Beat Kitchen takes Chicago to federal court

Chicago restaurant owner Robert Gomez is suing Chicago in federal court, claiming the city used race to end his lease on the Riverwalk.

Chicago restaurant owner Robert Gomez is suing Chicago in federal court, alleging his restaurant was unlawfully removed from the Riverwalk when the city decided it wanted a Black-owned business to take over his space.

The lawsuit claims Chicago violated the U.S. Constitution, federal civil rights law and city procurement rules when it denied Beat Kitchen the ability to continue operating on the Riverwalk. The complaint alleges the Riverwalk Selection Committee favored another vendor based on race, awarding them the lease even though they didn’t apply by the deadline.

“When I filed Freedom of Information Act requests, I found out I was the only on-time applicant,” Gomez said previously. “They reached out to someone else that had applied for a different, smaller kiosk, and gave them the space.”

He said his proposal offered $1.4 million to the city during a five-year period. His competitor offered $52,000, but the city scored them higher in that category.

Gomez said the case belongs in federal court because the Riverwalk was built using federal funding, which requires a neutral and competitive vendor selection process.

The lawsuit follows an earlier case filed in Cook County and asks the court to order a lawful reissuance of the Riverwalk request for proposals. Gomez operated Beat Kitchen on the Riverwalk from 2019 through 2023.

Despite delays caused by city management and the COVID-19 pandemic, Beat Kitchen performed well and showed continued growth.

When the lease ended in November 2023, the city waited until March 2024 to reopen bidding and gave applicants one month to apply. Gomez submitted the only on-time proposal and continued paying about $180,000 in costs while waiting for a decision.

A city spokesman previously told ABC 7 reporters it doesn’t comment when there is pending litigation.