Denny's Settles with Black Couple Told to Pay for Meal in Advance

A black couple and Denny’s Inc. reached a mid-trial settlement today in the pair’s lawsuit alleging the manager of the restaurant chain’s Koreatown location discriminated against them by demanding that they pay for their food in advance.

The resolution came just before the third day of testimony was scheduled to begin in trial of the lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court against Denny’s and manager Ali Rahman in August 2014 by Henry Williams and Renee Hebert. Judge Michael Raphael dismissed the jury hearing the case.

The couple declined to comment on the settlement, as did the lawyers on both sides, who said the terms were confidential.

The couple alleged Rahman, the manager of the Denny’s on Vermont Avenue just north of Wilshire Boulevard, targeted them because of their skin color.

Their lawyers said the pair entered the restaurant about 4:15 p.m. on May 7, 2014, and that no other customers were asked to pay in advance for their meals. They also said Williams and Hebert waited far longer than other guests to receive their food.

An internal restaurant video of the incident has been viewed more than 5,000 times since being uploaded to YouTube.

Michael Stein, an attorney for Denny’s and Rahman, said the manager made a mistake with his demand, apologized to the couple and offered to return the $80 Williams gave him.

A white customer who saw two black diners at the Denny’s eatery in Koreatown being asked to pay in advance for their meals in 2012 testified this week that he believed the action was motivated by racism.

“It seemed obvious to me, yes,” Bradley Sax told a Los Angeles Superior Court jury tasked with deciding the couple’s civil rights claim. “They were black, I’m white, I’ve never been asked to pre-pay.”

Sax took the stand on the second day of trial of the lawsuit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court against the restaurant.

According to Sax, he was sitting at a table across from the booth where the couple were seated and could hear most of the conversations between Rahman, Hebert and Williams.

Sax said he was disturbed by what he heard.

“I thought it was appalling for someone in that year and time to be discriminated against like that,” Sax testified.

He said he approached the couple to give him his name and phone number.

“I went over there because it made me feel terrible watching it,” Sax said.

He said Williams and Hebert seemed “shocked and stunned” at first, but that he was impressed by how calm they remained.

“I know others wouldn’t have reacted that way and I know I wouldn’t have reacted that way,” Sax told the jury.

Sax said he saw a similar pre-payment demand made of a black customer by a server in the same restaurant about two to three weeks later.

Asked by Stein if he hoped Williams and Hebert will win their case, Sax initially replied, “I would like to see justice done.” He later added, “I guess so. I didn’t think what happened to them was right.”

He said Rahman was concerned after learning from the couple’s server about the size of their order, which totaled more than $83, because the Koreatown location had prior problems with people leaving without paying.

But lawyers for Williams and Hebert said the retraction of the pre- payment demand did not shield Rahman and the restaurant chain can escape liability because it violated both state law and Denny’s own internal rules.

In 1994, Denny’s agreed to pay more than $54 million to settle lawsuits filed by thousands of black customers who had been refused service or been forced to wait longer or pay more than white guests.

City News Service