Posted on 02/06/2017 7:16:26 PM PST by nickcarraway
A black tarp hangs over what used to be the Burger & Beer Joint in South Beach as well as a dark cloud over why it closed.
Three months after a gay night club opened on the second floor of the countrys first Burger & Beer Joint, the Boca Raton-based franchise has revoked the local restaurants right to use the name, menu and concept.
The locals say they are being targeted for leasing the upstairs to a longtime South Beach gay club promoter, and they point to a letter they were sent shortly after The Mix bar and lounge opened, which states the club could have a substantial negative impact on Burger & Beer Joints reputation.
Its outright discrimination, said Carlos Ekneiro, one of three partners who own the South Beach restaurant, which is now operating without a name and concept. How can they say because theyre doing gay events that its hurting their brand?
The national company, B&B Franchise Group, says the restaurant at 1766 Bay Rd., is hiding behind a gay-rights issue and has a long history of flouting corporate rules, including the fact they opened any bar without first getting approval.
An attorney for B&B Franchise said Ekneiro and his two partners, fellow Venezuelan investors, never went through the proper approval process to open the club on the second floor, where the restaurant also has its kitchen.
B&B Franchise also canceled licensing at two other Burger & Beer Joint restaurants, one at Dolphin Mall, the other at CityPlace in West Palm Beach, also owned by Ekneiro and his partners.
Variance of any kind is injurious to the brand no matter what kind of bar is opened. Its not something that would have been approved, said B&Bs attorney Charles Forlidas. We know its South Beach. We welcome the gay community.... Its the fact they brought in a third party.
Tony Ferro, a longtime South Beach club promoter, said Ekneiro approached him about opening The Mix and that he later met with a B&B corporate representative.
They knew what we were doing. It had to be approved with them, which they did. They were OK with the whole concept, Ferro said. We dont sell their food. We dont brand ourselves together with B&B at all. I dont see how they would associate us with them.
Ferro said he had no idea why his bar would cost the restaurant its franchise. When they told me, I was mind boggled, he said. The only thing I can think of was weve had a drag queen at the door. Im really not sure.
The after-hours club had a separate entrance and operated as an upstairs, 2,000-square-foot speakeasy, Ferro said, after Burger & Beer Joint had closed for the night.
Ferro said hes never before felt discriminated against because hes gay.
It was chilling. In 2017, we shouldnt be experiencing this. Especially in South Beach, he said. Gay dollars made B&B. Weve been there since the beginning.
A flyer touting South Beachs New Gay Hotspot, sharing the restaurants address, was referenced in a letter the franchise sent Ekneiros attorney in early November, within weeks of The Mix opening on Oct. 27. The letter says the nightclub is an unapproved use that could have a substantial negative impact on B&B and the associations made by consumers or the general public with the B&B System.
B&Bs attorney points to the other stripped franchises, specifically the one in West Palm Beach, and it did not have a gay bar in it, Forlidas said. Proof there is no discrimination, he says, is that the group still runs two other franchises, one in Mary Brickell Village and another in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
If you operate well, we dont have anything to say about it, Forlidas said. If they havent filed a lawsuit its because they dont have any grounds to sue us.
Ekneiro said the company has been using a host of made up reasons to cancel their franchise agreements, and that when they referenced the gay club, they went too far.
His South Beach restaurant reopened without a name Monday, as will his Dolphin Mall location on Wednesday. He says he is considering opening both with a new name: Freedom Burger or Liberty Burger.
Ahhh... nothing personal, mate, but why exactly is this worthy of a thread on FR?
Try as I might, I fail to see how this in any way aligns with the core values of FreeRepublic.
Again, why is this worthy of being posted here?
Colour Me confused...
Thd obvious solution is for the gay bar to have rear entry only.
“Colour”
Welcome to America.
You can produce paperwork backing this up?
If not then obviously they DIDN'T.
What a trio of whining pansies.
Do they sell Bowel Burgers Au Jus?
Way too complex. Either you rent to poofters or you don’t. Keep it simple.
My suggestion would be for them to give up the burgers, go with a German theme keep the Beer and feature sausages.
50 years and gay bars are still running speakeasies. Mob involved as they were in the 1960s?
I found it interesting. To each his/her own.
Is the franchise agreement with a Chik-fil-A type owner, and a morals clause in the contract?
We should not be ignorant of what the enemy is doing and how it affects those surrounding it, including ourselves.
Are you the P.C. police enforcing LGBT hegemony?
He might be my neighbour.
Sponsoring FReepers are contributing
$10 Each time a New Monthly Donor signs up!
Get more bang for your FR buck!
Click Here To Sign Up Now!
That's not mayo on the burger!
Kitchen for the restaurant is in the bar. The bar has the same address as the restaurant. If they can’t see several issues with this, from health inspection to muddying the brand ID, then they’re being obtuse. This would have happened whether or not the clientele of the bar was gay.
When you put your name on a contract, maybe you read it first...
Obviously, according to the article the B&B owner is in violation of his terms...
Not surprising for Miami, lots of people think they are above the law...
Too bad the guy is whining.... it’s not a gay issue...
That will get him a cup of coffee and change for his trouble...
Meh. Here in this little mountain town, I could not help but notice that more than a handful of the graduating girls went to their Senior Prom with another girl as their date.
I could not help but notice this as many of them were very attractive indeed, but felt no need to start a thread on it here or anywhere else for that matter.
I believe that is what ‘blogs’ are for, not that I post to any.
Glad you found it of interest, begorra.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.