Hotel Chef Fired After Requesting a Photo with Guns N’ Roses’ Axl Rose: “Was It Worth It? It Was—and Always Will Be”

Richard Perez Cuzcano snapped a photo with his idol Axl Rose, but was later dismissed for violating company policy.

A hotel chef who had the chance to meet and take a photo with his idol Axl Rose says he has no regrets, even after being fired for violating his employer’s rules regarding guest interactions.

According to Peruvian news site Bajo Piura Noticias 2.0, Richard Perez Cuzcano was working as a chef at a Marriott Hotel in Lima when Guns N’ Roses performed at the Estadio Nacional earlier this month.

A devoted fan of the band, Cuzcano was overjoyed to cook for Rose and eventually asked the frontman for a photo. Rose agreed, and Cuzcano later shared the picture on social media, quoting lyrics from the GNR classic November Rain.

He wrote: “How do I explain to my younger self that this will happen in a few years, that one day he’ll become a chef and cook for W. Axl Rose? And that he’ll shake his hand. Was it worth it? It was, it is, and it will continue to be worth it until my last day.”

Shortly afterward, Cuzcano was dismissed for apparently breaching Marriott’s policy, which prohibits employees from interacting with guests outside of work duties.

Cuzcano told Bajo Piura Noticias 2.0: “I was the chef of the restaurant, I took a picture with Axl Rose himself after cooking for him. Got fired yesterday for breaking that rule.”

The story has sparked backlash from the news outlet’s readers, many of whom criticized the hotel for what they called an “excessive and unfair” response.