Benzinga | Aug 30, 2021 12:43PM EDT

Bars And Restaurants Create 13-Beer Memorials For Service Members Killed In Kabul Airport Bombing

In the wake of the Aug. 26 bombing at the Kabul, Afghanistan, airport that killed 13 U.S. service members, bars and restaurants across the U.S. have spontaneously begun to create memorials featuring 13 bottles or glasses of beers at a table with a "reserved" sign that is presented as tribute for those killed in the line of duty.

What Happened: It is unclear where this form of tribute began. USA Today reported on bars and restaurants in Ohio, New York and Wisconsin independently began to create these mini-memorials, along with a barbershop that has 13 Budweiser bottles at a barber's station along with a folded flag and "reserved" sign in its chair.

New England Cable News reported on similar tributes happening in eateries and breweries in the Northeast while the trade media resource Beer Street Journal has 13-beer tributes in establishments within Atlanta, Savannah and Virginia Beach.

Related Link: Most Americans Blame Biden For Mismanaging Afghanistan Crisis: Poll

What Else Happened: Several Texas Roadhouse Inc (NASDAQ:TXRH) restaurants across the country have created 13-beer mini-memorials within their establishments. While coverage in the website WhiskeyRiff pointed out these tributes with overall praise to the company, these are independent tributes by franchisees within the restaurant chain and are not part of a Texas Roadhouse corporate directive.

President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden participated in the transfer ritual for the bodies of the 13 slain service members on Sunday at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. Nearly 200 Afghans were also killed in the suicide bomber attack outside Abbey Gate at Hamid Karzai International Airport.

Photo: The 13-beer tribute at Dugarels Bar & Grill in Hastings, Minnesota.