Business & Tech

More Than $20,000 Owed in Rent at Steve's Deli

The former deli space in Pacific Palisades is a community bulletin board, while its former owner Steve Taub faces some serious questions.

The space formerly known as Steve's Deli has become a community bulletin board on Swarthmore Avenue in Pacific Palisades.

The latest notice, dated May 22, comes from the law firm Allen Matkins. Addressed to Lenny's Deli Inc., it states the deli's former owner Steve Taub owes approximately $20,000 in unpaid rent.

A photo of the notice was first Tweeted to Pali Patch by @gpreger on Monday, May 27. It was ripped down from the deli's front door by Tuesday, May 28, yet it managed to get attached to this post.

Calls made to the deli go straight to an automated message and efforts to reach to Taub for comment have not been returned.

A call made Wednesday to Lenny Rosenberg at Lenny's Deli in Westwood was not immediately returned. Rosenberg was business partners for years with Taub until they abruptly parted ways in early 2013.

Since the May 10 post of Steve's Deli closing, a former employee, who wished to remain anonymous, told Patch they were fired by Taub after contacting the Department of Labor to discuss "illegal business practices," including accusations of wage violations.

The mail piled up at the front door of 1035 Swarthmore throughout May, while local Palisades groups who used Taub's space, such as Weight Watchers and the Republican Club, posted notices on the front glass of the building.

Members working in an ad hoc group to form the Pacific Palisades Business Improvement District who began holding their regular meetings in The Oak Room (next to Steve's Deli which also closed in 2013) have since relocated. A group member told Patch Taub has not been attending for awhile.

Based on comments from previous Patch posts and on Facebook, Taub owned Westside businesses prior to the Palisades, including working as a car salesman. A quick search reveals a Yelp page and posts from 2009 and 2010 asking why his Porsche dealership in Santa Monica closed.

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