Chef Andre Rochat.
Longtime Las Vegas restaurateur Andre Rochat and three of his businesses filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization Friday to reorganize millions of dollars in debt.
The filings were made in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for Nevada by Rochat, his management company Gastronomy Management Group, Andre’s French Restaurant Inc. at the Monte Carlo hotel-casino and Alize at the Palms hotel-casino. Together these businesses employ about 90 people.
A fourth Rochat business, real estate holding company A&A Inc., had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in January.
Under Chapter 11, struggling businesses can remain open and propose a plan to deal with their debts. Creditors will have an opportunity to participate in the process.
Records show Rochat has been in litigation with Plaza Bank – successor to the failed SouthwestUSA Bank – over allegedly defaulted loans.
In Friday’s personal bankruptcy filing, Rochat listed liabilities of $4.25 million, with much of that appearing to be for personal guarantees for business debt.
His personal assets total nearly $418,000, the filing says.
Key creditors include Plaza Bank, with claims of more than $2.3 million; and a Mary Jane Jarvis, owed $560,000 as an arrearage on an executory contract.
The filing for Andre’s at the Monte Carlo indicates it lost $290,000 last year while Alize at the Palms lost about $93,000 last year.
Records show the signature Andre’s restaurant at 401 S. 6th St. in downtown Las Vegas was in business from 1978 to 2009.
Joseph Marsco, director of operations and managing partner at Gastronomy, on Friday said the 2010 losses at the two high-end restaurants primarily resulted from them being over-leveraged during a period of economic difficulty.
He said the Rochat restaurants are on track to become profitable, they have good relationships with the Monte Carlo and the Palms and that the bankruptcy filings were necessary after efforts to resolve financial issues out of court were not successful.
"The restaurants are doing well. Everything is moving in an exciting direction," Marsco said.
The company’s key issue appears to be the Plaza Bank loans and previous efforts by the bank to foreclose on the former downtown restaurant property, as well as its claim Rochat may be liable for any deficiency balance under his personal guarantees.
Last month, an attorney for Rochat asked the bankruptcy court for permission to sell the building for $595,000 – a price Plaza Bank wants to investigate as its latest appraisals for the building came in substantially higher.
The bankruptcy court has not yet ruled on the sale issue.