Free Republic

Red Lobster is reportedly considering filing for bankruptcy to relieve financial pressures that have weighed on the company. According to a report by Bloomberg citing people familiar with the discussions, Red Lobster is weighing a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing to renegotiate burdensome leases and address other long-term contracts as well as rising labor costs. The outlet reported that the seafood restaurant chain is being advised by law firm King & Spalding on the subject, and that while discussions about restructuring are ongoing and that no final decisions have been made about a bankruptcy filing. By filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy,...

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (WFLA) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will speak at a press conference in St. Petersburg on Wednesday. DeSantis will be joined by Florida Department of High Safety and Motor Vehicles Executive Director Dave Kerner at The Urban Stillhouse. You can watch the governor live on this page.

Outrage erupts as California Governor Gavin Newsom's restaurant, the PlumpJack Café, brazenly advertises positions with a paltry $16 hourly wage—well below the newly mandated $20 minimum wage for fast-food workers. This revelation casts a glaring spotlight on the stark hypocrisy of Newsom's stance on labor rights, as he champions progressive policies while his own establishments fall short of meeting basic wage standards. As of April 1, a new state law came into effect in California, guaranteeing a minimum wage of $20 per hour for fast-food workers employed in large chains, a significant increase from the previous minimum of $16. This...

Georgia mother was arrested for allegedly encouraging her seven-year-old daughter to steal a woman's purse. The Newnan Police Department said that 28-year-old Kenya Butler was at The Juicy Crab with her daughter when she saw a woman's purse unattended in a booth. Authorities said that Butler allegedly told her daughter to grab the purse. Her daughter snatched the purse, and then they left the restaurant along with others in their group, skipping out on a $500 bill.

The owner asked to remain anonymous for fear of being targeted by activists ... A Seattle, Washington restaurant owner .. has lost faith in city leadership after his business suffered what he claims is its 23rd break-in since the "defund the police" movement started three years ago. "I have lost all faith in the city of Seattle, SPD, Council members, and state elected officials ... The owner of the establishment asked to remain anonymous over fear that activists would target him ... he was previously inundated with a slew of negative Yelp reviews after speaking out against the crime crisis...

Greece, N.Y. — Police are looking for two women who they say dined and dashed before hitting a restaurant employee with their car. The two women allegedly left the restaurant Saturday after refusing to pay their bill, before the employee followed them to their car. Police said the women intentionally struck the employee, causing injury, before fleeing. Police did not say where the incident took place. The women are wanted for assault and theft of services.

Inflation, a driving force behind many of the challenges businesses face today, has caused one restaurant owner to charge nearly $16 for a BLT sandwich due to rising costs. Will Restaurants Investment Group founder and CEO Brian Will broke down his monthly expenses during an appearance on “Varney & Co.” after a friend confronted him about the price of his $16 BLT sandwich. The wholesale cost for the popular sandwich is only $5 according to Will, but the need to cover operational expenses is what caused the meal that was once $12.99 three years ago, to become $15.99 today. Will...

laced with marijuana' It was supposed to be a night out at one of Arizona’s premiere golf destinations. But after a surprising addition to their dinner menu, two families say their kids had to be rushed to the hospital. Gelato at Isabellas 1.jpeg By: Jennifer KovaleskiPosted at 10:13 PM, Dec 31, 2023 and last updated 10:13 PM, Dec 31, 2023 SCOTTSDALE, AZ — It was supposed to be a night out with family and friends at one of Arizona’s premiere golf destinations. But after a surprising addition to their dinner menu, two families say their kids had to be rushed...

Chilling video shows the moment a suspect set fire to a Jewish-Japanese fusion restaurant in Williamsburg, in what police are calling an antisemitic arson hate crime. The incident occurred on Nov. 18 shortly after 4 am in front of the Shalom Japan restaurant on South 4th Street, according to police Friday. Surveillance video shows a man walking up to the eatery and torching two outside window tarps that cops said featured images of the Jewish Star of David. In the footage, the bearded and bespectacled arsonist is seen casually walking back and forth as smoke begins to spread.

Harrowing video shows the moment a man eating alone in a Washington Heights fish restaurant was shot point-blank in the head during a stickup. The violent incident occurred at the Seafood King Fish Market at Broadway and West 163rd Street just before 2 a.m. Wednesday, when the 37-year-old victim was having a late-night dinner at the counter. Footage released by the NYPD shows a masked robber holding a distinctive blue handgun just inches from the back of the customer’s head as he sits hunched over.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Protesters marching in Philadelphia against the bombardment of Gaza chanted about genocide Sunday outside an Israeli-style restaurant, leading Gov. Josh Shapiro to call the demonstration “antisemitic.” In Philadelphia’s Center City and University City neighborhoods, hundreds of people marched to criticize Israel’s military actions in Gaza, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported. However, it was unclear why some specifically protested the restaurant. A video of demonstrators outside of Goldie Falafel depicted people chanting, “Goldie, Goldie, you can’t hide, we charge you with genocide,” which garnered backlash from the Democratic governor

A brawl broke out at a family-favorite restaurant in Massachusetts the night before Thanksgiving after lines to get into the building spread all the way down the street. Kowloon, a popular restaurant in Saugus, Massachusetts, attracts families looking to dine out, with many attending as an annual tradition on Thanksgiving Eve. This year - a dramatic fight broke out on Wednesday night as unruly guests began scrapping, with a number of patrons throwing punches in the middle of the restaurant. Saugus Police Chief Michael Ricciardelli slammed the disorder, labelling the fight 'unacceptable and disgusting'. He said in a statement: 'The...

