5 restaurants illegally kept cash, credit card tips from employees, federal officials say
Updated: 2:18 PM EST Nov 30, 2022
Five restaurants – four in the Upstate – have been cited by the US Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division for illegally keeping money from their employees.According to the WHD, employers at the five Japan House restaurants reportedly kept $80,212 in back wages from 52 workers .The employers gathered the money by illegally keeping credit card tips and cash received by cashiers and paid cooks a fixed salary even if they worked over their 40-hour workweek, the WHD says.The WHD says that the five Japan House restaurants have also failed to record the number of hours worked by some of their non-exempt employees. Four of the five restaurants cited are in the Upstate, with locations in Boiling Springs, Inman, and two in Spartanburg. Another restaurant cited is in Lake Lure, North Carolina. “Today’s workers have the ability to choose employers who pay full wages and respect workers’ rights. Food service industry employers who comply with labor laws and appreciate the dignity of work will have the greatest appeal to workers, whether they’re joining the workforce or looking for new job opportunities,” Wage and Hour Division District Director Jamie Benefiel in Columbia, South Carolina, said. “We encourage employers and employees to contact the Wage and Hour Division with any questions or concerns regarding pay practices.”Employers can contact the Wage and Hour Division at its toll-free number, 1-866-4-US-WAGE.
ATLANTA —
Five restaurants – four in the Upstate – have been cited by the US Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division for illegally keeping money from their employees.
According to the WHD, employers at the five Japan House restaurants reportedly kept $80,212 in back wages from 52 workers.
The employers gathered the money by illegally keeping credit card tips and cash received by cashiers and paid cooks a fixed salary even if they worked over their 40-hour workweek, the WHD says.
The WHD says that the five Japan House restaurants have also failed to record the number of hours worked by some of their non-exempt employees.
Four of the five restaurants cited are in the Upstate, with locations in Boiling Springs, Inman, and two in Spartanburg. Another restaurant cited is in Lake Lure, North Carolina.
“Today’s workers have the ability to choose employers who pay full wages and respect workers’ rights. Food service industry employers who comply with labor laws and appreciate the dignity of work will have the greatest appeal to workers, whether they’re joining the workforce or looking for new job opportunities,” Wage and Hour Division District Director Jamie Benefiel in Columbia, South Carolina, said. “We encourage employers and employees to contact the Wage and Hour Division with any questions or concerns regarding pay practices.”
Employers can contact the Wage and Hour Division at its toll-free number, 1-866-4-US-WAGE.
There are several levels of steak doneness. This culinary can be processed with various levels of maturity to spoil the tongue of the connoisseur. Each level of steak doneness will give a different impression. It could be that even in one family will have different tastes. It is also important to know the different levels of steak doneness. There’s nothing wrong with trying one at a time to get the best taste. Starting from those that tend to be still raw to the most mature. Here’s how to understand the level of steak doneness :
1. Rare
This level of maturity is also rarely ordered, but some people may be familiar with this level of maturity which is still relatively raw. The color produced by the cooking process is brownish gray on the outside and still red on the inside. Usually, to reach this level of doneness, it takes about 2 minutes to cook, so that the inside is still red, but there is a difference in the soft texture of the meat. This rare maturity level makes the meat taste sweeter and the distinctive aroma of the meat is still more pronounced than other maturity levels.
2. Medium Rare
This half-done steak can be seen from the color of the meat which has changed color to half pink and half brown on the inside, while the outside is more brown. This level of maturity will be obtained when cooking with a temperature of around 54 degrees to 57 degrees Celsius. The maturity level of this one is marked by 60% ripe on the outside while still fresh inside. Simple language for medium rare is half cooked. The taste of the meat tends to be chewy and juicy.
3. Medium
The medium maturity level has a lot of fans, because it is ripe and still has a little bit of juiciness from the meat, although not much. Usually many steaks are served with this level of doneness. To cook a medium steak, it takes about 4 minutes on each side of the steak. This process will also turn the steak more gray on the outside and inside with a little bit of red left on it. When compared to the previous maturity level, the medium steak is slightly denser than before.
4. Medium Well
Medium well is familiar to most people, this is because medium well is more cooked and still tender with a little pink on the inside of the steak. To reach this maturity, of course, it takes longer than before, steak meat can be cooked in approximately 5 minutes on both sides. Usually, to enjoy it, cream or sauce is added so that it can add to the taste of the steak.
