French Laundry Received $2.4M in PPP Loans, 17 Times What Most Bay Area Restaurants Got
In another revelation from recently released data on the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) from the Small Business Administration, the French Laundry received $2.4 million in two separate loans last spring, ostensibly to retain over 160 employees.
ABC 7 reports that Thomas Keller's flagship restaurant in Yountville had two loan approved on April 30, one for $2.2 million to retain 163 employees, and another for around $200,000 to retain five other employees. That amounts to about 17 times more federal money that the average Bay Are restaurant received — and it's another example of a larger, wealthier business reaping stimulus benefits that many smaller businesses didn't have access to.
The most significant San Francisco Bay Area restaurant closures of 2020
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1of11The dining room at The Restaurant at Meadowood in St. Helena , Calif., on Thursday, March 31, 2016.Carlos Avila Gonzalez / The Chronicle 2016Show MoreShow Less
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People dine at the sushi bar at Ichi Sushi in San Francisco in 2014John Storey / Special to The Chronicle 2014Show MoreShow Less
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Russell Stein plates a margherita pizza at Mozzeria restaurant in San Francisco.John Storey / Special to The Chronicle 2012Show MoreShow Less
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Bar owner Thad Vogler makes a Mojito at Obispo, a rum bar in the Mission.Liz Hafalia / The Chronicle 2018Show MoreShow Less