Founding Farmers sued for wage violations
The Founding Farmers restaurants are coming under scrutiny after six employees filed a lawsuit in Washington, D.C., last week alleging they worked overtime at multiple locations without additional pay, The Washington Post reported. The employees claim they worked a total of more than 40 hours per week at different locations, which they say the company did not treat as overtime.
The bartenders and servers also say they were paid tipped minimum wage when doing things they wouldn’t be tipped for; were not paid for pre-shift meetings they attended; had to buy their own uniforms and supplies; and were denied sick leave, according to the Post.
The lawsuit is against the Farmers Restaurant Group, a Kensington-based company that oversees the popular Founding Farmers restaurants across Washington, D.C., Virginia and Maryland, including MoCo’s Founding Farmers in Potomac. The plaintiffs hope to certify the legal action as a class-action lawsuit, meaning other employees in Maryland and other locations could join.
Local restaurants offer specials for BBQ & Grilling Week
Next week, from June 19 to 25, marks the area’s first BBQ & Grilling Week, a Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington event in which local restaurants offer special menus of grilled, smoked and spiced dishes for $11, $22 or $33.
Kensington’s The Dish and Dram is offering an $11 lunch of a sandwich and soup combo with a smoked brisket Reuben and smoked garlic and a $22 dinner of house-made smoked sausage and grilled lamb ribs with a homemade barbecue sauce. Kapnos Kouzina in Bethesda is planning a two-course dinner for $33 with a selection of spreads, smoked brisket and other options. Lincoln’s Bar-B-Que in Silver Spring hasn’t announced its menu yet, but it will be offered all day for $22. Check out the full list of participating restaurants on BBQ Week’s website.
Pike & Rose holds summer solstice dinner
Via Gilt
Pike & Rose in North Bethesda will host a four-course dinner event next week to celebrate the summer solstice. The event, from 6:30 to 9 p.m. June 21, will feature cocktails from Summer House and appetizers from Carluccio’s. Diners will then be taken on a tour of the development’s restaurants and eat their next courses at a community table, with food provided by Owen’s Ordinary, Del Frisco’s Grille, Summer House, City Perch and Stella Barra Pizzeria.
Tickets are $65 for the event, which includes admission, the four-course dinner, one cocktail and two drink tickets.