A drunk woman who trashed a New York fries restaurant after being asked to pay $1.75 extra for sauce is now suing a car wash, claiming she 'fell down a drain' shortly after they refused to clean her friend's egg-covered car at 3am. Chitara Plasencia and her two friends were arrested and charged with robbery, criminal mischief and criminal possession of a weapon after starting a violent food fight inside the Bel Fries fast food restaurant on Manhattan's Lower East Side in July 2022. A viral video of the chaotic incident shows the women twerking on the counter and hurling...

Trumpenfreude, which I believe is a word that Don Surber coined, happens when we get a warm glow learning about people who struck out at Trump or those close to him and, instead, managed to destroy themselves. While we should feel guilty about regular schadenfreude (e.g., delighting in other people’s misery), Trumpenfreude is something to be celebrated. The latest, somewhat delayed, comeuppance for a Trump hater is The Red Hen, the restaurant that, in 2018, proudly ejected Sarah Huckabee Sanders and her family in the middle of their meal. SNIP Moreover, a whole lot of Americans who support strong borders,...

'Telling 2/3 of the local population' they are unwelcome is not the best business strategy.. Apparently telling two-thirds of the local population they are not welcome at your business is "not the best business decision," suggests a report at National File about the closure of the "Commie Cluck" restaurant. The report noted that Lexington, Virginia, facility actually was named The Red Hen, and it became infamous in a moment for a decision back in the day to eject from the premises then-Trump Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders and her family. Because she's Republican. ... The press secretary's family was ejected...

A Pennsylvania restaurant owner was arrested after he allegedly shot a 15-year-old boy who tried to snatch a tip jar from the counter, according to police. Mohammed Hamdan, 39, allegedly shot the teenager several times on Friday night inside his restaurant, Hook Fish and Chicken in Stowe Township, just north of Pittsburgh, the Allegheny County Police Department said. Police had received a report of shots fired around 10 p.m. Moments later, they received another call from the teen’s mother who said her son had been shot several times, according to a police report obtained by WTAE.

A restaurant that refused to shut down during COVID-19 restrictions and didn't require documentation of vaccination had its charges dropped after finally getting its day in court. The crown dropped charges against Jesse Johnson, owner of Without Papers Pizza, after just 10 minutes of action in the courtroom, Media Bezirgan reported. The Calgary, Canada, business faced shutdowns and charges from the Alberta provincial government after it refused to close while also declining to participate in Canada's vaccine passport program, which required two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to eat indoors at restaurants. "These bastards, they literally tried to break me...

A San Francisco smoothie startup promised to create customers "one-of-a-kind" recipes, but two months after opening, the store was shuttered. The shop, BetterBlends, used artificial intelligence to generate custom smoothies based on customer preferences. The company only offered one menu item called "Your Smoothie, powered by AI" and claimed to be "the most personalized restaurant, ever," according to its site. "People really like the idea of us betting on San Francisco," BetterBlends co-founder, Clayton Reynolds, said in September, adding the community reaction to the shop had been "phenomenal." Michael Parlato, the other co-founder, said the smoothie store "is a real...

A kosher restaurant in London was vandalised in an apparent antisemitic attack overnight following the invasion of Israel by Hamas terrorists and amid growing concern over potential violence against Jewish people across Europe. The ‘Pita’ restaurant in the famously Jewish neighbourhood of Golders Green in north London saw its glass door smashed with a fire extinguisher sometime between Sunday evening and Monday morning, the Times of London reported. The act of vandalism was carried out just yards away from a London Underground overpass which was tagged with graffiti reading “Free Palestine”. Another nearby bridge was branded with the phrase “Palestine...

A restaurant fired back at New York Times columnist David Brooks after he complained Wednesday on social media about the cost of his meal, saying, "This is why Americans think the economy is terrible." "This meal just cost me $78 at Newark Airport. This is why Americans think the economy is terrible," Brooks wrote with a picture of his dinner, which consisted of a cheeseburger, fries and what appears to be an alcoholic beverage. However, the restaurant 1911 Smoke House Barbeque pushed back on Brooks' post on Facebook Thursday. "Looks like someone was knocking back some serious drinks - Bar...