‘They deserve a break’: Louisville restaurant owners treat employees to Vegas trip

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - The owners of a Highlands restaurant decided to give their employees a special thank you for keeping their customers fed during the COVID pandemic — a trip to Las Vegas.

The staff of Ramen House will be in Sin City this week, and the restaurant will be closed, according to a Facebook post by the owners.

“Sorry we are closed this week... our employees have worked so hard and diligently through all the crazy times we went through. They deserve a break,” the post reads.

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Several Ramen House employees were pictured waiting at the boarding gate in the post. Jonathan Ham, owner of Ramen House, said nearly a dozen employees went on the trip and that he used his own finances to buy their plane tickets and lodging. There were some employees who couldn’t go, but Ham said they received bonuses.

“I just don’t think it should be all about the money,” Ham said. “It should be about the relationships that we build. For the most part, all of my people love working for this restaurant. They believe in it and they all have that accountability where they feel like it’s part of them and that’s what I wanted to instill and this is just a thank you gesture.”

Customers praised the owners for their appreciation and respect for their employees in the comments.

“I already loved y’all’s food but this is amazing, thank you for showing your employees you appreciate them!” one customer wrote.

“You all are even more awesome than I thought,” another patron wrote.

Others who had never been to Ramen House said they were excited to support the restaurant because of the treatment of their employees.

“Never had your food, but definitely will. I love a business that values and appreciates their employees,” one person wrote.

“I got choked up yesterday seeing all the support, just all of the messages, people telling us they love us and they’re going to support us,” Ham said. “It was awesome.”

According to the restaurant’s Facebook page, the Ramen House staff also took a kayaking trip together in April.

“We all stuck together as a group,” Ham said, “and were like we’re going to get through this together.”

Ramen House will open again next week for regular business hours.

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