I’m SO bummed - my favorite restaurant in the whole world is closing, going bankrupt, because of a big-city con artist who clever swindled them over the course of a year.

Apparently this con has been going on in the bay area for some time, but some rural restaurants are not yet aware of it. It is likely this guy pulled this scam in the SF bay area, and had to move inland to repeat it as the scam became known. Here’s how it worked…

This guy applies for a job as a waiter. Over the course of the year he works day shifts. In the middle of the day, whenever business is light, he asks the owner if he can step out for a nap. They say sure, go ahead. He goes home, comes back an hour later, and continues working. He keeps track of this for a whole year. Apparently, the law says if you do two shifts in one day, the second shift is overtime and you can’t pay the worker tipped wage in that case. The owners just think they’re letting him take a break, but the law says if you go home and come back, it’s a new shift. So he builds up about 100K in “unpaid back pay”.

After a year of this, he tells the owners that his mother is sick and he has to quit. They throw a going-away party for him and they shake hands. Three days later, they get a letter from his lawyer demanding $160K back pay. It’s a small chinese restaurant, and they can’t afford it. So they will be closing up, declaring bankruptcy, and the owners may even lose their home.

Of all places, this was my very favorite restaurant in the whole world. And the owners were always so sweet, even to this a-hole. Some people are just BAD BAD BAD.