Old Homestead Lawsuit Highlights Wage Issues

The southern end of Chelsea, near the Gansevoort District, has been basking in the glow of its ultra-fabulousness for several years now, as glittery galleries, boutiques, haute couture and chi-chi restaurants push out the last remnants of the meatpacking industry. But under the glossy veneer of Dom Perignon and four-star dishes lies an inconvenient truth that continues to rear its head citywide: The waiters who serve dessert to tens of thousands of diners are often passed over when it comes to getting their slice of the pie.

That has never more apparent than in the case of the Old Homestead Steak House, a venerable Meatpacking District institution on Ninth Ave. and 14th St., which has recently found itself on the receiving end of a class-action lawsuit initiated by four of its waiters, who have become the Norma Rae’s of Chelsea.