5. Well Done
The level of well done steak doneness in steak dishes is more familiar, because it is felt to be perfectly cooked. To cook a well done steak it takes about 6 minutes on each side. This well done steak is drier because there is almost no water from the steak. The color of the steak is browner both inside and outside so it’s easier to tell this level of doneness.… Read More
Gucci will be moving into 204. S. Galena Street. Carolyn Sackariason/The Aspen Times
As winter season kicks off, the downtown commercial landscape has experienced some moves in the retail world with new arrivals and the changing of locations, yet several restaurant spaces will remain dark until next year.
Almost a dozen spaces that used to be restaurants in downtown Aspen will remain closed this winter season, including a handful that have been closed for several years.
The historic building at 201 E. Main St., known to most as the former Main Street Bakery. Anna Stonehouse/The Aspen Times
The longest that have remained closed are Main Street Bakery, which ceased operations in 2016 and is owned by prominent landlord Mark Hunt, as well as the former Over Easy and Aspen Brewing Co. space on Hopkins Avenue, which the Hillstone Restaurant Group purchased in 2017.
The building that used to house the Aspen Brewing Co. and Over Easy was purchased by the Hillstone Restaurant Group and has been empty since 2016. Carolyn Sackariason/The Aspen Times
Brian Biel, vice president of the restaurant group, which owns the White House Tavern next door, issued a similar statement last week that the company has made in previous years.
“Hillstone is working with the city of Aspen to pull out its building permit and expects to start work on a new project soon,” he said via email.
Hunt told The Aspen Times this past February he hoped to start construction within a few months, but that has not happened.
The space next to the empty Hillstone property that was most recently occupied by Tatanka, which is closed in 2021, is supposed to open by next summer as a Thai restaurant and a Japanese concept underneath, according to commercial real estate broker Angi Yang with Setterfield & Bright.
The former Aspen Sports Bistro and prior to that, Hops Culture, located on the Hyman Avenue mall, is under contract and will not be open this winter.
The restaurant space in the Golden Horn building on the corner of the Mill and Cooper pedestrian malls won’t be open until next winter, according to John Terzian, who represents the Los Angeles-based h. wood Group.
Two spaces in the Golden Horn building on the Mill and Cooper malls will be empty until next winter. Carolyn Sackariason/The Aspen Times
The hospitality group plans to open its third Nice Guy restaurant, which also has locations in Los Angeles and Dubai and pays homage to the era of mafia bars and restaurants and has an old-school Italian menu.
The group took over the space a year and a half ago, after the previous restaurant, Maru, closed in 2019.
The original plan was to be open in 2021 but delays due to the pandemic and permitting processes have slowed down, Terzian said.
He envisions it to be a great place for locals and tourists to hang out in a 1950s era Frank Sinatra and Palm Springs type of scene, with a warm living room feel and live music every night.
“We are super excited about it,” Terzian said last week.
The future proprietors of the Red Onion, Craig and Samantha Cordts-Pearce, planned to be open sometime this winter and now it’s likely sometime in 2023.
The space, also owned by Hunt, is part of almost an entire block on the Cooper Avenue mall being redeveloped into an RH storefront and a jazz center operated by Jazz Aspen Snowmass that has been under construction for years.
Having that much empty space on one block is concerning for Aspen Mayor Torre, who said last week that the vacancy rate in the commercial core, whether the places are spoken for or not, is damaging to the town for many reasons.
“When we have space that is not being utilized in our downtown core, that means that goods and services are not getting to both residents and visitors, and it’s all based on who we are as a town and who are we serving and how’s it coming back to us,” he said. “On top of that, there are tax implications with all these vacant spaces.”
Torre earlier this fall got support from his fellow council members to have staff investigate the possibility of a commercial vacancy tax.
Hunt’s other properties that used to house restaurants Aspen Pie and Nakazawa on the Mill Street mall are closed, as is the longtime Mexican restaurant Su Casa around the corner at 315 E. Hyman Ave.
The Cordts-Pearces, who also own the Wild Fig, will take over the former Nakazawa space and will also manage the Popcorn Wagon.
The spaces on the corner of Galena Street and Durant Avenue that housed Victoria’s Espresso and The Ski Shop will remain closed while Michael Goldberg, owner of the adjacent Belly Up, plans a new
