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"News Café" Closes

The popular downtown restaurant and bar in the Hotel Presidente, the "News Café", was shut down on Friday but not by Salud (Health) officials, but by its owners, who decided that too high the operating costs for them to pay the 10% gratuity of its wait staff, in wages.
For informational purposes only !!!

tuanis

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not as good as I once was, but as good once as I ever was

Interesting.....

I thought the place expensive, and the food not that great (except for the breakfast buffet, which was good - what are they going to do - not include breakfast now? I'm sure they will reduce the room price accordingly )

Since they have been leading up to policy changes extensivly discussed in other threads over the past couple of years , it may be interesting to see what happens with the hotel itself - Someone in the hotel industry told me they were experiencing some financial problems (who knows; I have not seen their financial statements).

They recently finished a fairly extensive renovation and redecoration/new TV's et al in the midst of a fairly terrible economic climate - so a policy change that eliminates a percentage of your customer base would be foolish - at least it would seem so to me.

And I'm not willing to dismiss it as "Oh well - muy tico"

Its tough enough to run any business - never mind going out of your way to be your own worst enemy

I'll miss those great mango smoothies and breakfasts "at the rail."

Pretty bizarre, if you ask me. I won't get into the math because it's not my strong suit, but I think we can safely assume that the bite from including that 10% in the base for paying the year end bonus (more or less 1/12 of the 10%, or maybe a bit more than .8%) would seem pretty minimal. There might be an impact on Caja payments, maybe Irish Drifter can shed some light, but I doubt it would be all that much.

Just wild guessing here, but it seems to me that the new management is going out of its way to shoot itself in the foot. It reminds me of a spoiled brat stamping its foot and holding its breath because mommy asked him to clean up his room. I find it hard to believe they couldn't raise prices by 1% to cover this additional cost.

Are they closing the bar too? Seems a logical next step, and after that, sell the place to somebody with a clue.

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"The only normal people are those you don't know very well." Joe Ancis

very sad. You can't be much of a full-service hotel w/out a bar/restaurant on site. I spent many a morn sittin @ the rail reliving the previous night adventures with my wingmen & watchin the Central American world walk by. I especially feel bad for Andrea & Priscilla who worked the breakfast shift in the News Cafe. Both were true sweethearts who treated me like a king & contributed to me luvin to stay at the Prez a few yrs. ago.

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"cuz I'm a back-door man" Jim Morrison-1969

Big issue for all bars/restaurants. If included in Caja it is actually about 36% witholding to cover all payroll related benefits. so if a small bar did $20,000 a month it would mean $7,200 in additional expense to the owners.

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BKTUNA/Boyd
I am never going home

Why I would never have a business with employees here. All slanted in their favor. Can't fire them, a gazillion holidays a year, and always a way for them to bilk you out of more money.

^ anywhere really. it seems that its an international pov that all businesses are running on these huge margins and can afford to do more. its reached to breaking point for a lot of hard working business owners around the world.

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im way deep into nothing special
riding the crest of a wave breaking just west of hollywood

I don't dispute but I definitely don't understand. How can including 10% more income as taxable result in a 35% increase in tax obligations? I don't get it.

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"The only normal people are those you don't know very well." Joe Ancis

Don't all businesses have to pay the same taxes? Aren't they in competition with each other? How does having to pay taxes put you at a competitive disadvantage? If you didn't have to pay taxes (or your employees, for that matter) wouldn't the market lower prices accordingly? I thought that's how the free market worked.

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"The only normal people are those you don't know very well." Joe Ancis

Wild Cherry Bar AKA NY Bar. was open today. There were two female bartenders and one man sitting at the bar, I think he was staff. There were around 24 bar stools bellyed up yo the long bar on the right as you enter. There were 3 snall flat screen TVs behind and above the bar, May be more to come?

I also stopped at th e Presidente and ask about the News Cafe. They said it was not to reopen. There will be a lunch type soda opening, Monday, on the Second floor.

SEAHAWK

A 10% increase in an employees wage should result in a 10% increase in taxes to the employer. If the employee makes $100.00 per week and the employer pays 36% tax on that it equals $36.00. Give the employee a 10% paper wage increase, the employee theoretically was already getting the 10% tip it was just not reported as income to the employee, and the tax becomes $39.60. The employers net is a 10% increase. Unless the business was operating on a razor edge of profitability the increase should not cause them to close down as a modest increase on their high profit menu items coupled with some suggestive selling by the wait staff could absorb most of the added cost. Sounds like an excuse rather then a reason.

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Pura Vida
Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four
essential food groups:
alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat.
Alex Levine

no all businesses do not pay the same taxes. not even close. many pay none. and since they are not large enough to be on the radar screen they go largely unnoticed. or as in the case of downtown los angeles they are apparently looking the other way because the poor immigrant businesses need a chance. if they charge tax in these areas its to pocket another ten percent on the purchase.
legitimate business is at a great disadvantage. these same types of businesses forgo licensing and payroll taxes by paying cash to employees.
in this case its news cafe as a restaurant. sure other restaurant entities survive in the same market. but maybe they are just slower to interpret the impact to their business and are in denial of the inevitable. some people take net zero as acceptable these days.
however you look at it business is under siege. easy target.

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im way deep into nothing special
riding the crest of a wave breaking just west of hollywood

I won't beat this to death. But it seems to me you are making a case for stronger enforcement and regulation, not less taxation. I don't think that's your position, though.

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"The only normal people are those you don't know very well." Joe Ancis

if the playing field was level believe me i'm for that. because right now the enforcement and regulation are selective.
and i am for less taxation because if laws were applied equally and things like flat tax ever gained footing the government would have to look for ways to spend the extra money. and we all know they would.

but i really don't think news cafe was run by idiots. like the food or hate the prices but the staff was quick and the place looked great besides having a choice location. got to be over regulation choking them off would be my guess.

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im way deep into nothing special
riding the crest of a wave breaking just west of hollywood