New Paid Vacation Law Would Kill Restaurants, Advocacy Group Says

A plaw could require restaurants to give their employees two weeks paid-time-off

A new paid-time-off law proposal could kill New York City restaurants, argues Melissa Autilio Fleischut, CEO of New York State Restaurant Association, a restaurant advocacy group. The new law — backed by the city’s public advocate Jumaane Williams — would require all businesses with five or more employees to give two weeks of PTO to its entire staff, a requirement that would “inflict severe financial harm” on small businesses, she writes in the Post. Under the proposal, restaurants would have to bring someone else in to do the vacationing person’s job every time, meaning they’d need to hire two people to perform a single job. After the minimum wage hike, another mandated compensation increase would grind the local restaurant industry to a halt, she says. The bill, however, has been heavily touted by Mayor Bill de Blasio.

A beer fest by Other Half Brewing

Other Half Brewing is throwing its second annual Green City IPA beer festival, happening at Brooklyn’s Industry City on June 22. The line up will feature over 70 brewers from around the world, including Mikkeller, Alchemist Beer, Equilibrium, Monkish, and more. This year the event will take over 50,000 square feet across two floors, plus an outdoor courtyard at the Brooklyn venue. Food from vendors such as Ends Meat and Excell’s Kingston Eatery will also be available. Tickets range from $100 to $300.

Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen celebrate their fashion brand in the West Village

Ashley and Mary-Kate Olsen were spotted partying it up at Texas-style restaurant and bar Cowgirl in the West Village. The sisters were reportedly celebrating their fashion brand the Row, which won an award at the CFDA Fashion Awards on Monday night.

Nearing the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Inn raid, NYPD finally apologizes

NYPD commissioner James O’Neill apologized for the violent police-led raid at the legendary Greenwich Village bar Stonewall Inn — which shook the community in 1969 and led to the historic gay rights protests. “The actions taken by the NYPD were wrong, plain and simple,” O’Neill said during the first safety briefing for Pride Month. (O’Neill had refused to apologize when asked to in 2017 and his predecessor, William Bratton, had also refused.) He added, “that this would never happen in NYPD 2019.”

Openings and other happenings around town

Harvest Kitchen is now open at 269 Columbus Ave., between 72nd and 73rd streets on the Upper West Side. The menu includes rice and salad bowls, egg dishes, burgers, a lobster roll, and more. Meanwhile on 71st Street, fast-casual sandwich chain Cafe Metro is opening at 2062 Broadway.

In the East Village, Angelina Cafe at 37 Avenue A has been closed since February due to “gas disruptions.” The same owners opened a new cafe called Bin 141 in April, and that spot is still up and running a few doors down. Plus, the wine bar at 154 Orchard St. has a new name: Once called There, the venue is now called Tzarevna. The menu is now centered on tapas-style Russian food and will include pelmeni (dumplings), shashlyk (skewered meats), and stroganov (meat stew).