Horn BBQ Lawsuit: Wages, Equity Claim, and Closures

The Horn BBQ lawsuits and legal claims against Matt Horn and his Oakland-based restaurant group have grown into a sprawling pattern of wage theft filings, supplier suits, a lender action, evictions, and a Private Attorneys General Act notice, with 23 unpaid wage claims filed across Oakland, the Sacramento area, and Fresno, and total debts a spokesperson has acknowledged at “less than $500,000.”¹²

Wage Theft Claims by Former Employees

The wage claims are the largest single category of legal action against Horn Barbecue. At least five former employees filed with the California Labor Commissioner’s Office between 2022 and mid-2024, and the total across all Horn locations reached 23 by mid-2026, with only four closed, settled, or dismissed.¹²

Several early claims involved smaller sums. Adam Lawrence, who worked at Kowbird, alleged $14,000 in unpaid wages and settled. Jonathon Hill alleged $14,500 in late and bounced checks plus unpaid sick time. Danielle Craig filed a $7,000 claim that was dismissed. Solomon Stuart had a pending claim for unpaid work.¹

The largest individual claim came from Richard Lupio, Horn Barbecue’s former pit lead, who filed in May 2024. Lupio alleged he had been misclassified as a salaried employee and sought more than $200,000 in unpaid overtime, double time, missed break penalties, and withheld tips covering September 2020 to March 2023. His wife, Priscilla Elliott, who worked as an HR contractor, filed a separate retaliation complaint alleging she was fired for raising concerns about bounced paychecks and missed employee meal breaks. Horn’s spokesperson Sam Singer called the claims “false” and “absolute fiction.”¹³

In January 2026, former kitchen manager Francisco Berber filed a PAGA notice under California’s Private Attorneys General Act, accusing Horn Barbecue of a “repeated and continuous practice of blatantly stealing from its employees.” Berber alleged he was never paid for his hours at the Oakland location in early 2025 and had previously filed a separate wage theft lawsuit in Alameda County Superior Court, which Horn denied. The PAGA action remains pending.⁴

The pattern followed the business south. When Horn opened in Fresno in January 2026, roughly a dozen employees quit within five months over wage complaints, and 12 unpaid wage claims were filed with the state Labor Commissioner. Former dishwasher Jonathan Franco alleged 51 hours of unpaid wages and more than $350 in withheld tips, and said his first paycheck bounced. Horn Barbecue attributed payroll delays to “financial challenges” from a delayed opening.²⁵

Bounced paychecks trace back further. Eight current and former employees told SFGate in October 2022 that checks had been bouncing since October 2021, which Horn attributed to identity theft triggering bank verification procedures. The restaurant reportedly had to wire $5,800 to its payroll processor Toast that month simply to unfreeze payroll.⁶³

Supplier and Lender Lawsuits

Vendors and lenders have pursued Horn Barbecue for unpaid invoices and loans on several fronts.

Golden Gate Meat Company, a Richmond family business, sued in August 2022 for $87,877 in unpaid meat invoices. The case settled, with Horn Barbecue agreeing to pay $83,000 to cover damages, attorney fees, and related costs.⁷⁸

By 2024, the San Francisco Chronicle reported additional obligations to other suppliers and lenders:

Bi-Rite, settled for $95,000.¹
Cooks Company Produce, a San Francisco distributor that won a $64,500 default judgment in Alameda County court in March 2024 over unpaid invoices.⁹
GrubMarket, an alleged debt of $89,000.¹
Fuji West Funding, which sued in Kings County Supreme Court in New York in March 2024. The lender alleged Horn Barbecue stopped making payments on a $46,000 loan and intentionally blocked bank withdrawals, and sought $43,000. The case remains pending.¹¹⁰⁴

Singer told the Chronicle in 2024 that total outstanding debt was “less than $500,000” but declined to give a precise figure.¹

The Stanford Professor’s Equity Lawsuit

Separate from the wage and vendor claims is the suit brought by David Kyuman Kim, a Stanford professor who heads the university’s Center for Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity and had served as president of Horn Hospitality Group. Kim said he helped secure permits, bring in investors, and facilitate leases for Kowbird and the then-unbuilt Matty’s Old Fashioned.¹¹

