How Will Immigration Crackdowns Affect Restaurants? | Eater

"The two-story former fish market was vacant for a decade after the market that supplied New York City with nearly half its seafood left the Seaport in 2005; developer Howard Hughes Corporation later began talks with chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten about a food destination in the space, and by 2022, after a $194.6 million overhaul of the 53,000 square-foot landmark, the chef and his partners opened a collection of six full-service restaurants, four bars, a handful of counter-service spots, retail, and private dining — at full tilt projected to employ 700 people. In December 2024, as a new management group prepared to take over, that group surprised workers with a mandatory background check and used E-Verify, a government tool operated by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) in partnership with the Social Security Administration (SSA), to vet employees’ identity and employment eligibility; kitchen and custodial workers who are in the U.S. without legal status — many of whom immigrated from countries in Latin America — were hit hardest, according to Gothamist’s sources. “I was out for two days, and when I got back half the building was gone,” a worker said to Gothamist. The incoming operator said those who could provide paperwork within 10 days back in late December could return to work and those who could not would get severance; the group and a spokesperson dispute reported totals of affected employees. The building’s previous operator verified workers using a different system when it opened in 2022." - Melissa McCart