WARNING: Long Post Incoming
[BUT I REALLY NEED ADVICE BADLY]
7 months ago I started working at a Bar & Grill kitchen. Typical shit. Burgers, steaks, salads, basic sandwiches, fried food etc. It was owned by a married couple who the wife recently passed away unexpectedly and was now being run by the late husband and his daughter.
The business wasn’t doing great. Weekdays are mostly empty during the day, not much better at night. The money maker days were Thursday-Sat nights. They have a pretty basic food service inventory except their steaks and burgers were locally sourced (and fantastic cuts) and they had some in-house apps that were very good. The rest was your average stuff. The menu had never been changed in the 10 years they’ve been open.
So I moved to the town the restaurant is in around Thanksgiving. January 5 I get hired in. The kitchen is easily the most atrocious thing I’ve ever seen. I spend the first month cleaning my ass off. The menu was all FUBAR. Sharpie marker cross-outs and price changes, things on items that they don’t offer anymore or care to explain to the customer they don’t. The whole 9 yards. Kitchen nightmares status. I’ve been in the business for 13 years, managing for about 6. Culinary Grad. Ive got the 1000 yard stare and I’ve seen it all. Within 2 months I’m promoted to “kitchen manager” and given a raise.
I’m an artist as a hobbyist and I design album artwork for bands and tour promo stuff, apparel and merch etc…so I use what I know and design a modern menu. Same items, same prices. A mirror of the previous. Just looks MUCH better. Snubbed instantly. I recommended changes to some cooking methods of some of the items. Snubbed. When introduced to people, im the cook. When confrontation is needed or someone needs to be held accountable for a fuck up, im the manager.
Month 5 we get a new payroll and POS system. The bookkeeper is notoriously horrible. The owner is notoriously procrastinating, turning in payroll 10 minutes before deadline every week, leaving no room to correct errors if there are any. Checks and deposits are late a few times. It’s whatever.
Month 7. I’ve attempted to do everything I possibly can to make this place better. I’ve showed them how to better organize, I’ve made charts and out them all over the place. I’ve changed playing to up the presentation. About 50% of my ideas get through. The owners are petrified of change, even if it means the same stale bullshit sinks the ship.
Two weeks ago, the checks are late. Very late. Owner blames payroll. Turns out she was just wasted and didn’t turn it in, middle of a Wednesday afternoon. So I speak up. The other cook that I trust speaks up. We call bullshit. We show our concern that we have tried to maintain a standard and can’t even be paid on time, and that if we fail, it’s because we have been failed by our superiors. They didn’t like that. Used bullshit excuses and fired us both.
I put an immense amount of time, love and genuine care into that place to try to make it better. I really cared. I wanted to see it pick up and business get better. But in the end, we were pushed out because we spoke our minds and didn’t tuck our tails about our money. I worked many hours off the clock or worked at home to better this place. Never was appreciated. My checks were constantly shorted, hours doctored. My ideas were snubbed and almost mocked to a point.
I need advice. I think I’m going to call the Dept of Labor and report them for wage theft, for having a huge list of staff under the table and for the owner taking tips when she bartended. I’m also going to call the Health Dept and give them a very specific list of violations, where they are and tell them to give them a surprise visit if they want to see it all. Also a call to the BBB, to report how they treat their employees. And some posts in our local Facebook groups, google reviews ETC…
How else can I do damage to them. I want the doors closed. It would be a disservice to any future employee if I didn’t try. They are horrible human beings who are notorious for being this way. I thought maybe if I worked hard, and showed progress they would treat me differently but they just exploited me and took credit for everything I did, while making me a
Scapegoat and killing my confidence.
Let me know what you would do.
I can’t just let them get away with all of this shit.