin has also faced pressure over the conference. A Change.org petition created Sept. 24 calling on the venue to cancel the event had collected more than 1,400 signatures as of Sept. 28, Williamson Source reported.

Factory owner Allen Arender said in a statement around Sept. 25 that the venue does not endorse or promote the views of the conference's organization or its speakers, as first reported by WKRN. Arender said the event client has a contractual right to the rented space and that The Factory rents its venues for legal uses regardless of an organization's religion, political philosophy or beliefs.

The Factory said it is arranging extra security and a Franklin police presence during the event. The main conference runs Friday, Oct. 2, through Saturday, Oct. 3.