One of San Francisco's most popular and beloved restaurants, The House of Prime Rib, is being sued by a former employee in a class action suit — the second such suit in 18 months — for alleged labor violations including denying rest breaks.

As the SF Business Times reports, former House of Prime Rib server Sean Hyatt has filed suit against the restaurant and its longtime owner, Josef Betz, as well as his son and co-owner Steven Betz, alleging multiple labor-law violations and a culture of strict work hours with no breaks allowed.

The lawsuit contends that front-of-house staffers were told that no breaks were permitted while on shift, and managament "actively impeded, discouraged, and warned employees that they would face discipline if they took rest periods, or were even seen sitting or otherwise not actively working at any time during a shift."

Employees were also allegedly asked to sign waivers exempting them from taking meal breaks, and told by management that "if an employee did attempt to take a meal period, that their tips would be given to someone else."

A 30-minute paid meal break is required under California law for those working more than five hours in a day, however the law allows for the break to be waived by mutual consent if the employee works less than six hours, as the Chronicle notes.

10-minute rest breaks are also mandated for every four hours on the clock.

The suit further contends that employees were required to wait around, sometimes as long as an hour, after clocking out, in order to receive their tips after a shift, while these tips were being calculated. And in the meantime, the suit alleges that workers were given tasks to do off the clock during this time.

According to Hyatt, Steven Betz told employees in a staff meeting, "If you don't like the way we do things here, there's the fucking door."

Joe Betz denied the allegations to the Chronicle and said he had not yet seen the lawsuit.

"This is a total fabrication," Betz told the paper. "We’re definitely going to defend ourselves."

Hyatt, who filed the suit on behalf of 100 or so current and former front-of-house staff, may have been encouraged by a previous, similar lawsuit that ended in a settlement two months ago.

As the Business Times reports, that suit was brought by another former employee in April 2023, and it was also a class action suit alleging similar violations, covering all non-exempt employees who worked between April 25, 2019 and January 31, 2024. An undisclosed settlement was reportedly reached in October 2024.

A suit filed by a former busboy in 2005, alleging similar violations, also ended in a small settlement.

The House of Prime Rib, which operates like a well-orchestrated cruise-ship dining room on a nightly basis, has 280 seats spread across five rooms, and on a typical night will serve around 800 guests.

Before, during, and after the pandemic it has been one of the more difficult reservations to get — though cancellations typically come through if you set up a Notify on OpenTable, and you can try calling, because they employ actual phone receptionists. And diners rushed to snag tables when Betz announced the pandemic reopening in October 2020, booking up several months in advance — but when indoor dining was shut down again, HOPR had to shut down again until the spring of 2021, and turn to takeout.

Betz, 85, has owned the restaurant since 1985, but the place, as the awning outside makes known, first opened in 1949. Its signature is 21-day aged prime rib, which is served sliced out of rolling zeppelin carts in each dining room along with a concise list of sides.

Photo via Instagram