The French Laundry is a sublime restaurant. Thomas Keller is an amazing and world-renown chef. The picture above was taken while at the National Association of Public Insurance Adjusters Annual Conference.
Yesterday, The French Laundry filed a lawsuit against its property insurer for failing to pay for the closure caused by the coronavirus. John Houghtaling, the same attorney who filed suit for a restaurant in Louisiana, also filed this lawsuit on behalf of The French Laundry. Houghtaling indicated that “the insurance industry is pushing out deceptive propaganda that the virus does not cause a dangerous condition to property.”
The press reports indicate that similar to the Louisiana lawsuit, money damages are not being sought but instead, declaratory relief is being sought. This could potentially be an ingenious strategy because theoretically, the lawsuit is not held up with the amount of money being fought over. Instead, the court is merely being asked to interpret policy terms at issue, which could be ruled upon much faster. Doesn’t everybody want swift justice on such an important issue devastating a large part of our economy?
I hope to have more shortly on the lawsuit. If you are not familiar with this world-renown establishment, here is just note about it:
Having celebrated its silver anniversary in July 2019, The French Laundry has received numerous honors and accolades over the past twenty-five years. Since 2007, the Michelin Guide has awarded The French Laundry their highest rating of three stars, making Chef Thomas Keller the only American-born chef to have two three-starred Michelin restaurants. The James Beard Foundation gave The French Laundry the highly coveted “Outstanding Restaurant Award” and awarded Chef Thomas Keller “Outstanding Restaurateur” in 2007. Since 2007, the restaurant has been the recipient of the Wine Spectator Grand Award.
How sweet my memories are of my special time there last summer. The world is now a very different place.
