Hibachi Restaurant Faces Lawsuit Over Wage and Tip Theft

LUBBOCK, TX — Behind the flaming hibachi grills and acrobatic chefs at one of Lubbock's go-to spots for Japanese cuisine, a group of servers claims the real showstopper was a pattern of wage theft and tip skimming that left them shortchanged.

Three former employees of Hayashi Hibachi filed a federal lawsuit last week, accusing the restaurant and its owners of violating labor laws by failing to pay minimum wages, diverting tips to managers and retaliating against workers who spoke up. The complaint, lodged Dec. 20 in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, seeks to rally other current and former servers in a collective action covering the past three years.

Plaintiffs Jasmine-Day Olivarez, Breanna Corcino and Weusi Ruby Jefferson allege they were promised a $2.13 hourly cash wage as tipped workers but received only customer tips — often reduced by mandatory "tip-outs" of 5% of sales to chefs, sushi makers and bartenders, including manager-level staff. On slow nights, the suit says, these deductions sometimes wiped out their earnings entirely. For parties of six or more, an 18% gratuity was added to bills and presented as a tip, but servers kept just 13% after payouts.

The lawsuit paints a picture of grueling shifts where servers juggled waiting tables with extensive non-tipped duties like cleaning, stocking and rolling silverware, all while being paid below minimum wage rates. Overtime for hours over 40 a week went uncompensated, the complaint adds, with some plaintiffs logging 40 to 60 hours weekly. When Corcino and Jefferson complained about the practices, they claim the restaurant fired Jefferson and effectively forced Corcino out through reduced shifts — actions the suit labels as illegal retaliation under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Hayashi Hibachi, a locally owned staple at 4220 82nd St. known for its lively teppanyaki shows and sushi rolls, also operates a second location, Hayashi Midtown, at 3701 19th St. near Covenant Hospital. The restaurant boasts specials like two-for-$25 rolls on Tuesdays and Thursdays, drawing families and date-night crowds.

But it's not the first time wage issues have surfaced: Federal records show Hibachi of Lubbock Inc., one of the defendants, was fined $27,263 in 2011 by the U.S. Department of Labor for similar wage and hour violations.

The current suit names Hayashi Hibachi of Lubbock LLC, Hibachi of Lubbock Inc. and manager Linda Chen as defendants, seeking unpaid wages, misappropriated tips, liquidated damages and attorney fees. Chen, listed as a Walnut, California, resident with an 806 area code for a phone number, faces a separate Galveston County lawsuit filed earlier this year over delinquent property taxes alongside co-defendant Yong Jun Shen.

Corcino, one of the lead plaintiffs, was previously named as a defendant in a 2018 civil harassment case in San Diego County, California, brought by Elizabeth Pena. Details of that resolved matter were not immediately available. Olivarez and Jefferson appear to have no prior court involvement beyond this case.

This case highlights ongoing scrutiny of tip practices in the service industry, where federal law requires employers to ensure tipped workers earn at least minimum wage and limit tip pools to eligible staff.

If certified as a collective action, the lawsuit could expand to include dozens of servers, potentially costing the restaurant thousands in back pay.

Of the trial attorneys going after the local Lubbock business, Sean Greenwood, the Houston-based co-counsel with deeper FLSA expertise, isn't listed as admitted to the Northern District (his federal admissions are elsewhere, like the Fifth Circuit and New York districts). Under the Northern District's local rules (LR 83.7 and 83.10), out-of-district attorneys like Greenwood must associate with local counsel admitted to the bar there, and that local counsel (Hogan, in this case) is required to sign all pleadings and remain responsible for the case's conduct. Hogan's Lubbock address and status as "Attorney-in-Charge" on the complaint fit this exactly — it's a standard setup to ensure compliance and allow filing in the desired venue without immediate pro hac vice hurdles for Greenwood.

