The famous Cuban restaurant Versailles located in Miami and its owner has been sued for what is said to be an unsanitary and unsafe work environment. The lawsuit specifically claims that the iconic restaurant has contaminated food that includes human hair on it, roaches in their desserts, wire brush hairs in the rice and broken glass in the croquettes.
According to Sun Sentinel, the restaurant's former assistant manager Claudio Calderin was the one who found out about the health code violations of the place. He then took photos of them as evidence and complained to the managers. However, instead of taking action about the situation, his bosses transferred him to La Carreta, a sister eatery of Versailles found in Bird Road. Moreover, he was put on a night shift wherein he also observed dirty conditions. He later on resigned.
Calderin also stated that managers tried forcing other employees to quit by decreasing their hours or changing their work schedules, said Miami Herald. Thus, Calderin seeks damages for lost pay and benefits as well as emotional distress.
Local 10 then reported that shortly after Calderin made the complaints, there were around 52 safety violations found at Versailles. The inspectors with the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulations announced this, however, a publicist hired by the companies stated otherwise. It was said that neither restaurant had serious health experiences nor safety concerns ever.
As for the Valls family, the owner of Versailles as well as La Carreta and the Valls Group, they have denied the allegations. They have been accused of avoiding responsibility for the conditions of the restaurant, as what Pelayo Duran, Calderin's attorney, stated in a news conference last Thursday.
"Cockroaches in the flans, hairs, I mean, those are serious problems," Duran said. The attorney has also represented other former employees in at least three more lawsuits against the Valls family. One of which was about Felipe Valls Sr. who allegedly pressured female ex-employee Ayler Ayala into performing 'extremely sordid' sexual acts. But ten months after, Ayala withdrew her allegations, asking the court to drop her lawsuit.
As for the Valls family, they have released a statement as a response to the latest lawsuit filed against them, saying that the complaint filed by Calderin lacks credibility. Moreover,they stated that his claims have no merit at all, NBC Miami reported. The owners noted that their restaurants had never been involved in any critical health issues. They further pointed out that as assistant manager, it was Calderin's duty to maintain the cleanliness of the establishments.
As of now, there is another ongoing case that involves the Valls clan. They have been sued by two employees for illegal work practices which include discrimination over sexual orientation.
