The infamous soul food restaurant of the West Coast has gone bankrupt.
According to the Wall Street Journal, East Coast Foods, Inc., Roscoe’s Chicken and Waffles’ parent company, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, where liabilities are listed between $10 million to $50 million, according to the March 25 filing.
One of their largest outstanding debts belong to ex-employee Daniel Beasley of Compton, who successfully won a $3.2 million dollar settlement. Beasley, an African American, sued Roscoe’s in 2013 after claiming he was discriminated against by Latino management, co-workers receiving better work schedules and wrongful termination. Other creditors includes Clifton Capital Group ($4.1 million), Shoreline Foods of Long Beach ($1.5 million), Sergio Borgognone of Corona del Mar ($256,765) and Prudential Overall Supply of Santa Ana ($17,000).
But it’s not all bad news for the Southern California staple. A Chapter 11 bankruptcy will allow the chain to restructure its unmanageable debt, allowing the restaurant chains to remain open in the meantime.
Roscoe’s, a neighborhood and celebrity favorite for southern cooking, founded by Herb Hudson in Long Beach in 1975, currently operates six restaurants in Los Angeles County and one in Anaheim.