Kim filed suit in September 2021, alleging Horn failed to compensate him for his work and never delivered a promised 5% equity stake in exchange for a $3,000 investment and his labor. The suit also alleged Horn went nearly a year without paying Kim’s promised salary and delayed reimbursement of a $26,000 business expense. Kim said that when he rejected a lowball salary offer in March 2022, he was demoted, replaced as president by Juanita Horn, and eventually fired. Horn denied in court filings that any employment relationship existed.¹¹

The case settled for $300,000. Kim’s attorney Jim Hinds said Horn made an initial payment and then stopped. Nina Horn stated in a legal filing that four payments were made between November 2022 and June 2023 totaling more than $150,000. A judge ordered Horn to pay the remaining balance with interest, plus a $10,000 fee for failing to comply with the settlement. As of mid-2024, the two sides had reached a new confidential payment schedule.¹

Evictions and Closures Across California

The financial and legal pressure has closed nearly every Horn location. The original West Oakland restaurant on Mandela Parkway was severely damaged by a November 2023 fire that Horn called arson. In March 2024, he confirmed it would not reopen, citing fire damage, vandalism, graffiti, stripping of piping and electrical systems, unauthorized individuals living in the building, and the theft of the restaurant van’s engine.¹²¹³

Three expansion locations followed a similar arc:

Elk Grove. The Sacramento-area restaurant opened in spring 2025 at a former Slow & Low space on Railroad Street. In January 2026, landlord D&S Development repossessed the building after months of unpaid rent. Broker Scott Kingston said Horn had simply stopped paying.¹⁴¹⁵

Lafayette. The Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office posted an eviction notice on the door on February 5, 2026. Property owner David Roberson said the space “will not reopen as Horn Barbecue nor anyone affiliated with Matt Horn.” The liquor license, still registered under the prior tenant’s name, was suspended by the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration due to a collections hold. Horn’s representative blamed obligations left by the previous tenant; James Dailey of All the Smoke BBQ, who had subleased the space to Horn, disputed that characterization and said he planned to take legal action.¹⁶

Fresno. The newest location lasted barely five months. A notice to vacate was posted in June 2026 requiring the business to leave by June 17, 2026. The building had been listed for sale since April, and the location was also the site of the 12 wage claims described above.²

What Remains Open

As of June 2026, Horn Barbecue’s website lists only its downtown Oakland location at 464 8th Street as operational, Wednesday through Sunday. Its status is uncertain. The Fresno Bee described it as the sole remaining open restaurant, but earlier in 2026 a Horn representative called it “temporarily” closed, and property owner David Roberson told the Chronicle it would not reopen under Horn’s name.¹⁷¹³²

Of the 23 unpaid wage claims filed against Horn’s businesses, only four have been closed, settled, or dismissed. The Berber PAGA action filed in January 2026 is pending, as is the Fuji West Funding suit in New York.²⁴

1
San Francisco Chronicle. Horn Barbecue Oakland
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Fresno Bee. Horn Barbecue Fresno Location Shuts Down
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Eater SF. Horn Barbecue Matt Lawsuits Wage Theft Richard Lupio
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Yahoo News. Unpaid Rent, At Least One Closure
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San Joaquin Valley Sun. Horn Barbecue Turns Hype to Heat as Employees Quit Over Bounced Checks, Unpaid Wages
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SFGate. Horn Barbecue Accused of Unsafe Conditions
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Eater SF. Horn BBQ Lawsuit Costco Meat
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The Oaklandside. West Oakland Horn Barbecue Will Not Reopen After Fire
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Mercury News. Horn BBQ Restaurant Won’t Reopen in West Oakland Amid New Legal Troubles
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UniCourt. Fuji West Funding LLC v. Horn Barbecue Mandela LLC et al
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San Francisco Chronicle. Horn Barbecue Lawsuit Settled
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KRON4. West Oakland’s Horn Barbecue to Close Permanently
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SFist. Horn Barbecue Now Has No Bay Area Locations, Lafayette Closed
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Forbes. Horn Barbecue Opens in Elk Grove With Full Bar and New Menu Additions
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Sacramento Bee. Horn Barbecue Elk Grove Location Repossessed
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San Francisco Chronicle. Horn Barbecue Eviction Lafayette
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Horn Barbecue. Locations and Hours