Matriarch restaurant in Uptown embroiled in legal disputes after closing

Matriarch left a trail of legal disputes and alleged unpaid bills when the Uptown vegan restaurant closed after only two months of operation.

Owner Michelle Courtright, who also owned Fig + Farro, is in a dispute with the landlord. An eviction trial is set for October.

Multiple former business associates and employees said she also owes thousands in unpaid wages, contractor fees and business debts.

The restaurant at 1601 W. Lake St. closed two weeks ago after the landlord, Kashi Associates LLC, filed an eviction suit in Hennepin County District Court on Aug. 8 against Jane Enterprises, the parent company of Matriarch.

The lawsuit claims Kashi never signed a lease to allow Matriarch to occupy the space and the restaurant now owes $33,000 in unpaid rent.

Courtright disputes that, saying she has talked with the landlord since striking a deal to take over the space from Pinoli, a Kim Bartmann-run eatery. Bartmann’s company Placemaker Hospitality announced the restaurant’s closure in April.

A spokesperson from the city of Minneapolis Community Planning and Economic Development department said Courtright submitted a request Thursday to withdraw Matriarch’s restaurant license and refund the remaining portion of the fee.

Joshua Hochstatter, who served as chief operating officer for Jane Enterprises and previously worked with Courtright at Fig + Farro, said Courtright stopped paying vendors, contractors and staff, adding she was “short on funds” from the start.

“She was running out of money and not paying her vendors, not paying the landlord rent, not paying Kim Bartmann for purchasing the restaurant from her, not paying her contractors, not paying me,” said Hochstatter, who resigned in late July. “She didn’t pay me for all of June and most of July and my reimbursements.”

Courtright on Wednesday said her staff has been “paid in full despite the financial hardship of closing.” She said she also has created payment plans with the companies she owes money.

“As [the companies] know, we struggled mid-summer as we were not able to have our lease and liquor license signed off on by the landlord, and we have all been in close weekly contact with smaller payments,” she said.

However, Hochstatter said he is owed approximately $25,000 and has filed a case with the Department of Labor. Other employees, as well as some vendors, also told the Star Tribune they still weren’t paid.

Hochstatter’s relationship with Courtright dates back to 2018 when he worked as general manager at Fig + Farro, highlighting how even successful restaurants can experience dicey finances.

Courtright eliminated his job after seven months because she couldn’t afford his salary, he said.

“I should have known better,” Hochstatter said about coming back to work for her. “It’s a bit of a pattern.”

Courtright said one of the reasons she did not pay rent was because her landlord did not fix a severe leak.

Ashish Aggarwal, who manages the property for Kashi Associates, disputed Courtright’s claims about the lease terms and roof repairs, describing the arrangement as a lease assignment from Bartmann to Courtright.

The eviction suit claims Courtright stopped paying rent after initially providing a security deposit and one month’s payment. Aggarwal said he repaired the roof as a courtesy to the restaurant, according to emails reviewed by the Minnesota Star Tribune. But Courtright said the roof continued to leak.

Courtright said the unfixed roof caused the business “irreparable financial damage” and that is why her company is “pursuing this publicly in a trial to make sure all facts are shown with full transparency.”

Leases will often state that roofs are structural maintenance items and are the landlord’s responsibility to replace. But landlords can also list roof maintenance as common area responsibilities, making it the tenant’s responsibility, according to Lee Krueger, owner of Krueger Real Estate Advisors and former president of the St. Paul Port Authority.

“Whether or not people can agree to what would be considered industry standards, documents will govern. In this case, it’s very complicated if they can’t even agree if a deal is in place,” Krueger said.

An Aug. 10 inspection report by the Minneapolis Health Department found “no active leaking of the ceiling observed as there was no rain at the time of [the] visit.” Based on staff feedback and videos, the inspection ordered the roof be repaired by Sept. 11.