 “It is rampant in the restaurant industry…it is a
culture of post-shift drinking, and in some restaurants, drinking during the
shift. It’s almost like a fringe benefit in some high-end restaurants, this
tradition of drinking after work.”
Husk’s owner, Marietta, Ga.-based Neighborhood Dining Group Inc., and its insurer agreed last month to settle the suit for $1.1 million. The company denied fault or liability.
The fiery crash and lawsuit also have put restaurants across the USA on notice that a tradition at many restaurants — in which employees share a drink after work in a spirit of camaraderie — can have devastating consequences.
The 4 a.m. crash occurred last December, when Adam Burnell, 32, an assistant manager and sommelier at Charleston’s Husk restaurant, allegedly drove his Audi into the back of a Mustang driven by Quentin Miller, 32. The crash slammed Miller’s car into a concrete wall; it erupted in flames, trapping him inside. He died at the scene. Burnell, who prosecutors said had a blood-alcohol level of 0.24%, three times the legal limit, was charged with felony driving under the influence.
Miller’s family filed a wrongful-death lawsuit, alleging that Husk allowed Burnell to drink to excess on its premises after hours and then drive drunk. It was a stumble for a restaurant that was named “Best New Restaurant in America” by Bon Appetit magazine months earlier. Husk also was ranked one of the “101 Best Places to Eat in the World” by Newsweek magazine last month.
Burnell, who sustained minor injuries and is awaiting trial, was not named as a defendant.
Neighborhood Dining Group already had a policy that prohibits employees of its four restaurants — three in Charleston and one in Atlanta — from drinking on the premises, President David Howard says.
