Starr to pay month’s health insurance for idled restaurant employees, and other examples of aid

Philadelphia-based restaurateur Stephen Starr, who has 41 all-but-idled restaurants in Philadelphia, New York, Atlantic City, Washington, D.C., and south Florida, on Tuesday announced that he would pay 100% of the April health-insurance premiums for employees covered under company-funded plans.

Starr said the company typically pays 40% of employee premiums. He declined to specify how many of his 6,000 workers participate in the plans or to provide a dollar amount of the company’s contribution, which is likely valued well into the six figures. Starr’s restaurants include the Continental, Parc, Buddakan, Morimoto, The Love, Barclay Prime, and Dandelion.

Restaurant owners have been caught just as unawares as their employees by the coronavirus shutdowns and are in the same no-income situation for the foreseeable future. While the industry awaits word of relief, Starr and other owners are going to bat for their employees.

Michael Solomonov and Steve Cook, whose holdings include Zahav, Abe Fisher, and Federal Donuts, said they had sold $25,000 worth of gift cards, the proceeds of which would be shared with the company’s approximately 400 hourly employees. Further, the owners said that if $40,000 is raised by sundown Friday, they would match it.

Yianni Arhontoulis is selling gift cards at Mica, his Chestnut Hill BYOB. Walnut Street Cafe and The Post in University City have started a GoFundMe drive for employees.

In New York, Danny Meyer said he would donate his salary from his Union Square Hospitality Group, and his executives would take pay cuts, to help a fund for his workers. Shake Shack employees are not part of this group.

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