On the surface, especially with the lawsuit being a collective action under the FLSA, it often means attorneys collect fees if they win (typically 30-40% of the recovery, per standard contingency setups in these cases). But digging into the details, this seems more like a standard pushback against common restaurant wage practices than a predatory shakedown aimed at bankrupting a local spot like Hayashi Hibachi.

For context, FLSA violations are rampant in the restaurant industry, with U.S. Department of Labor stats showing that 71% of investigated eateries have at least one issue, leading to over $12 million in back wages recovered for more than 9,500 workers in recent years. Tipped employee complaints — like invalid tip pools, no base wage and side-work at sub-minimum rates — are especially frequent, and outcomes often favor workers: For instance, a major East Coast chain paid out $11.4 million in back wages and damages after similar allegations. Overall, FLSA lawsuits have spiked 417% since the early 2000s, hitting record highs around 8,000-8,300 cases annually, largely because enforcement is lax and violations pay off until caught.

In this specific case, Hayashi Hibachi isn't some pristine Main Street darling — federal records show Hibachi of Lubbock Inc. (one of the defendants) got slapped with a $27,263 fine back in 2011 for wage and hour violations, and though that was 15 years ago, it aligns with the current claims of tip skimming and no $2.13 base pay. Employee reviews on Indeed paint a picture of toxic management, with complaints about constant yelling, poor handling and stress, though they don't directly mention wages. The lawsuit's allegations (e.g., 5% tip-outs to non-eligible staff, including managers, and retaliation firings) mirror widespread industry gripes, and with the restaurant's prior DOL hit, it's not a stretch to see merit here rather than pure attorney greed.

As for the lawyers: Sean Greenwood (Houston-based, handling the FLSA angle) has a track record in wage disputes and gets positive client feedback for responsiveness in related cases, like vaccine injury claims where he's secured settlements. No red flags for frivolous suits in his history — he's AV-rated and focuses on employment law without a pattern of shake-downs. Robert Hogan (local Lubbock counsel) is highly rated too, with clients calling him caring and attentive in personal injury and immigration matters; he's board-certified and has an AV Preeminent peer review, not the profile of a bottom-feeder. If the plaintiff's attorneys are operating on contingency, they only get paid if the claims hold up, and given the industry's violation rates, they're likely betting on a quick settlement rather than total destruction — restaurants often pay out to avoid bigger penalties, like the $279,000 a Sioux Falls hibachi spot coughed up recently.

The $279k settlement was a result of a 2022 DOL investigation into Hibachi Grill & Supreme Buffet, a similar hibachi-style buffet restaurant in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, operated by H & G Inc. The DOL found the restaurant violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) by paying 31 kitchen workers a flat monthly salary regardless of hours worked, denying them overtime premiums for time over 40 hours per week. Additional violations included failing to maintain accurate records of employees' hours, full names, and addresses, as well as not displaying the required FLSA poster in the workplace. As a result, the restaurant agreed to pay $279,070—split evenly between back wages and liquidated damages—to the affected workers.

Although the Lubbock restaurant is not facing a DOL investigation, the parallels of poor management and payroll handling expose how easily locally-owned restaurants can get into hot water with employees, often resulting in costly lawsuits, federal probes, back wage recoveries, and reputational harm that can cripple operations in tight-margin industries. 

In Texas alone this year, the DOL has clawed back hundreds of thousands in unpaid wages from eateries—such as $117,000 for servers at a Center restaurant accused of illegally sharing tips with managers and supervisors, echoing the tip-skimming claims against Hayashi Hibachi. Other cases include $41,279 recovered for five workers denied minimum wage and overtime at a Weatherford spot, and nearly $200,000 in tip earnings restored to Dallas bartenders after improper pooling practices. These patterns underscore a broader vulnerability: without robust compliance, even well-intentioned owners risk lawsuits or DOL audits triggered by employee complaints, leading to government penalties or lawsuit judgements that escalate if violations involve retaliation or record-keeping failures, as alleged in the Lubbock suit.