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Reddit users are tracking which Los Angeles restaurants are adding sneaky service charges

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:42 GMT

Unexpected service charges have become a point of growing frustration for restaurant goers in recent years. Anything from undisclosed gratuities, convenience fees or "health insurance" fees have been slowly making their way onto more and more restaurant bills, leaving many consumers confused, annoyed and, oftentimes, downright livid.Many of the unexpected fees are being tacked on after you've already completed your meal and given the server your card to settle the bill. They are usually listed at the very bottom of the itemized receipt, and often accompanied by an explanation that the additional fees are separate from any tips provided to the server or cooking staff.The frustration about the ongoing sneaky service charges has led to a grassroots effort on Reddit to track (and sometime shame) restaurants that are tacking on extra charges.The Los Angeles subreddit — the name for the mini-forums dedicated to specific topics — has seen dozens of posts regarding which restaurants in the ...

Renowned muralist tapped by health organization to celebrate beauty of Inland Empire

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:42 GMT

A not-for-profit health insurer based in Rancho Cucamonga has partnered with a renowned muralist to collaborate on several murals that will celebrate the beauty of the Inland Empire.Inland Empire Health Plan, one of the nation's largest not-for-profit health insurers that provides Medicare and Medicaid plans, has hired Juan Navarro, a Mexican-American artist, to design and paint several murals that highlight the "tapestry that makes the Inland Empire special."Navarro is the artist-in-residence at Riverside Art Museum and has previously partnered with local groups to "create informed, collaborative, and relevant public art for specific neighborhoods and initiatives." He has more than 15 public works on display in communities across the area, and is the owner and operator of the Eastside Arthouse. From left, artists Juan Navarro and Robert Cervantes work to complete a mural at IEHP headquarters in Rancho Cucamonga as part of an in-progress rebranding campaign. He recently visited the ...

Amex and Resy will pick up your dinner bill in L.A. for limited-time

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:42 GMT

Angelenos will be able to eat at certain restaurants for free or at a discounted price, courtesy of American Express and Resy, beginning on Aug. 9.Resy, a restaurant reservation website, and American Express have partnered to work on Resy’s Tastemakers. This new initiative aims to introduce Gen Z and Millennials to local restaurants in their areas and give small businesses that have impacted their communities a platform. This is the ‘best’ place to get eggs Benedict in California, according to Yelp “Big ideas come from small restaurants, and throughout August, we’ll help a new generation of diners discover the places that influence the way we eat and drink,” Pablo Rivero, CEO of Resy and vice president of Dining for American Express, said in a statement.Starting on Aug. 9, the two companies will pick up the check at these local L.A. restaurants. Aug. 9Harold and Belle’sAug.16Great WhiteAug.23KismetAug.30MadreTo take advantage of the new initiative, diners would need to make reserv...

New San Jose law would ban homeless encampments and RVs near schools

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:42 GMT

Standing in front of a dozen tarp-covered RVs along Education Park Drive in East San Jose, Mayor Matt Mahan and Councilmember Peter Ortiz proposed new rules on Thursday to prohibit homeless encampments and vehicle dwellings within 150 feet of a school or daycare in the city.The new ordinance, which would also include preschools, is the first time the mayor has officially proposed limitations on where the city’s homeless can reside — and is in line with suggestions he voiced earlier this year on stricter rules surrounding encampments and RVs.The latest proposal is similar to a set of guidelines passed by the city council in 2021 — but this time would codify the rules — almost certainly allowing law enforcement increased latitude when it comes to making abatements. Pressure ramped up this year after students at KIPP San Jose Collegiate, a high school in East San Jose, claim homeless residents who have settled around the area are breaking into the school’s...

Mistrial declared in San Jose State athletic trainer trial

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:42 GMT

SAN JOSE – A mistrial was declared Thursday in the trial of San Jose State’s former head athletic trainer accused of sexually assaulting female athletes during treatment sessions.The jury deadlocked after four days of deliberations.Scott Shaw, who resigned in 2020 a decade after complaints against him first emerged, hugged his mother when the jury left and the two broke into tears.The decision came hours after U.S. District Judge Beth Labson Freeman told jurors to not to “bully or antagonize each other.”“I hope whatever discomfort you felt, that you leave with goodwill toward each other,” she told the jury, “and none of it was personal.”It wasn’t clear Thursday whether prosecutors would continue to pursue the case.The abrupt ending to the proceedings capped two weeks of testimony where former female athletes broke into tears as they testified how they were “internally freaking out,” “frozen” or had “every alarm” going off when Shaw touched t...

