Family-owned restaurant forced to close after ‘frivolous’ gender discrimination ‘Ladies Night’ suit

A popular restaurant in California’s Bay Area is shutting its doors after settling a costly discrimination lawsuit — over its ‘Ladies Night’ promotion.

Lima Restaurant — a family-run Peruvian eatery in Concord, Calif., about 20 miles outside of Oakland — told patrons it will serve its final meal on New Year’s Eve because of the gender discrimination lawsuit.

Chef/owner John Marquez said the lawsuit, filed last year, has cost his restaurant tens of thousands of dollars — putting a major dent in the business’ cash flow.

“We haven’t fully recovered from the recent discrimination lawsuit related to our ladies’ night discount” as well as the escalating operating costs of the business, Marquez told KRON-TV .

The restaurant, which has been open for nearly a decade, held a once-a-week “Ladies Night” promotion — offering drinks and wine at half price for three hours to its female patrons — for the past several years.

Marquez said he believes that the people behind the lawsuit aren’t local residents, but “ambulance-chasing lawyers” looking to cash in the state’s law.

“It’s a frivolous lawsuit that took us down” Marquez told ABC7News.

The news of Lima Restaurant’s impending closure did not go down well with patrons.

“Promoting one gender does not discriminate against one gender,” John Dias, a regular at the restaurant, told KRON-TV.

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