SWR: Convivio Closes

As reported in the NYTimes:
NYTimes:ConvivioCloses...

Went there the eat a few yrs ago. Amazing food. The wine list was pretty incredibile...Italian wines I never done heer'd of. Their Somm was LeviDalton, one of the best Somms I've ever had the pleasure to deal with. Talked a lot about orange wines. Great guy. With his talents and knowledge, he should lland on his feet somewhere equally as good.
Tom

Levi Dalton had moved to Alto (also closed). As noted, he's top of the line sommelier and I'm sure will land somewhere great. It is surprising, as Alto was busy on a weeknight when I was there recently

The owner cites the costs and the risks of the labor lawsuit, Dale. See

http://ny.eater.com/archives/2011/03/ch ... s_alto.php

The owner cites the costs and the risks of the labor lawsuit, Dale. See

http://ny.eater.com/archives/2011/03/ch ... s_alto.php

Bob,
I don't see that statement from Cannon. It's unclear when eater update #2 was posted (original article was on 4th), but 3/8 NYT article has Cannon's lawyer dismissing idea. I'm sure these suits can be expensive, but unsure that this is exactly proof- suit was filed last fall. You're the lawyer, but I'd think if Cannon tried to suck out assets to avoid payment, there'd be a clawback. But restaurants don't tend to have big assets (other than maybe wine cellar!) if they don't have income.

Confusing, Dale. Sometimes these threats are used as a negotiating tactic to get a settlement. We'll have to see -- I haven't followed the merits of the suit at all.

If closure is because of waitstaff lawsuit, it's not exactly slaying the goose that lays the golden egg, but maybe slaying the goose that lays a regular egg. Better to have a job below minimum wage and dependent on tips than to have no job at all because the restaurant goes out of business. I do feel restaurant owners should pay at least minimum wage and follow all other labor regulations--too bad this situation, if as alleged, couldn't be corrected short of a lawsuit (which usually only makes the lawyers rich.) I imagine the tips at Alto and Convivio were pretty generous considering the clientele those restaurants would attract and the tab with tips usually based on a percentage of the tab.