Michelin-Starred Restaurant Sued by Former Employee Over Alleged Labor Code Violations

A former dishwasher at The French Laundry alleged that the restaurant denied her and other employees accurate wages and adequate rest periods

NEED TO KNOW

• The French Laundry, a popular fine dining restaurant in Napa Valley, was sued by a former employee for alleged labor code violations
• Elena Flores Beteta alleged that the restaurant failed to pay accurate wages and provide breaks
• The Thomas Keller Restaurant Group denied the claims in a statement shared with PEOPLE

A Michelin-starred restaurant is facing a lawsuit from a former employee.

The French Laundry, a restaurant in Napa Valley known for its fine dining fare, has been sued by a former employee on allegations of failing to pay accurate wages and to supply adequate breaks, per the San Francisco Chronicle and initially reported by The Press Democrat. 

In a March 19 complaint filed against the French Laundry Restaurant Corporation and the Thomas Keller Restaurant Group, Elena Flores Beteta, a dishwasher at the establishment from 2022 to 2025, alleged that the company didn’t pay consistently for all hours worked, according to The Press Democrat.

The claim, which Beteta brought representing herself and “over fifty current and former aggrieved employees, argues that she and other employees were required to continue working after their shift three to four times a week in unpaid “post-shift tasks” like cleaning, per the Chronicle.

According to the Chronicle, Beteta is also suing for unpaid vacation time.

Beteta also alleged that her supervisor cut her meal breaks short to complete tasks like emptying the trash, the Chronicle reported.

The claim further alleged that employees often missed or had truncated meal breaks or rest periods —which were allegedly “not scheduled into daily shifts," —and that they lost wages waiting in line to use the time clock, which the claim argued took “at least five minutes,” per the Chronicle. 

The filing claims that there were no “suitable resting facilities,” so employees rested against walls or in their cars, and that “consistently filthy” employee bathrooms were a 10-minute walk from the restaurant, located at a storage unit, according to the Chronicle.

Beteta is seeking civil penalties through the Private Attorneys General Act, which allows employees to recover such penalties on the behalf of the State of California for labor code violations.

The Thomas Keller Restaurant Group, which represents the French Laundry, denied the claims.

"We only became aware of this lawsuit through the media,” the Thomas Keller Restaurant Group said in a statement shared with PEOPLE.

“The lawsuit is filed by a single employee only. That employee makes a baseless claim that she represents other employees as well. She does not,” the statement said. “Beyond this one employee, no other employee at the French Laundry has raised any issues about underpayment.” 

“The fact is that the French Laundry complies fully with all California employment laws. We look forward to proving that this lawsuit from a single employee has no basis whatsoever,” the statement said.

Legal representation for Betetas did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

Thomas Keller, head chef and proprietor of The French Laundry and other restaurants, was featured in Netflix's Chef's Table: Legends in 2025.

“Thomas Keller has led the way for several decades now,” someone narrated in a first look of the show shared with PEOPLE. “He is the most important American chef in history.” 

“When someone tells you you have influenced them, that’s why I do what I do,” Keller said.

Read the full article here