Former Wash Park Grille and Agave Taco Bar Workers to Receive 7K in Wage Theft Settlement

Former Wash Park Grille and Agave Taco Bar Workers to Receive $117K in Wage Theft Settlement

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Fifty-Six Former Workers Secure $117K Wage Theft Settlement After Denver Restaurants Collapse

Nearly two years after claiming they were left unpaid following the restaurant’s closure, fifty-six former employees of the shuttered Wash Park Grille and Agave Taco Bar are finally collecting what they are owed. Denver Labor, a division of the Denver Auditor’s Office, announced a $117,244 settlement this week following a wage theft investigation into the restaurants’ ownership. The payout provides full back pay plus an additional 70% in damages, averaging out to $2,093 for every worker left empty-handed when the spots dissolved.

For Tyler McDonald, a server who worked at the Old South Gaylord Street Italian mainstay from September 2023 until its final doors closed, the resolution marks the end of a long and stressful ordeal. When the business was seized for a second time by the city in early 2025 over unpaid taxes, McDonald stood outside on the sidewalk staring at the newly fitted chains. Going weeks without a paycheck through Christmas and New Year’s left him scrambling to cover rent in an unforgiving Denver housing market.

The neighborhood anchor had operated successfully since 1997, launched by Jeff Estey and Greg Sauber. But that run fractured entirely following Sauber’s sudden death in 2022. A legal battle subsequently erupted when Sauber’s estate sued Estey in 2024 over an unfulfilled succession plan tied to life insurance funds meant to buy out Sauber’s stake in the business. Amid the mounting litigation and financial strain, the restaurants briefly attempted a holiday reopening before shuttering for good in February 2025.

Wash park grill
Photo: westword.com

When Owners Go Silent, Paper Trails Prove Decisive

While Estey told reporters at the time of the closure that he desperately wanted to clear his debts and avoid bankruptcy, workers quickly found themselves facing a brick wall. According to statements from Denver Labor executive director Matthew Fritz-Mauer, the other owner ignored city requests for information and claimed he simply did not possess records from the final pay periods in question. Compounding the betrayal, workers discovered that tips they had earned during the holiday stretch had vanished along with their wages.

Left with no employer payroll logs, the investigation relied heavily on grassroots record-keeping. Investigators credited the success of the case to the employees themselves, who compared notes and preserved their own physical pay stubs, tip logs, and receipts.

“Workers should keep paystubs and receipts, calculate tips and log hours, because, unfortunately, some business owners do not hold on to these records. When wage theft happens, a worker’s own records may be the only proof of what they earned,” Matthew Fritz-Mauer noted in announcements.

Auditor spokesman Michael Brannen emphasized that wage theft remains a pervasive issue across Denver's hospitality sector, making self-advocacy and meticulous personal documentation essential for workers dealing with sudden business abandonments.

A Neighborhood Transformed as City Enforcement Ramps Up

The physical footprints of the defunct restaurants have already undergone a complete change. Last year, the building at 1096 S. Gaylord St. was sold to Aaron Grant and Kris Johnson for $6 million. The space has since been remodeled and reopened as Wash Park Social.

Wash park grille workers win after owner ignored pay records requests
Photo: hoodline.com

The enforcement action against the Wash Park Grille ownership falls under a broader wave of local labor accountability. Denver formally adopted its Civil Wage Theft Ordinance in January 2023, equipping the city’s auditor division with sharp enforcement mechanisms to pursue back pay across local nightlife and service industries. In 2025 alone, Denver Labor recovered roughly $2.31 million in back pay and penalties through similar municipal investigations.

Estey did not respond to multiple requests for comment regarding the final settlement figures. Meanwhile, the former employees who spent years serving regulars on Old South Gaylord Street are closing a painful chapter, turning a hard-learned lesson in personal record-keeping into actual financial recovery.

Earlier coverage: Former Wash Park Grille Employees Awarded $117,000 in Unpaid Wages and Damages

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