Leah Remini forced to make amends to Tom Cruise after Katie Holmes wedding: Scientology lawsuit

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:42 GMT

In a new lawsuit alleging abusive practices by the Church of Scientology, Leah Remini has implicated Tom Cruise in the top rungs of power in the controversial organization, saying he was “essentially second in command” and describing how she was forced to apologize to him and donate money to his favorite Scientology causes after she was accused of upsetting his 2006 wedding to Katie Holmes by asking about the whereabouts of leader David Miscavige’s wife.Remini also alleged that she had to make amends to Cruise by donating money in honor of his daughter, Suri Cruise. The “King of Queens” actor said it has long been considered “a High Crime in Scientology to criticize (Tom) in any way,” while noting that Miscavige told an audience of Scientologists at a 2004 gala in England that Cruise was “the most dedicated Scientologist I know.”Leah Remini arrives at the 15th Annual DesignCare on Saturday, July 27, 2013 in Malibu, Calif. (Photo by Ric...

49ers training camp: Mitchell is out, but Kinlaw is flourishing and Shanahan is done worrying about Purdy

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:42 GMT

SANTA CLARA — The 49ers’ quest for a relatively free training camp has mostly been met with good news.Brock Purdy is throwing the ball well enough that coach Kyle Shanahan has ceased to even worry about his surgically repaired throwing shoulder.“That’s completely off my mind,” Shanahan said Thursday following a relatively brief 49ers practice. “He’s healed. He’s healthy. Guys have to get in throwing shape and they have to play and get used to that, but I’m not thinking about the injury anymore.”Two players with extensive injury histories came back from the off day with different outcomes. Running back Elijah Mitchell is out a week or more with a thigh strain, but defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw continued an encouraging trend by participating in his seventh straight practice with no restrictions.Mitchell, limited to four games and 45 carries for 279 yards a year ago with two MCL strains, also missed five games during a rookie ...

Texas A&M settles with Black journalism professor for $1M

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:42 GMT

By Jim Vertuno | Associated PressAUSTIN, Texas — Texas A&M University reached a $1 million settlement Thursday with a Black journalism professor whose hiring was sabotaged by backlash over her past work promoting diversity.The nation’s largest public school agreed to pay Kathleen McElroy and apologized to her while admitting “mistakes were made during the hiring process.”Texas A&M, which is located in College Station, about 90 miles (144 kilometers) northwest of Houston, initially welcomed McElroy with great fanfare to revive its journalism department in June. A former New York Times editor and Texas A&M alum, McElroy had overseen the journalism school at A&M’s rival — the more liberal University of Texas at Austin.But McElroy told the Texas Tribune last month that soon after her hiring, she learned of emerging internal pushback from then-unidentified individuals over her past work to improve diversity and inclusion in newsrooms.According to i...

40-acre fire threatening structures in South Bay

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:42 GMT

(KRON) -- A fire in the South Bay has grown to 40 acres and is threatening structures, Cal Fire said Wednesday. The fire is at Clayton Road and Via de la Vista, which is east of San Jose. Fire officials reported the fire on Twitter at 2:56 p.m. Approximately 70 San Jose Fire Department personnel are at the scene and a unified command has been established with Cal Fire, according to SJFD. The fire has been dubbed the "Clayton Fire." Seventy San Jose firefighters are at the scene. This is a developing story. Stick with us for updates.

Benicia man who arranged to meet boy for sex must register as sex offender

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:51:42 GMT

(KRON) -- A Benicia man who arranged to meet a minor to engage in illegal sex acts has been sentenced, according to the Contra Costa County District Attorney's Office. William Michael Gogas, 34, will serve one year in county jail and be required to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.During a one-week trial, evidence was presented demonstrating that on or about Dec. 9, 2021, Gogas knowingly engaged in sexually explicit text messages with a person he thought was a 13-year-old boy. Man accused of holding woman in cinder block cell lived in Bay Area The person was in fact an undercover Contra Costa County Sheriff's Office detective.Further evidence demonstrated that Gogas arranged to meet the boy in Martinez to engage in sex acts. When he arrived at the meeting location, Gogas was taken into custody by members of the Contra Costa County Safe Streets Task Force and charged in a criminal complaint.In May of 2023, a jury convicted Gogas of arranging to meet a minor for s...