Deadbeat restaurants owe more than $14 million for health-code violations, and the city has found that collecting the fines is as difficult as scoring a reservation at Nobu.
Among the restaurants and nightclubs that have not paid up are the Rainbow Room, Cipriani Dolci and Cipriani 42nd Street – all owned by the tax-troubled Cipriani family.
Also on the list are Bungalow 8; Orchard Street bar Tuts; and Blue 9 Burger, which has failed to pay its $13,600 tab, according to a review of Health Department records obtained by The Post.
The department sends dunning letters to the deadbeats, eventually turning them over to a collection agency. The slackers who want to stay in business must fork over the dough to renew their yearly operating permits.
But numerous eateries close and simply skip out on their debt.
Brooklyn landmark Lundy’s closed last year with a debt of $9,450 and the iconic Moondance Diner was carted off to Wyoming in 2007, owing $10,100.
Health Department officials say collecting from defunct restaurants is tough.
Almost 3,700 owners of restaurants, bakeries, clubs and take-out establishments owed a collective $14 million for just fiscal years 2006 and 2007 alone.
“I had other expenses that really took precedence,” said Carmela London, an owner of Mitchel London Foods, which owes $6,800. “This is next on my list to pay.”
Muhammad Zishan, the owner of Blue 9 Burger, said the fines were incurred by the last owner. The previous owner hung up the phone when contacted.
A Cipriani spokesman could not offer an explanation for why the Rainbow Room still owed $50; Cipriani Dolci, $2,050; and Cipriani 42nd Street, $800. A manager at Bungalow 8 said he was unaware until Friday that the celebrity-studded club owed $300. A man who answered the phone at Tuts said he expected to pay his $4,400 bill “in a very short time.”
Restaurants are inspected at least once a year and the city got tougher last year after the videotaped rat-fest inside a Village KFC/Taco Bell.
But while they can close an eatery down for filth, inspectors do not close it for unpaid fines.
Fines start at $200 per violation and can go up to $2,000. A $50 late fee is added after 30 days; $50 more after two months.