MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2014
Volume 13 Issue 251
Santa Monica Daily Press
KNOW BEFORE YOU GO SEE PAGE 3
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Rustic Canyon, Mélisse add employee benefit surcharge BY DAVID MARK SIMPSON Daily Press Staff Writer
WILSHIRE BLVD Santa Monica restaurant groups are supplementing healthcare costs for their workers by adding a 3 percent surcharge to every bill. Josh Loeb and Zoe Nathan, part owners of Rustic Canyon, Milo and Olive, Huckleberry Cafe, and Sweet Rose Creamery, along with Josiah Citrin, chef and co-owner of Mélisse, started adding the surcharge to diner’s bills on Sept. 1. They started enrolling employees - those who work 30 or more hours per week - in the benefit program on Thursday. Healthcare coverage kicks in on Oct. 1. The Hungry Cat, which has a location in Santa Monica Canyon, will be including the surcharge. Several other nonSanta Monica restaurateurs in the region implemented the program as well. Loeb said that they recently learned that under the
Affordable Care Act they won’t be required to offer healthcare coverage at some of their restaurants until 2016 and that others would be exempt altogether. “It looked like we weren’t going to have to do it but we looked at each other and said, this is something we want to do,” he said. “We want to be able to grow up as a restaurant. The well-being of our staff is an incredibly important thing for us.” In San Francisco, many restaurants are already offering health insurance. Republique, in Los Angeles, enacted a 3 percent surcharge when it opened last year. Republique’s model drew some ire from restaurant-goers who felt they were unfairly being asked to pick up the owners’ healthcare tab. Some restaurants seeking to add healthcare for employees have opted to instead raise the rates of their dishes. SEE HEALTH PAGE 7
THE MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL ISSUE
Faces of Silicon Beach BY ERIK HUBERMAN
AARON HIRSCHORN Aaron Hirschorn and his wife founded DogVacay organically after desiring to fill a void in the pet services industry. DogVacay matches vacationing pet families with potential hosts, allowing both a superior experience for dogs, peace of mind for their owners, and a way for regular people to earn extra income doing something they love. Erik Huberman, CEO of Hawke Media, talks to Aaron about DogVacay, how he became an entrepreneur and Santa Monica. Erik Huberman: Tell me a little bit about yourself and DogVacay? Aaron Hirschorn: DogVacay came out of an experience my wife and I had four years ago (in 2011). We left our two dogs, Rocky and Rambo, in a kennel when we visited our family on the East Coast. It was a ten-day trip and we came back to a $1400 kennel bill, and Rocky was hiding under my desk for three days after. We knew there had to be a better SEE FACES PAGE 9
Fall classes for youth and adults BY MATTHEW HALL Editor-in-Chief
CITYWIDE Fall is Back to School season and in Santa Monica, the educational opportunities aren’t limited to the traditional classroom. Several organizations are gearing up for fall classes for adults or offering extracurricular activities for youth. The City of Santa Monica Fall Community classes begin the week of September 8. Recreation classes take place at the local parks and facilities and organizers said there is something for everyone in the family. Class types include sports, dance, art, preschool preparedness, cooking, dog training, language, several new options. Sandra Catena will offer classes through the City on Belly Dancing and Italian Cooking. She said the unusual combination reflects her unusual life that brings a sense of adventure to her classes. Catena said her two classes are connected through a passion for healthy living. Her cooking class features clean, healthy food based on family recipes from Italy. “Everyone should eat well and we live in a land of abundance,” she said. “I teach my students how to cook and how to have fun while cooking. I educate them as to the vitamins
Courtesy photos
CLASS: Past classes at 1450 Ocean include paper flower construction, straw hat making and cooking with salt. A new season of
SEE CLASS PAGE 7
Gary Limjap (310) 586-0339
Fall classes has begun city-wide.
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