The Palm – New York

The Palm Steakhouse Hit With Two Suits Alleging Sexual Misconduct | Eater NY

"Long regarded as a fabulous old-school steakhouse, the Palm has been accused by former servers Bernadette Kaestner and Tracye Shearin of fostering an atmosphere of sexual harassment at its New York restaurants, with managers allegedly turning a blind eye to groping and retaliating against staff who complain. Kaestner’s complaint (filed in 2017) alleges incidents beginning in 2012 — including a regular at the East Hampton location grabbing her from behind and placing his hand between her thighs near her crotch — and says kitchen staff routinely watched pornography on their cellphones (she reported frequent workplace porn in 2015), that upper management responded nonchalantly, scaled back her hours, demoted her to part-time, and that her tire was later slashed in the employee parking lot; she also claims she was wrongfully fired in 2017. Shearin’s complaint (filed in 2018) alleges she was unjustly fired that same year after complaining about a slow salad station and that a general manager routinely asked her to send free drinks to women and get their phone numbers. Colleagues told investigators a male worker once showed female employees a picture of his penis, and attorneys say such misconduct has become an “accepted part” of working at the Palm. The chain — which has more than two dozen locations in the U.S. and Mexico and caricature-filled walls (three in New York) — denies the allegations, saying it has the “utmost respect for its employees,” and its parent company recently filed for bankruptcy amid a family legal dispute over profits." - Carla Vianna