Kevin Hart’s vegan food chain closes all locations in California following minimum wage hike for fast-food workers

09/20/2024 / By Laura Harris

Comedian Kevin Hart’s vegan fast-food chain Hart House suddenly closed all four locations in Southern California on Sept. 10 due to the alleged impact of the new minimum wage hike for fast-food workers.

In September 2023, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed AB 1228 by Assemblymember Chris R. Holden (D-Pasadena) to increase the minimum wage for more than 500,000 fast-food workers in the Golden State from $16 to $20 per hour. The law, which took effect on April 1, authorizes the Fast Food Council to set fast-food restaurant standards for minimum wage and develop proposals for other working conditions, including health and safety standards and training.

Shortly after the implementation, the state released new data showing that the fast-food industry has added jobs. However, Hart House seemed to experience otherwise when the fast-food chain officially announced its closure in a short Instagram post on Sept. 12.

“Thank you. To our team, guests and community, who helped make the change we all craved. A Hartfelt goodbye for now as we start a new chapter,” Hart House posted on its official IG account, featuring an image of its signature veggie burgers. (Related: Burger King to close up to 400 locations in 2023.)

Andy Hooper, the CEO of Hart House, also confirmed their closure to Eater in a written statement on Sept. 11.

“The response to the product has been incredible, and we thank our committed team, our customers, and our community partners for helping make the change we all craved, and for their unwavering support of Hart House,” Hooper wrote in the statement.

California minimum wage hike places unintended consequences on restaurants

This significant wage increase has placed unintended consequences on many restaurants in the state, even on major chains, which have seen increased operating costs in a post-pandemic economy.

In April, Harsh Ghai, a major franchisee who owns 180 restaurants in California, including Burger King, Taco Bell and Popeyes locations, confirmed plans to install self-order kiosks across all his outlets to reduce dependence on human workers. Additionally, Ghai’s franchises raised prices by eight percent to 10 percent in 2024, while Chipotle increased menu prices by six percent to seven percent across its 500 California locations to counteract shrinking profit margins.

Similarly, fast-food giants like McDonald’s, Shake Shack and Panera Bread have already adopted self-service technology, which allows customers to place their orders to reduce the need for cashiers.

Meanwhile, some restaurants cut employee hours, reduced staffing and streamlined their menus to mitigate rising operational costs. For instance, El Pollo Loco, led by franchisee Michaela Mendelsohn, reduced employee hours by 10 percent while Pizza Hut laid off over 1,200 delivery drivers in California. Excalibur Pizza, a franchisee of Round Table Pizza, cut around 73 driver jobs in April.

“The franchisee is transferring its delivery services to third-party. While it is unfortunate, we look at this as a transfer of jobs,” an Excalibur Pizza representative said in April. “As you know, many California restaurant operators are following the same approach due to rising operating costs.”

FoodCollapse.com has more stories about the bankruptcy and closures of different fast-food chains.

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