Rebekah Galbraith, 22, and Jennie Leadbeater, 21, told Dominion Post they were asked to leave the Courtenay Pl bar in Wellington shortly before 3 in the morning on Sunday after they kissed on the lips.

The couple was sure their kiss did not last longer than two seconds.

The doorman, however, has a different version of the story. He said the women were standing on top of a table acting inappropriately. He said they responded aggressively when he asked them to "tone it down.''

Bar owner Gina Mills said there was no CCTV footage of the incident so she could not tell who gave the more accurate accounts of what happened, but she believed the doorman who, she noted, has over 20 years of experience in hospitality.

Mrs Mills added she just wanted to move on after being attacked on social media. She said she was upset over the accusations because she would never practice or promote discrimination against anyone.

The couple posted an open letter with their version of what happened on Facebook. Since the time of posting on Sunday, 351 people had left their comments and over 1100 people had 'liked' it.

Mrs Mills was aware her business could be affected by the social media spread of what had happened.

"There is a flow-on effect to people's lives. I don't think any of these were taken into consideration when they decided to grandstand,'' she said.

For her part, Ms Galbraith said she was disappointed in how Mrs Mills had reacted.

"I was so disappointed in Public's response - to stand by an employee that is lying,'' she said.